Clark Griswold

Moral hazard or just getting the break that you got after a big screw up? The case for a German write off of a shit ton of Greek debt. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/08/business/economy/germanys-debt-history-echoed-in-greece.html?_r=0 Not convinced but cutting them a break may be the least bad move. Edit: grammar

Or batshit crazy if you prefer. Project on Government Oversight has an interview with Winslow Wheeler that really gets to most fundamental flaws of the JSF project: concurrency which equals cost + risk + complexity + eggs-in-one-basket http://www.pogo.org/blog/2014/02/heres-what-60-minutes-didnt-tell-you-about-the-f-35.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/

Another great shot of double ugly

Critique on the subject of the F-35B and the current CONOP for use. The Marines’ Stealth Jump Jet Plan Is Wishful Thinking Not that it matters as the milk is already spilled but the idea that an MEU is going to operate on its own without support from USN, USAF, US Army, etc. in any kind of seriously contested environment against another military force is crazy. The doctrine of the USMC may say that they will have that capability but does anyone really believe that? The more we keep just trying to build better versions of the things we have because we keep thinking that this what we will always use or that this is always the way we will do things is a sure fire way to keep making the best airplanes and weapons for the battlefield of 25+ years ago.

Double Ugly

Valid point - this could be a point or requirement when it is LO v. LO aircraft or would a long range IR image from an IRST be enough for VID in that situation? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Keep everything in perspective, from Breaking Defense on Stillion's Trends in Air to Air Combat: http://breakingdefense.com/2015/04/should-future-fighter-be-like-a-bomber-groundbreaking-csba-study/ Put another way, missiles can now often outperform most fighter aircraft, although stealth and electronic warfare help even the score. Trends from the database of air combat since 1965 show the rise of long range missiles and a steep decline in dog-fighting. Of the 33 U.S. kills in the 1991 Persian Gulf war, only four involved any maneuvering at all. 25 years on, the power of long range sensors and missiles is only greater, meaning that traditional fighter attributes such as speed, thrust-to-weight ratios, and turn radius are even less important to success today and in the future. ACM in the WVR arena is still important but winning in the BVR fight is where 5th gen US aircraft heavily outnumbered against 4th+ gen fighters will need to engage and survive. We won't have enough 5th gen to risk in WVR fights when there are 3 or 4 MiG-35s or J-10s for every 22 or 35. Engage, let the AMRAAM go up close and personal, RTB and get ready for the next sortie.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2013/11/08/which-of-the-11-american-nations-do-you-live-in/ Maybe we'll organize as semi-autonomous regions, doubt it but the idea is out there.

Neutral Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good article and I completely agree with the sentiment that it is implicit debt and therefore converting it explicit debt is a viable option (gov acting as an escrow agent), also there is no argument from me that the surplus that is collected yearly and raided by Congress for general purpose funding is totally immoral but I will agree to disagree that it is a scheme. It's a legacy program desperately in need of reform and honesty, that it is not meant to be a large part of anyone's retirement portfolio (assuming a middle class and above salary during their working lifetime and hence the expected saving/investment) - it should be means tested safety net only open to those who have paid in, not allowed to generate or keep large surpluses, essentially it should be zero after paying benefits out every year and return those surpasses to those who have paid in

Disagree respectfully. Why Social Security Is Not a Ponzi Scheme I agree with your sentiment (I infer) that it has become something it was originally not designed to be, which was a very modest pension program for widows, elderly and dependents when their provider was gone or unable to work any longer. Reform and modernize, proceed as required.

I am doubtful of the timeline also but this not so technically ambitious that I can't see it happening in 10 years maybe. Look at the K-MAX UAV cargo helicopter, the initial steps are underway. Don't like it but don't find it unlikely.

5 ways to fix SS - holding my breath (not) for any of the canidates for POTUS to demonstrate leadership and offer solutions... http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes

Inevitable I guess. Remote-controlled passenger flights 5 years away, CEO says

Good point but expanding on that idea I think we have seen the high water mark of democratization in China, Russia, KSA, etc... democracy requires consensus which is harder to get these days in large, diverse nations as the coalescing ideas of nationality are being assaulted by the atomizing of ethnicity, religion, class, cultural preference (religious v. secular), etc... It is sad that the democratic republic, democracy electing representatives who in theory are not governed by the passions, parochial and selfish interests are not able to make objective decisions based on outcomes best in the long term, at best the modern democracy seems to really only be capable of lurching from one edge to the next barely avoiding going over it.

The Democratic Republic is failing the test of history unfortunately. Democracies are not proving capable of disciplining themselves and living well outside of its means, all of them are in debt, unfortunately I believe the next century will probably be dominated by the authoritarian systems that while not as productive or creative as free societies they have far greater abilities to defend their borders, economies, culture and harness what they have via command and conformity to out maneuver societies that require consensus to move. This quote is attributed usually to Alexander Fraser Tytler but has been attributed to Alexis de Tocqueville, either or it may be how it unfolds: A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilisations from the beginning of history has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to complacency; From complacency to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage. Not sure if we are at complacency to apathy or apathy to dependence yet.

Restart on thread. Only tangental to the original topic of this thread (USA gov debt default) but I feel sorry for the Greek people (everyday man on the street) having to wait and see if their money and personal wealth is about to evaporate via freeze & seizure of deposits made in Euros. Greeks Line Up at Banks and Drain ATMs as Tsipras Calls Vote Slow motion run on the banks. Minor edit.

Meet Northrop's XST, The Plane That Lost Out To The Original Stealth Jet

Nice. The Old Guard putting some very low SA and respect tourists in their place. I was in DC not too long ago and did some of the usual sights; the lack of control, civility, respect and general culture is astounding today, that and the incessant need to film or selfie every possible moment at a site that even the most basically educated and civilized person should know to comport themselves makes a mockery of everything that a nation should revere. I bet everyone of those a-holes would be deeply offended if at their relatives' wedding, funeral or at a church service at the First Baptist Church of Somewhere USA if the crowd chatted and had to film every last detail while letting their little hellion run loose so why is it at what they should know is a solemn place do they act like a my drunk Cousin Eddie? Rant complete.

Gimme a mini-gunship too.

http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/f-35b-makes-its-first-leap-off-the-ski-jump-1713406488

Decade forecast from Stratfor, sounds plausible, world somewhat FUBAR somewhat functional. https://www.stratfor.com/forecast/decade-forecast-2015-2025 Here's the Jack Ryan part: It is unlikely that the Russian Federation will survive in its current form. Russia's failure to transform its energy revenue into a self-sustaining economy makes it vulnerable to price fluctuations. It has no defense against these market forces. Given the organization of the federation, with revenue flowing to Moscow before being distributed directly or via regional governments, the flow of resources will also vary dramatically. This will lead to a repeat of the Soviet Union's experience in the 1980s and Russia's in the 1990s, in which Moscow's ability to support the national infrastructure declined. In this case, it will cause regions to fend for themselves by forming informal and formal autonomous entities. The economic ties binding the Russian periphery to Moscow will fray Historically, the Russians solved such problems via the secret police — the KGB and its successor, the Federal Security Services (FSB). But just as in the 1980s, the secret police will not be able to contain the centrifugal forces pulling regions away from Moscow this decade. In this case, the FSB's power is weakened by its leadership's involvement in the national economy. As the economy falters, so does the FSB's strength. Without the FSB inspiring genuine terror, the fragmentation of the Russian Federation will not be preventable. ... This will create the greatest crisis of the next decade. Russia is the site of a massive nuclear strike force distributed throughout the hinterlands. The decline of Moscow's power will open the question of who controls those missiles and how their non-use can be guaranteed. This will be a major test for the United States. Washington is the only power able to address the issue, but it will not be able to seize control of the vast numbers of sites militarily and guarantee that no missile is fired in the process. How the hell do you secure 4000+ nukes in Russia as its coming apart?

Another article on CAS & the A-10: http://warontherocks.com/2015/06/the-future-of-close-air-support-is-not-what-the-air-force-thinks/?singlepage=1 This was a rebuttal (sorta) of this article:http://warontherocks.com/2015/05/the-a-10-the-f-35-and-the-future-of-close-air-support-part-i/?singlepage=1

Hopefully none, I don't see this actually happening but maybe this could light a fire under the USAF to come up with a COA other than divestment.