Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicles

[MACDRIVE]

ABC News (http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=3210097)

USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-23-marines-mrap_N.htm)

I first read the story in my local news paper.

Halfway through the article I was feeling a sense of rage. :mad:

[solvs]

This is only new to the MSM apparently. How long have we known this type of thing was happening? Support the troops my ass.

[takao]

the ridiculous thing is that the lack of mine resistant vehicles is known since years even before the iraq war and the decision simply has not been speed up

the german bundeswehr operates similar vehicles since mid 90ies and has ,because of the problematic situation in afghanistan, speed up their current ordering phase ,which was intended to bring 150 additional vehicles untill 2011, to getting 100 of them this year already

meanwhile in the US there are _2_ programs looking for mine resistant vehicles with dozens of vehicles and yet they still have problems getting them to the danger zones

[miloblithe]

It seems fairly clear that procurement is decided more by lobbyists than it is by the military.

[sushi]

It seems fairly clear that procurement is decided more by lobbyists than it is by the military.
Yep, just ask Ladybird Johnson! ;)

[miloblithe]

Yep, just ask Ladybird Johnson! ;)

Was she lobbying to buy flowers instead of tanks as part of her beautification campaign?

[sushi]

Was she lobbying to buy flowers instead of tanks as part of her beautification campaign?
Go back in history a little. Think in terms of helicopters.

[FFTT]

There's more to this than they are telling us.

These heavy armoured MRAP vehicles are being designed on an open
patent and there's a tremendous amount of competition between several international manufacturers working on them.

So part of the delay is also all about which company will be awarded the primary contract.

They are also extremely heavy and getting them to the field presents
a difficult logistical problem.

There's no viable excuse otherwise.

When this administration committed our military to this war, manufacturing should have been mobilized full scale.

In this case, it has become a shameful and deadly afterthought.

[miloblithe]

Go back in history a little. Think in terms of helicopters.

Or, you know, you could tell us what you're referring to.

[biturbomunkie]

this sort of thing has been going on for quite a long time. here's an article that points out marines have to buy gears that make them feel safe and comfortable out of their own pockets:

Marines dig deep for upcoming-deployment gear (http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/ac95bc775efc34c685256ab50049d458/c42dd7f31472dc8885256fea0064c11f?OpenDocument&Highlight=2,ka-bar)

Semper Fi.

[solvs]

Or, you know, you could tell us what you're referring to.

Easier to distract with something that happened 50 years ago than deal with the fact that the people who keep saying we don't support the troops don't support the troops.

Remind us again who doesn't support the troops?