Good Idea Fairy in action
Electric cars… I’m not going to start a discussion on ’em – think we have beaten them to death by now. But an incident this week makes me wonder whether the Navy should start using them. As weapons.
A cargo ship that had been delivering new vehicles to Mexico sank in the North Pacific Ocean, weeks after crew members abandoned ship when they couldn’t extinguish an onboard fire that left the carrier dead in the water.
Fire damage compounded by bad weather and water seepage caused the carrier to sink in waters about 16,404 feet (5,000 meters) deep and about 415 miles (770 kilometers) from land, the statement said.
The ship was loaded with about 3,000 new vehicles intended for a major Pacific port in Mexico. It was not immediately clear if any of the cars were removed before it sank, and Zodiac Maritime did not immediately respond to messages Tuesday.
Deeper than the Titanic sank by almost a mile. Pretty sure those cars can be written off, right? (Or may show up immediately off-post at Honest Al’s Rides.)
The Coast Guard said it received a distress alert June 3 about a fire aboard the Morning Midas, which then was roughly 300 miles (490 kilometers) southwest of Adak Island.
There were 22 crew members onboard the Morning Midas. All evacuated to a lifeboat and were rescued by a nearby merchant marine vessel. There were no injuries.
Among the cars were about 70 fully electric and about 680 hybrid vehicles. A large plume of smoke was initially seen at the ship’s stern coming from the deck loaded with electric vehicles, the Coast Guard and Zodiac Maritime said at the time.AP
So a fire in the few electric cars aboard SANK THE WHOLE 3000-CAR CARRYING SHIP. Right.
Moving over to a popular target – mess halls. We know the Army seems to be having a problem feeding troops adequately… 220 years of military messes, chow halls, galleys, which pretty much fed our kids and fed them at least decently – and we decided to do away with the tried and true system and substitute shoppettes, vending machines, and contractor-run facilities which sometimes didn’t even stay open. In the midst of these issues, what do we do? Why, double down of course!
The Army is preparing to overhaul its food service system in a move that could strip away government-run dining facilities and hand operations to private, for-profit companies.
So-called “campus-style dining” has been pitched to lawmakers as a way to incentivize private vendors to create Army dining spaces where soldiers want to eat, with longer hours, a better atmosphere, and additional menu variety.
So this does what, expands the lima beans on toast menu? Guess I’m a dinosaur, remembering when a tough mess sergeant made the mess hall work and fed everyone who walked in. Not sure what it was sometimes, but in general anecdotally we had better choices and food then than a lot of the chow halls seem to offer now. So if contractor-run mess halls aren’t working…why expand their system?
But documents reviewed by Military.com show a system light on guardrails, nutrition standards and financial transparency — and heavy on opportunities for contractors to upsell alcohol and high-priced extras to a population that has little choice to opt out.
“[We] will leverage industry expertise and incentivize a contractor to operate a facility where soldiers want to dine, with better ambience, additional healthy food options, extended operating hours, and more,” Lt. Gen. Chris Mohan, the acting head of Army Material Command, told lawmakers during an April hearing on the Defense Department’s food operations.
Okay, sounds like heaven – get all that civilian expertise, yep?
The pilot program, currently open for bids, covers dining operations at five of the Army’s largest installations: Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Fort Carson, Colorado; Fort Stewart, Georgia; Fort Drum, New York; and Fort Cavazos, Texas.
So far, the Army still hasn’t found a contractor to take up the deal. The deadline for contractors to make a pitch is Tuesday.
There are few restrictions on what vendors can sell, and they are exempt from following Army nutritional standards altogether, though the service itself also frequently skirts its own nutrition rules. The Army has also waived compliance with the Berry Amendment, which requires the military to prioritize U.S.-made products or purchase through the Defense Logistics Agency, which governs oversight and logistics of food products for the Pentagon. There are few restrictions on what vendors can sell, and they are exempt from following Army nutritional standards altogether, though the service itself also frequently skirts its own nutrition rules. The Army has also waived compliance with the Berry Amendment, which requires the military to prioritize U.S.-made products or purchase through the Defense Logistics Agency, which governs oversight and logistics of food products for the Pentagon. Military.com
Sounds like GREAT opportunity to make a profit at our kids’ expense…
Category: Army, EVs, Exploitation
