DoD’s $20m for firewood; “we just spend the money”
I’m not sure, but if I was in charge at DoD, I’d have probably cut some of this stuff decades ago before anyone found out about it, and long before I was going balls-to-the-wall to raise retires’ Tricare fees;
“It mentions in your report that the U.S. military is spending $20 million for firewood. Is there any justification for $20 million in Afghan firewood?” [Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah)] asks John F. Sopko, special inspector general for Afghanistan Reconstruction.
“Mr. Chairman that was one of the more interesting comments my auditor told me is that — you are absolutely correct we are paying…approximately $20 million a year for firewood,” Sopko confirmed. “And when my auditors asked for documentation on what we spent on firewood, we were basically told quote unquote ‘we don’t have, the records we just spend the money.’”
Yeah, well, that’s not how we retirees spend our money, although apparently, the Department of Defense thinks everyone does. But, here we are buying firewood, I’m guessing, but not convinced, that it’s to keep Afghans warm because they’re too lazy to go out and collect the meager amounts of wood around their homes.
Either that, or we’re buying it for those mansions on Fort Meyers, because those are the only Army residences that have fireplaces that I can think of.
Thanks to Chief Tango for the link.
Category: Big Army
We did use firewood at some places we visited running around doing route clearance, usually ANA bases, but it was already there and stacked, no clue who paid for it.
Song remains the same…Former SECDEF Donald Rumsfeld was unable to explain during Congressional testimony where $2.3 trillion disappeared to. The money vanished and DoD has no answers to whereabouts. Well hell, at least this is “only” $20M – small potatoes compared to the black beret fiasco or the U.S. Military’s need to have a uniform fashion makeover every couple years (sans maybe the Marines). I should be outraged, but DoD burns $20M everytime it farts, burps and sneezes.
When I was a kid I lived under the flight path for Kelly AFB. At the same time every month there’d be a noticeable increase in the number of aircraft seemingly flying big circles over San Antonio and coming back in over our house over and over. Dad always said it was because the local TANG unit had a budgeted amount of fuel and if they regularly failed to use it up the budget would be reduced, so if they had any left when the month (or quarter, or w/e) was up they’d just go up and burn it off.
I’m guessing he was probably over-simplifying to a degree, but I think as a general principle it’s accurate. I bet somebody in Afghanistan saw $20 million in the budget for firewood, knew if it wasn’t spent their budget would be $20 million lighter next year, and took advantage of the fact that nobody would expect them to find a local woodcutter that would reliably provide them with accurate paperwork for deliveries and payments.
To be honest though, I’d rather have somebody on the ground in Afghanistan deciding how to spend that $20 million than just about anybody in DC.
Devtun Says:
…the U.S. Military’s need to have a uniform fashion makeover every couple years…
My best friend’s son just graduated from infantry school. He sent me pictures of the young man in his light blue short sleeve dress shirt and my first thought was “didn’t he join the Army?”
Is 20M for one year or for the 10yrs there ? Joe
One of my jobs in Afghanistan was planning the ANA’s “winterization”. One of the must buy every year was firewood for the ANA. I’m going to guess that it went to the outposts and was used in the kitchens to cook with, but I have no idea. It was just a must have dictated from high. The real pisser was buying them coats, boots, and sleeping bags every year. Not just the new recruits, but a huge amount to make up for the ones that the ANA sold during the spring and summer. My though was to let the ones who sold their kit freeze, but I was told to shut up and color.
@ 3 Andy N, your dad was right! I served in the mid 70s and at the end the F/Y they would send us out just driving around our Amtracs burning up fuel then we’d go to the range to use up our extra ammo! Firing the M-16 got boring but the .50 and M-203 were fun.
The old multi-story brick homes from the turn of the previous century along Colonels Row at Bliss have fireplaces
I know that the ammount of ammo we shoot always increases right before the end of the fiscal year.
Now I don’t feel so bad spending 8 bucks for enough firewood to make a campfire for the grandkids smores last week.
I was supply in the Oregon Army National Guard for nine years. I can tell you that every year, about the end of the FY, there would be a round robin of qualifications. Troopies would qualify on everything they could hang under the qual badges. After that, even if there was ammo left, there was no ammo left.
It would be squirreled away for continuing training in the various units. The PBO knew about it, but said nothing. When the unit deployed down to Ft Hood, we actually had to send it all down to them because Regular Army was giving every soldier only 2 mags a week for training… and only 1 box for the SAW gunners.
However, why are we providing those goat-ropers ANYTHING while they are actively fighting against us? You want firewood? Then go out and cut down some trees. Or, if you want to stay warm, go back and hunt down your winter skivvies that you sold.
Ah those August and September Demolition ranges, affectionately known as EXPENDEXs.
Jonn- I have to second what Bobo said at 6. I was part of that procurement process maybe a little farther downrange in 08-09 & the ANA did use firewood (mainly as backup but not always) for cooking & crap it was not cheap (is any army contract!). Though we did our best to make the ANA pound sand over ‘missing’ gear, should have seen their Corps G4/BDE S4 crap their pants when we said too bad over their new FY gear requests!
I think it would have been cheaper to ship connexes full of raw lumber from the US or Russia and give the ANA an axe. Having to cut their own wood might reduce some of the black market sales in firewood. It’s a little more difficult to ‘lose’ an entire tree trunk off of a trunk as opposed to all the fuel that the Afghan contractors and police routinely steal from us enroute to our bases.
They could do log drills for PT, too.
Not sure what the local goat fuckers charge but at 200 bucks a truckload thats enough to keep about 200,000 homes warm and cooking food for at least a month or two. They should try burning Korans, hear that works.
Devtun @2:
That’s pretty damn funny considering that 10 years of war ran about $1 trillion…
— “I was told there would be no math…”
There is not that many trees in the ‘stan’. We must be buying from WHO(?)and shipping the wood in.
Casey @16
Do a little research before you post an idiotic snarky remark – you ignoramus. This is not exactly top secret info.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU7uDkKKmDw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aupqwx6vaCs&feature=related