February 11, 201610 yr The interstate highway system has been a huge plus for America. So was the Erie Canal project in the early 19th century. Both were transportation projects whose scope demanded public financing. No commies involved in either. The Interstate highway system also wiped out some of the best and thriving African-American neighborhoods across America when the used the power of emminant domain to aquire the cheapest routes for the new 'big plus'.. So much for that caring Federal government.
February 11, 201610 yr The Interstate highway system also wiped out some of the best and thriving African-American neighborhoods across America when the used the power of emminant domain to aquire the cheapest routes for the new 'big plus'.. So much for that caring Federal government.
February 12, 201610 yr I didn't look it up but I seem to remember that Eisenhower was inspired by Germany for the Highway system as a means of National defense. I don't think he saw it being used quite to extent we do today. I could have my history wrong though.
February 12, 201610 yr That's 2 ... Cold War helped create interstate system. The system has transformed life in the United States. If ever a use for eminent domain this would be it.
February 12, 201610 yr The Interstate highway system also wiped out some of the best and thriving African-American neighborhoods across America when the used the power of emminant domain to aquire the cheapest routes for the new 'big plus'.. So much for that caring Federal government. Interstate highways are far more economically "destructive" when they bypass communities rather than go through 'em.
February 12, 201610 yr As an anti gun, you should tread carefully calling out the brave souls who protect your way of life. F-35
February 12, 201610 yr F-35 It's not the service men and women's fault the developers are struggling to nail the next generation stealth fighter. Did you know that 10 countries are responsible for the F-35s development? Air superiority is warfare over the next century, China is developing their own stealth fighter. Once we get ours ironed out, we will once again own the sky for the next 50 years. It's well worth the investment.
February 12, 201610 yr It's not the service men and women's fault the developers are struggling to nail the next generation stealth fighter. Did you know that 10 countries are responsible for the F-35s development? Air superiority is warfare over the next century, China is developing their own stealth fighter. Once we get ours ironed out, we will once again own the sky for the next 50 years. It's well worth the investment. I am not blaming them at all. Theyare stellar and absolutely amazing, under no circumstances should we be shortchanging them or their equipment. That is why the F-35 is such a problem. You mentioned stealth. That is hugely important, however the F-35 isn't as good as the F-22 at stealth, AA, nor is it as fast. It was supposed to replace everything that wasn't a strategic bomber (B-1B, B-2, B-52H) and just recently the USAF realized that it can't do that so they are keeping the A-10 in service. That is wasted spending right there. The cost of the F-35 could have allowed the USAF to bring into service both ATF prototypes (YF-22 and YF-23) and still saved money and have two vastly superior aircraft. Shoot the F-23 was faster and stealthier than the F-22, but it wasn't as maneuverable oh and it wasn't made by Lockheed. That makes a huge difference these days. As to other capacities that the F-35 was designed for given its relatively poor performance against 4th generation fighters in trial dogfights it would have been better to upgrade the F-16, F-18, F-15, and F-14 with the YF-119 engine of the F-22 for supercruise and maneuverability. Furthermore there have been stealthier versions of the G4 aircraft that will still be more capable than the F-35. The only gap there is the replacement of the AV-8B Harrier. There are a number of countries already unhappy with the F-35 development given its costs and limitations. We won't let anyone else have the F-22, so they're stuck now. As to China, yes they are developing their own stealth fighter as is Russia. All the more reason not to use a less capable aircraft. The F-35 is a dud and a huge waste of money.
February 12, 201610 yr I agree with almost everything you said. Additionally, you are clearly a military supporter. It's unfortunate to waste tax dollars on projects that go wrong but you have to do it to get the edge. The Raptors themselves have had problems, the Super Hornets might be the most reliable. We have brilliant engineers trying to develop technology man was never supposed to own. Unfortunately, it's going to have set backs. I've seen Marines replacing Harrier engines on FOBs around the clock as well. You still have to invest the time money and efforts into our future. If we can iron out kinks we have such an advantageous force over almost everyone. What if Hitlers engineers could have developed the V1's 6 months before dday? What would they have done to London? Instead, they were finally ready as US troops were on the beach.
February 13, 201610 yr I agree with almost everything you said. Additionally, you are clearly a military supporter. It's unfortunate to waste tax dollars on projects that go wrong but you have to do it to get the edge. The Raptors themselves have had problems, the Super Hornets might be the most reliable. We have brilliant engineers trying to develop technology man was never supposed to own. Unfortunately, it's going to have set backs. I've seen Marines replacing Harrier engines on FOBs around the clock as well. You still have to invest the time money and efforts into our future. If we can iron out kinks we have such an advantageous force over almost everyone. What if Hitlers engineers could have developed the V1's 6 months before dday? What would they have done to London? Instead, they were finally ready as US troops were on the beach. You will never see me say we shouldn't be developing and improving our military capabilities. The F-35 was a flawed concept from the outset. If you make an aircraft that can serve the USAF, USN, and USMC then you are going to make an exceedingly mediocre weapons platform. Dramatically different missions, dramatically different goals. Its stealth tech is not a leap forward as the F-22 is better in every aspect at it. Its CAS role is not up to par because there is little that it can do that can't already be done with other weapons platforms. VTOL is the only thing it has going for it, given the rough history of the Harrier, and that is what they have had the most trouble with from the get go. Shoot, the navy even had to change its requirements for it since for the longest time they required all aircraft have 2 engines so as to make sure pilots had a better chance of making it back to the carrier. That's one of the reasons why the F-18 was developed from the prototype of the YF-17. Sometimes you need to abandon a concept, learn from your mistakes and move on. Hence the B-1A and the XB-70, both were much more functional and in better standing than the F-35 and yet both were canceled.
February 13, 201610 yr You will never see me say we shouldn't be developing and improving our military capabilities. The F-35 was a flawed concept from the outset. If you make an aircraft that can serve the USAF, USN, and USMC then you are going to make an exceedingly mediocre weapons platform. Dramatically different missions, dramatically different goals. Its stealth tech is not a leap forward as the F-22 is better in every aspect at it. Its CAS role is not up to par because there is little that it can do that can't already be done with other weapons platforms. VTOL is the only thing it has going for it, given the rough history of the Harrier, and that is what they have had the most trouble with from the get go. Shoot, the navy even had to change its requirements for it since for the longest time they required all aircraft have 2 engines so as to make sure pilots had a better chance of making it back to the carrier. That's one of the reasons why the F-18 was developed from the prototype of the YF-17. Sometimes you need to abandon a concept, learn from your mistakes and move on. Hence the B-1A and the XB-70, both were much more functional and in better standing than the F-35 and yet both were canceled. Jack of all trades.... but everyone forgets the second part - master of none.
February 13, 201610 yr Jack of all trades.... but everyone forgets the second part - master of none. Note the comments from F-16, A-10 Co-designer at the end. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55lRK9fPj8A
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