Posted on 08/04/2006 7:02:46 PM PDT by blam
Col. Kilgore, is that you? (Obscure reference to "Apocalypse Now")
I know the Abrams and Challenger would not fair much better...As far as my understanding the Merkava is one of the most heavily armored tanks in the world...
They were going to field a new engine/tranny for the Merk so that it had a little better speed & acceleration. I think I read that that project got scrapped or scaled-back due to cost projections.
Not bad. As long as they add in their missiles and aircraft, sounds like a plan. Then get ready to drop some blockbusters on all those running across the desert towards Israel to cause trouble.
According to the recognized Rules of War, Hezzbollah is bringing the violence to the Lebanese populace and Israel is within its rights to bomb the living cr*p out of any areas from which the Hezzies are staging attacks. Arguments for "proportional responses" are best left to historians. Oh, and it's a good idea if those are YOUR historians, since if they are not it usually indicates that your side lost.
True. But then there's the re-writing of history that the leftist are so good at, win or lose.
I figure the nature of Iran, Syria and Lebanon will be quite different two years from now.
I think that's the unreported factor in all of Iran's bluster. They have no economy other than oil income and the fat petro-mullahs in Tehran have grown happy with new wealth. Cut the flow and they fall like mosquitos without water. Just blast part of the oil industry and watch um squeel.
Now what did I mean to say there? Certainly not Killeen, which is the home of the US Army's Ft. Hood, and also where I live.
Probably meant Iran.
A total of 46 allied nations use the TOW, and it is co-produced in Switzerland.
Notice in that photo, that the markings are in English, and the production date is shown as 2001. The Swiss would mark them in German, French, and Italian.
Production for other nations might not use the same packaging or markings as those produced for US forces. The storage/shipping boxes look kinda old fashioned compared to those I've seen for recent (and 2001 is very recent) US storage cases for other weapons.
so say you.
I have heard him state his position loud and clear on more than one occasion =- as well as it being reiterated by Condi and Tony - which is their jobs.
Were Bush to appear too strident, at this point, would be construed as Israel being under the U.S./Bush thumb, as mere lackeys, rather than exercising their sovereign right of defense and decision making/ - If we are perceived as "in charge"
" Bush better get the hell out in front "
it would, I believe, tip the delegate balance of world opinion regarding the US and other countries letting Israel have it's head on this.
This is high stakes poker. Bush doesn't play to the crowd...He plays to win. So say I... ;o)
That would be sweet if Israel captured one alive.
I'd be real curious to hear what the MI types ultimately have to say about those weapons.
Shudder....
Just posted this:
Ghostly Shadows - How bloody-minded are the tyrants of Tehran?
I like your idea, but I would like to add to it, please: " Anything that moves should be shot at"---AND KILLED!
You are correct. The Israelis know if they don't take care of business now, there will be no tomorrow.
The Merkava has lighter armor than the Abrams and Challenger 2 in terms of damage resistance; it has somewhat less advanced armor technologically. It was designed for warfare against the weak-to-middling anti-armor capability of their region. The Abrams has been hit multiple times in friendly fire incidents, including by other Abrams tanks, and the armor has proven to be surprisingly resistant to even American anti-armor weapons. But then, the Abrams was designed to fight and win tank battles on an exposed field against a numerically superior force that was using the best anti-armor technology the rest of the world could produce. There is a cost-benefit ratio to consider.
Of course, the US is currently field-testing an entirely new class of anti-armor weapon system that will effectively obsolete all known and projected armor technologies -- the proverbial irresistable force.
I am not sure that they would. The Swiss have more or less officially adopted English as the region-neutral language of choice in recent years, in some sort of language normalization effort. For the export market, it certainly would make sense for the markings to be in lingua franca (sweet irony).
The Bushman in DC is reportedly a wicked poker player.
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