"Troops and low-cost tools to fight insurgencies and terrorists are in. Gold-plated weaponry for tangling with another superpower are out."
Really? The NYT article on the same topic said Gates was buying more F22's. You can't get any more 'gold plated' than those babies. And that's not to say I don't love the F22, the 'running up the score' they're talking about is fine by me when you're talking about American lives at stake. I don't want to 'just win' in Iraq, I want a blow out, every time, 1990-Gulf-War style.
And yes, that means on the ground too not just in the air which means we need more robots, high tech toys and more soldiers to connect with the local populations.
From his statement[1]: "We will end production of the F-22 fighter at 187 – representing 183 planes plus four recommended for inclusion in the FY 2009 supplemental."
Really? The NYT article on the same topic said Gates was buying more F22's. You can't get any more 'gold plated' than those babies. And that's not to say I don't love the F22, the 'running up the score' they're talking about is fine by me when you're talking about American lives at stake. I don't want to 'just win' in Iraq, I want a blow out, every time, 1990-Gulf-War style.
And yes, that means on the ground too not just in the air which means we need more robots, high tech toys and more soldiers to connect with the local populations.