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UK: What our Army needs is a defence policy
The Times ^ | 9/3/2007 | William Rees-Mogg

Posted on 09/02/2007 9:49:28 PM PDT by bruinbirdman

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And the Brit general blames Rumsfeld?
1 posted on 09/02/2007 9:49:31 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
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To: bruinbirdman

They need to promote some commanders from the ranks, IMO. We could stand to see a few such promotions, too.


2 posted on 09/02/2007 9:57:28 PM PDT by familyop (cbt. engr. (cbt.)--has-been, will write Duncan Hunter in)
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To: bruinbirdman

BTW, Britain certainly has the revenues to build their conventional military forces up more, too (more soldiers and air support), if they would do it.


3 posted on 09/02/2007 9:59:22 PM PDT by familyop (cbt. engr. (cbt.)--has-been, will write Duncan Hunter in)
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To: bruinbirdman

“What our Army needs is a defence policy”

Cheer up. It could be worse: We could have a defense policy in need of an army...


4 posted on 09/02/2007 10:05:43 PM PDT by sourcery (fRed Dawn: Wednesday, 5 November 2008!)
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To: familyop

Quite impossible. Building up the army to the required standards as outlined here would mean having to dissolve some of the most distinguised of our whitehall civil service units. Extra helicopters would certainly mean the “3rd Pencilpushers” battalion, gazetted FIFTEEN times for “inertia in the face of the enemy”, would have to go.
Providing soldiers families with proper housing might mean having to redeploy as many as one administrive brigade from glitzy high expense London to somewhere cheap and horrible like Newcastle. Only last month providing the army with new trucks and ammunition meant cutting back on the nearly two days supply of red tape for the Department of Paperclips and silly walks!
/sarc off


5 posted on 09/03/2007 12:35:08 AM PDT by Vanders9
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To: sourcery

LOL. Good point.


6 posted on 09/03/2007 12:36:01 AM PDT by Vanders9
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To: bruinbirdman

‘And the Brit general blames Rumsfeld?’

No, the RETIRED Brit general WHO WANTS TO SELL HIS BOOK blames Rumsfeld. . . . . :)


7 posted on 09/03/2007 4:44:19 AM PDT by britemp
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To: britemp

good one. i have alot of respect for Sir Mike’s ability to run an army. his service record is second to none.

this is, as you say, as blatant book seller.


8 posted on 09/03/2007 1:16:12 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: bruinbirdman

ah, but Britain has national health insurance.


9 posted on 09/03/2007 1:17:34 PM PDT by quadrant
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To: familyop

With a top ten or twenty national economy, we still manage to be second in the world behind the US for defence expenditure.

Queen Elizabeth Aircraft Carriers

Type 45 destroyers

Astute Class submarines

Albion Class LPD’s

Mastiff trucks

Vector trucks

Possible Piranha purchases to replace CVR class of vehicles for Army

F35 JSF

Eurofighter Typhoon

These are some of the upgrades that the UK military has been making to all 3 services (air, land, sea). Each service has upgraded hardware, and this is especially the case with the Navy, which with the Astute Class, the Daring Class, the Albion Class and the QE Class, with give the UK a clear blue-water capability.
We dont need to compete with the US regarding spending, as I’m sure we wont come to blows for a few years yet. All potential enemies of the UK would get a battering...


10 posted on 09/03/2007 1:47:00 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: bruinbirdman

11 posted on 09/03/2007 1:49:14 PM PDT by RightWhale (It's Brecht's donkey, not mine)
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To: quadrant

bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahaha....an old joke never gets boring right???? No way, never. Not a chance. The oldies are the best...

Honestly, you guys think that if its not a private company then its a commie conspiracy...

yaaawwwwwnnnnn...


12 posted on 09/03/2007 1:49:31 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: RightWhale

“First thing they could change the spelling to the American defense”

As its our language, as its named after the nation that invented it (England, just in case you didn’t figure it out...), I put it to you that we have in fact spelt it correctly, and that it is you, sir, who cannot cannot put letterz one after another to make a wurd.

If you meant your comment literally, then what good is a letter change going to do????????????????????


13 posted on 09/03/2007 1:57:26 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: Rikstir

A fresh spelling, a fresh start. Defence is out, defense is the modern. Modernize and rejuvenate.


14 posted on 09/03/2007 2:36:44 PM PDT by RightWhale (It's Brecht's donkey, not mine)
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To: Rikstir

An old joke is generally a good one. Its survived the test of time.
One thing people on the right do know: national defense is the central purpose of government and that health care is not.


15 posted on 09/03/2007 2:37:56 PM PDT by quadrant
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To: quadrant

So, because the UK has a National Health Service, that means that it isn’t looking after the defence of the realm? Thats not an argument really is it? Dont get me started on the medi-care system in the US.

The point is your argument makes no sense to me!


16 posted on 09/03/2007 2:57:16 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: RightWhale

If I take your comments with good nature then you seem to be a clever guy with a good sense of word-play.

You spell your way (American), I’ll spell mine (English).


17 posted on 09/03/2007 2:58:58 PM PDT by Rikstir
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To: Rikstir

Labour never did anything for the Armed Forces in the UK, even when I served over 20yrs ago. Nothing has changed


18 posted on 09/03/2007 3:01:13 PM PDT by Never2baCrat (I used to be modest, now I'm perfect!)
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To: bruinbirdman
And the Brit general blames Rumsfeld?

Now that he is out of power Rummy is everybody's tackling dummy. A safe target for the second guessers and those who didn't have the moral courage to speak up when it could have had consequences.

Those who disagreed with Rummy and said so at the time...have bragging rights.

19 posted on 09/03/2007 3:14:24 PM PDT by hinckley buzzard
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To: Never2baCrat

“Labour never did anything for the Armed Forces in the UK.”

To be honest I was trying to get away from petty partisanship and politics. Every time I try to defend our armed forces in these threads I get a hammering from someone with a moan against a party, a leader, a nation etc. I frankly wonder if people are on these threads to learn something new or just pontificate till they’re blue in the face. Or Red, depending on your political affiliation.

In deference to your history with our armed forces, I will retire from the thread at this point.


20 posted on 09/03/2007 4:46:54 PM PDT by Rikstir
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