Giants Beat Cardinals 9-0

Will play the Tigers in the World Series.

Also tonight's final debate.

Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants on their win over the St. Louis Cardinals.  A series well played.

Unfortunately the American People were subjected to the final Presidential Debate.  A debate that was supposed to be focused on foreign policy, but ended up a debate on the economy.

Here is the transcript.  And here are some memorable quotes:

ROMNEY:  With the Arab Spring, came a great deal of hope that there would be a change towards more moderation, and opportunity for greater participation on the part of women in public life, and in economic life in the Middle East. But instead, we've seen in nation after nation, a number of disturbing events. Of course we see in Syria, 30,000 civilians having been killed by the military there. We see in -- in Libya, an attack apparently by, I think we know now, by terrorists of some kind against -- against our people there, four people dead.

Our hearts and -- and minds go out to them. Mali has been taken over, the northern part of Mali by Al Qaeda type individuals. We have in -- in Egypt, a Muslim Brotherhood president. And so what we're seeing is a pretty dramatic reversal in the kind of hopes we had for that region. Of course the greatest threat of all is Iran, four years closer to a nuclear weapon. And -- and we're going to have to recognize that we have to do as the president has done. I congratulate him on -- on taking out Osama bin Laden and going after the leadership in Al Qaeda.

But we can't kill our way out of this mess. We're going to have to put in place a very comprehensive and robust strategy to help the -- the world of Islam and other parts of the world, reject this radical violent extremism, which is -- it's certainly not on the run.

OBAMA:  We ended the war in Iraq, refocused our attention on those who actually killed us on 9/11. And as a consequence, Al Qaeda's core leadership has been decimated.

ROMNEY: Mr. President, America has not dictated to other nations. We have freed other nations from dictators.

OBAMA: You mentioned the Navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in 1916. Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets, because the nature of our military's changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines.

ROMNEY: ...attacking me as not talking about an agenda


Now who won the debate:  A Draw.  Obama used his old talking points:  bin Ladin, class warfare, and Bush.  Romney didn't take advantage of the ability to attack Obama on his weaknesses.  He was kind to him.

Who will win the World Series?  I have no idea but will bet on the San Francisco Giants.

Oh and one more thing:  Mr. President the Marines still use their Bayonets, the Army still uses horses and mules.  These animals can go places that a Jeep cannot.

Who will win on November 6th?  I give it to Romney/Ryan.  And I don't care if it is a landslide.

Stolen From Hat Tip to Patriot's Corner

I am posting this in its entirety.   We have seen a lot of waste in the government.  This is just not waste, it is criminal especially after the Solyndra fiasco.
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I am posting this  exclusive post by Dr. Eowyn from Fellowship Of The Minds.

A true story of massive government waste to the tune of $16 million of our tax dollars to finish a hangar. Yes a hangar and one way over budget, way overdue past the deadline for completion.

All I ask is that you help Dr.Eowyn get this story out. It needs to be exposed for what it truly is. 

Massive government waste and mismanagement.

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Govt waste: Will a $16 million hangar ever get finished?

By Dr. Eowyn

The following article is a FOTM exclusive, published nowhere else, on a mismanaged military construction project that is shaping to be a $16 million boondoggle — at a time when America, with a national debt of $16 trillion, can ill afford it.

Please help FOTM to publicize this, by linking this post to your Facebook and Twitter accounts and by sending this to your email list, especially your representatives in Congress!
 

 We’ve all read or heard about notorious wasteful government spending such as the $16 muffin or the $436 hammer or the $15.3 million bridge-to-nowhere in Alaska. (For more on the U.S. government’s wasteful spending, go to Project on Government Oversight.)

Here’s a story about a fighter aircraft hangar that was supposed to be renovated but instead will be abandoned, boarded up, and never used, sending $16 million of hardworking taxpayers’ money down the drain.

The story begins in the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, North Carolina.

 

 

 On October 7, 2008, the United States government, in the person of the commanding officer of NAVFAC (Naval Facilities Engineering Command) Mid-Atlantic in Norfolk, VA, issued a solicitation for bids on Military Contract P809 for Fiscal Year 2009 (henceforth referred to as “Solicitation”).

The contract was to undertake the renovation and facilities upgrades to a hangar (Hangar 130) on the Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, to accommodate two F/A-18 E/F squadrons. This would involve, among others, the reconfiguration of hangar space to house maintenance, training, and administrative functions.

According to NAVFAC’s solicitation document, the government’s estimated cost for the project was $10 million to $15 million. (See the 59-page “Solicitation No. N40085-08-R-1424″ here or from FOTM’s media library.) But a NAVFAC presentation at the 11th Annual NC Defense Trade Show had the cost for the project when the contract was awarded to be $16.2 million; and a PDF document on the Department of the Navy’s Budget Estimates for FY 2008 had the cost of the project to be $16.5 million.

The solicitation form specifies that the contractor with the winning bid must “begin performance within 15 calendar days and complete it within 651 calendar days after receiving the notice to proceed.” In other words, the project construction period was not to exceed 651 calendar days, which is to be conducted in 2 phases. This time limit is “mandatory” and “non-negotiable.”

Certain conditions were attached to the Solicitation, including:

1. The Base Bid includes work in accordance with the drawings and specifications by the architectural-engineering firm, Dills Ainscough Duff, P.C., of Virginia Beach, VA, which had been commissioned by NAVFAC, except for two options items:

• The construction of a single-story operational trainer building
• The construction of a single-story pre-engineered metal building for storing and testing special ordnance devices using the “1760 Cable” to attach to F18 aircraft.

2. This acquisition will result in a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contract for construction services. [FFP contracts are those contracts that: (a) provide for a price which normally is not subject to any adjustment; (b) are negotiated usually where reasonably definite specifications are available, and costs can be estimated with reasonable accuracy; (c) places minimum administrative burden on contracting parties; (d) subjects a contractor to maximum risk arising from full responsibility for all cost escalations.]

3. The wining Contractor must abide by the government’s Affirmative Action goals of 31% minority and 6.9% female participation in each trade on all construction work in the covered area.

4. If the Contractor fails to complete the work within the time specified in the contract (651 calendar days), the Contractor shall pay liquidated damages to the Government in the amount of $7,161.57 for each calendar day of delay until the work is completed or accepted.

5. If the Government terminates the Contractor’s right to proceed, liquidated damages will continue to accrue until the work is completed. These liquidated damages are in addition to excess costs of repurchase under the Termination clause.

This hangar renovation project is a MILCON (Military Construction) project.

MILCON involves the construction of facilities that cost in excess of $750K. MILCON appropriations are separate from all other appropriations approved by Congress in that once funding is approved by Congress, construction must begin within three years and be completed within five years. Further, each MILCON project requires individual approval by Congress. A project cannot be funded until it is designed, which was why before NAVFAC issued its solicitation for contractors to bid on the hangar renovation project, NAVFAC commissioned the architectural-engineering firm Dills Ainscough Duff, P.C. to draw up the designs for the renovation. Using those designs, NAVFAC produced an estimated cost of the hangar renovation and then applied for funding from Congress.

MILCON projects requested by lawmakers are subjected to a stringent vetting process before either the House or Senate appropriations committees include them as earmarks in an annual spending bill. Once a MILCON project has been earmarked and approved for the specified estimated cost, the project is “capped” — which means no additional money can be added to or subtracted from that construction project.

What this means in the case of MILCON P809 is that if the Congress-approved funds are exhausted before the hangar-renovation project is completed, further work on the project must be discontinued because, simply put, there is no more money.

According to the defense.gov web site dated March 25, 2009, Blue Rock Structures, Inc., won the bid for the hangar project, with an expected date-of-completion of January 2011.

However, this is what Blue Rock’s web page “Ongoing Projects: P809 Facilities Upgrades for FA-18E” says:

Contract Number: N40085-09-C-3204

Location (of project): MCAS, Cherry Point, NC

Description: Renovation of an existing Hangar 130 to accommodate two F/A18 E/F squadrons to include building upgrades and re-configuration of spaces to house maintenance, training and administrative functions. The renovations will include: fire sprinkler system, fire suppression installation, fire main water distribution, compressed air upgrades, hanger door upgrades and motorization, floor resurfacing and recoating, recoating of roof, site improvements and replacement  of adjacent aircraft pavement.

 

Completion Date: Feb. 3, 2012

Project Duration: 1046 days

Did you get that?

Blue Rock Structures now says the hangar project is supposed to be completed on Feb. 3, 2012, but the project is listed under the contractor’s “Ongoing Projects” and the project had already taken 1,046 days — 395 days more than the prescribed 651 days! Since the project is still listed under Blue Rock Structures’ “Ongoing Projects,” and since we are now in August 2012, this means the completion of the project is now more than 1½ years overdue!

A delay of more than 1½ years is suggestive of the contractor encountering unforeseen problems, as well as cost overruns. Certain questions must be asked:

• Did the problems arise as a result of flaws in the designs by the architectural engineering firm Dills Ainscough Duff — designs which NAVFAC had approved? If so, was anything done to correct the flaws?

• Is Blue Rock Structures delaying the project to procure more money from the government?  If so, why didn’t NAVFAC fire the contractor?

• What are the cost over-runs in light of the fact that the project is still listed as ongoing, more than 1½ years over the allowed “mandatory” time of 651 days?

• Are all the funds earmarked for this project spent?

• Has this problem been brought to the attention of Congress?

• And the BIG question, WHO IS BEING HELD ACCOUNTABLE for this costly delay?

In the meantime, at least a year ago the U.S. Navy had changed its mind about moving the squadrons of FA-18s from Virginia to Cherry Point, NC, which was the reason for renovating Hangar 130 in the first place. All of which means that the money spent by local businesses and residents to prepare Cherry Point to accommodate two new Navy squadrons was all for naught.

What does all this mean for the 49% of Americans who still pay federal income taxes?

Answer: $16.5 million of our money may have been wasted — down the drain of the sinkhole called Government Waste, Incompetence, and Unaccountability.

Original source is here.

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There is no accountability, no oversight.  What was started under the Bush Administration has become a bloated waste of money under the Obama Regime.  I wonder how fast this project would have been completed if the money that had been spent on Solyndra and other moonbat projects had been spent on projects like this, the taxpayers would not be out of so much money.

 

 

Notice The Difference

On December 3rd President Barack Hussein Obama made a surprise visit to Afghanistan for a visit with the troops.  This unannounced trip was reminiscent of the times President George W. Bush would secretly fly to Iraq or Afghanistan for Thanksgiving with the troops. Yet President Obama's visit is a far cry from those trips.

In fact, it was President Obama, sporting a Bush-style bomber jacket, who made the surprise visit to rally troops in the war-torn country. But as he exhorted them to go on the offensive against the Taliban and vowed that Afghanistan cannot become “a safe haven for terrorists to attack the United States,” Obama sounded like no one so much as his predecessor.

Stirring wartime oratory has never been President Obama’s forte. Partly that is because the president himself has often seemed ambiguous about America’s military mission in Afghanistan, famously eschewing definitive terms like “victory” to describe America’s end goal in the conflict. But whether it reflects a reaffirmed commitment to America’s military campaign or merely a rhetorical change of course inspired by his party’s shellacking in the midterm elections, Obama’s call for a resounding defeat of the Taliban comes at a crucial time.

Americans would not have been reassured by the series of diplomatic cables made public this week by WikiLeaks. To be sure, it is not news that the Afghan government is deeply mired in corruption, with the regime of Hamid Karzai implicated in much of the graft and dark dealing. American officials have frequently made the point through public channels. Still, revelations that, according to one leaked cable, U.S. embassy officials considered only one of Afghanistan’s new cabinet ministers to be free from suspicions of bribery are only going to fortify public doubts about what the U.S. can realistically achieve in the country.

President Obama’s remarks this week will not have dispelled those doubts. Nonetheless, they send the vital message that the commander-in-chief of the armed forces believes in their mission and is determined to see them achieve it. There was nothing even remotely uncertain in the president’s insistence that U.S.-led forces were “going to break the Taliban’s momentum” and that they would no longer be playing “defense.”

Full Story

I'm not so sure that the troops are extremely pleased with him.  Just by looking at the reaction of the troops when Obama enters the room (2:00)


President Barack Obama Visits Troops in Afghanistan, Part 1, Dec 3rd, 2010



And now this from George W. Bush's visit to Iraq.


President makes surprise visit to Iraq



I have been told by some that the Bush visits were a purely political feat.  That the troops he spoke in front of where all hand-picked for their support of President Bush.  That those who were against Bush's position, were kept away.

Since I wasn't there and neither were those who told me this were not there either, I cannot confirm or deny this.  (Or the report that every visit to any where President Obama takes, his crowds are hand-picked.  Especially at military bases.)  If you do know if either one of these reports are true, leave the info either in the comment section below or you can e-mail me.