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The Icon: It's the DD(X), the US Navy's 21st-Century Destroyer. As some folks may or may not know, I've been working in the Defense field for some time. My group at work is in the process of firming up the product line brochure and communications plan for Navy PEO Ships. I happen to really like that photo (the bigger one is beautiful) so it's my current icon of choice. (My father also happens to be a senior systems engineer on the DD(X) program for another firm.)
Cleveland Indians outfielder, Coco Crisp, may have the coolest name in sports.
NBA Finals: For anyone on this list that actually follows pro-ball, I must admit I'm pretty shocked at just how much of an ass-whipping the Pistons are laying on the Lakers. Almost as shocking as Tom Tolbert and his hideous 1970's style plaid suits - so ugly even Herb Tarleck wouldn't wear them.
Last Friday: My thanks for those who offered empathy for my complaints. As it turned out, I'm a big whiny crybaby, with nothing much to moan about. The office was empty, I got tons of work done, and there was zero traffic on the roads after all.
Ralph Wiley died last night of a heart attack at the age of 52. For those who don't follow sports, you probably won't know or care. Wiley wrote 28 cover articles for Sports Illustrated, had a column on ESPN.Com Page 2, and was the author of several books including Why Black People Tend to Shout. Wiley was funny, sharp, and witty - one of the rare sports commentators who could speak in vernacular without being lame, who could offer social commentary without seeming like a pompous blowhard, and who had genuine insight. I'll miss reading him.
Cleveland Indians outfielder, Coco Crisp, may have the coolest name in sports.
NBA Finals: For anyone on this list that actually follows pro-ball, I must admit I'm pretty shocked at just how much of an ass-whipping the Pistons are laying on the Lakers. Almost as shocking as Tom Tolbert and his hideous 1970's style plaid suits - so ugly even Herb Tarleck wouldn't wear them.
Last Friday: My thanks for those who offered empathy for my complaints. As it turned out, I'm a big whiny crybaby, with nothing much to moan about. The office was empty, I got tons of work done, and there was zero traffic on the roads after all.
Ralph Wiley died last night of a heart attack at the age of 52. For those who don't follow sports, you probably won't know or care. Wiley wrote 28 cover articles for Sports Illustrated, had a column on ESPN.Com Page 2, and was the author of several books including Why Black People Tend to Shout. Wiley was funny, sharp, and witty - one of the rare sports commentators who could speak in vernacular without being lame, who could offer social commentary without seeming like a pompous blowhard, and who had genuine insight. I'll miss reading him.
Re: Certainly, please do...
As a note, the Ticonderoga's replacement, the CG(X) won't see water until 2019 at the earliest (and likely later) - by which time the 38 year-old CG-47 would already be decomissioned.
They were designed for blue water operations because, quite frankly, that is the Navy’s job, projecting American power overseas. When it comes to responding to threats they see requiring shallow water operations, that isn’t their job. It’s mine, or more specifically the job of the Coast Guard.
But what about shallow water threats overseas? Do you expect the Coast Guard to go into the Persian Gulf? (Most of which is less than 180 feet deep)
The LCS and DD(X) are supposed to be directed more towards littoral warfare abroad, because our deep water dominance is so great that there is far less expectation that US ships will see battle in the open seas that the Ticonderogas and Arleigh Burkes were designed for. They are far more likely to be called upon to support the Army and Marines, operating in coastal regions. That's the power projection capacity they're tasked to meet.
The defense industry is bloated and sustaining itself for its own sake. If we truly want to meet the challenges and threats we now face, we need to be willing to significantly restructure our organizations and adjust spending priorities.
You'll get no argument on that from me. As I've said many times, much of the US needs can be met more cheaply through alliance anyway. And I certainly think a budgetary priorities should be shifted - starting with a revamp of the administration's silly tax policies. The Coast Guard and Border Patrol should be getting better funding than they do. I won't dispute that at all. But that doesn't mean I think we should put the kibosh on DD(X) altogether.