NPR: Obama Admin. Official- F-16's Could Have Gone to Benghazi from Aviano, Italy

Tell Der Black Fuhrer that there is a new invention called the airplane.

It no longer takes more than seven hours to travel six hundred miles.

 

Ok Ill give you my creds, remember that movie 'the expendables 2'? Im the guy throwing the knives around, current total 30 knife kills ....

Or perhaps Im a terminator from the future spending my time on forums in between jobs.

Either way, who are you to say different? Get it?

Look in the end you may have some relevant experience, maybe youve done a course or two, an exercise even, shot many rounds down at the range from various systems, but for what its worth even most military guys have little actual experience because if they did then things would really have hit the fan. And governments generally dont really want that.

And lastly, most real military guys are nevertheless repectful of their government even if they didnt vote for them. Its part of the code of service, in my country its called the unspoken convenant between the British soldier and the Queen's government. Its a sense of professionalism and honour that prevents us from referring to the government as the regime.

 

Ok fair enough. Perhaps youll have changed your tone by then. But I doubt it.

 

Funny stuff.

 

I'm not sure what that has to do with the refueling of F-16's except that you always feel the need to respond whether it makes sense or not.

 

Id like to get to your accusation for a moment Don. While at heart I know youre a true conservative and seldom have a decent word to say of Obama or the dems its still worth taking a look at your accusations;

So Im getting that really youre saying that Obama;

Could have sent assets to help, and knew he could, but didnt for fear of either killing and/ or offending muslims.

Had a hand in making sure that those people in the area who could have helped did not for fear of killing muslims.

Then tried to pretend that the whole attack was a riot about a video rather when in fact you think it was only about a pre planned terrorist attack re 9/11 for fear of again offending muslims.

1. Given this great fear of offending muslims, why do you think Obama's foreign policy spends so much time offending muslims by invading their airspace in Pakistan and blowing them up?

2. Why is it that Obama is setting records in military support to Israel?

3. Why has he produced record sanctions on Iran?

4. In fact why did Obama topple the Islamist aligned Ghaddfy who coloured his flag green and sported quranic slogans at every rally in the final days of his despotism?

 

You don't need NPR to help you look at a map.

F-16s from Aviano (near Trieste) could (with tankers) reach Benghazi in a couple hours flying time.

F-16s from Sigonella (Sicily) could reach Benghazi in fifteen minutes flying time and would not need tankers.

There are F-16s stationed at both Aviano and Sigonella.

When our people are being attacked, why should we care about civilians?

Obama left Americans to die without support.

 

I think he withheld aid in the form of air support. I don't know about withholding aid on the ground.

Obama has made the Arab Spring and the Muslim Brotherhood part of his foreign policy. Pakistanis are not Arabs.

Because he was rebuffed by Iran and he wants the American Jewish vote.

See above. I would also add that sanctions give him political cover from not using a military response.

Arabs and Muslims put Islamist slogans all over their flags. Why does the Saudi flag have a sword on it?

 

That's why he couldn't give a straight answer. He withheld aid and Americans died.


[video=youtube;Zc2tH4mAXHk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc2tH4mAXHk[/video]

 

Obama spent a $Billion$ in taxpayers money to get those assclowns into power in Libya, then they turn around and attack us and kill 4 Americans. Obama's administration is as big of a failure on foreign policy as they are on jobs and the economy.

 

Thank you, you really really think Obama would rather his ambassador was dead than some arabs were?

Indeed, arab spring etc, does that mean that a sitting president would really be prepared to see his diplomats dead? Is not violently defending them in anyones mind the sort of thing that would preserve the arab spring or is that not just a bizarre and stretched point to stand on?

And arent pakistanis still muslims and therefore still part of the umma which most ust arab muslims give so much concern for and is indeed a reason for our current 'war on terror?'

Isnt the fate of muslims in the area of pakistan and afghanistan the reason OBL (an arab) went to war in the first place? If he didnt see a difference then arent you really just making a false distinction and in fact Obama is quite willing to offend muslims anywhere should the need arise?

His support for israel in real terms has never waivered and this was before any Iranian rebuttal was it not?

Do you really think his reluctance to bomb iran is about appeasing muslims?

Is that not the same for every world politician as it gives everyone in the world another choice rather than this last resort which must be paid for blood and treasure which the US does not have?

Indeed of course they do, and this demonstrates their commitment to islam. And indeed obama toppled an islamic dictator. Dont you think he could have and did offend some muslims by toppling Ghaddafy?

 

Do you mean the National Council?

If so dont you think you should have bigger cohones when it comes to dealing with matters? For example we british know we were right to push for his overthrow and we're glad he is dead. Thats even if we lose people. For us that is courage both moral and physical - the courage to stand your ground for what is right - do you have that?

And are you really saying Ghaddfy was the better bet and if so are you really a true American?

 

Which, in fact, shows that you didn't know. So what are the assumptions that go into the combat radius?
Are you assuming that an aircraft has to return to its point of origin? You do. Planners do not have to accept that restriction.
Give the absence of an air threat why wouldn't the aircraft go to altitude and fly to the combat area?
And why wouldn't we allow aerial refueling?

The combat radius is a shortcut. Nothing more.

 

I am willing to make the bet that I have more understanding of our military capabilities although I retired in 1995 than any one of the political advisors on the one term Marxist's team.

 

The sad part is Woods was illuminating the mortar position with a laser designator when he died, waiting for the bomb or missile help that would never arrive.

 

Earlier I wrote, "Given that you so easily discount my twenty years of commissioned officer time how much time in the Army do you consider to be the minimum before you give credit for "on the job" time?

Except for those whose heads have been stuck so far up the president's posterior they can only see out when he opens his mouth anyone can gain a good grasp of the essential facts."

Do I seem upset?

Okay.

Explain. Where do you believe my knowledge is lacking?

While on active duty I could not speak out against someone like the one term Marxist. I am no longer in uniform. I once again have my full complement of Constitutional rights.

We swear to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. The domestic part? That is the one term Marxist, flexible with our enemies, apologist to Islamist radicals, president Barack Hussein Obama. He is the greatest danger to the Constitution I have experienced.

I am retired. I am no longer a soldier. I am a citizen.

An active duty officer is muzzled. I am not.

 

Are you keeping us in suspense for a reason?

While on active duty I was not allowed to express my displeasure with such boneheads as Carter and Clinton.

I am no longer on active duty. I am a citizen who happens to be a retired Army officer. I do not give up my Constitutional rights because I have served my Nation.

Your creds are in doubt.

 

Sure. You have nothing. I get it.

Sure. Twenty years of relevant experience. Do you believe we only learn when we are in combat? I attended the usual career schools including the Command and General Staff Officer Course. I have served at many levels from platoon leader, through S2 intelligence staff officer at battalion and brigade level, the on to the G2 at division level. I even managed to be a Corps' level intelligence collection manager. What have you done?

I suppose that is the difference between subjects of an outmoded, outdated monarchy and a citizen of a democratic republic.

 

Have I been impolite to you?

You don't have to go for the good of the nation. But the one term Marxist must go.

 

Another reason to fire him tomorrow.

 

Um, I think would rather all 30+ Americans die rather than risk killing Arabs and his Arab Spring foreign policy.


The proof is in the pudding as they say. F-16's didn't even leave the runway. Make of it what you will.


Yes. He's another Neville Chamberlain.


The choice has failed.


He made the Muslims that he wanted to be happy happy- i.e. the Muslim Brotherhood.

 

The planning required to maintian close air support is not something that happens in a matter of minutes. It takes days of planning to have arial tankers on station to provide refueling capabilities for the fighters. A single tanker could be deployed or maybe even two but they have limited fuel capacities and even refueling a single squadron would be a challenge just to get the F-16's to Lybia and back again.

Once again the military commanders, not the White House, determined the mission wasn't practically feasible and therefore it wasn't ordered. We can also note that this crossed authorities between the African-Command and the European-Command and while they have a liaison there complexities of dealing with two separate command structures is inherent.

I'm not going to condemn the decisions by the generals in charge of the US military and any president would be a fool to disregard their advice and decisions in a matter such as this. It was the US military command that determined that the mission wasn't feasible, not the White House.

 

You make it sound as if a military emergency in the Middle East or Africe comes as a complete surprise to Obama and the military commanders there.

It shouldn't.

Their mission and reason for being stationed so far from home is precisely what happened in Libya.

 

Close air support is only effective if there is a clear target. There was no clear target thus the F16 would have been nothing but a noise in the air, and just as useless.

 

You cannot plan for every contingency, and you cannot plan for a surprise attack because, by their very nature, they are unpredictable.