How did they make stinger missiles in the 1980s, I think that is a major flaw, didn’t they ever imagine fighting Russia? What if we were fighting China and Russia allied with China? We need to source all war materials domestically, this is crazy.
We’ve outsourced much of our domestic manufacturing and mining of various materials overseas over the past few decades, dontcha know.
Combination of free trade cheapness and environmentalists who claim to want to reduce pollution but have no problem if occurs elsewhere.
“How did they make stinger missiles in the 1980s, I think that is a major flaw, didn’t they ever imagine fighting Russia? What if we were fighting China and Russia allied with China? We need to source all war materials domestically, this is crazy.”
During the Cold War, the critical minerals we needed were available from 2 countries, the Soviet Union and South Africa.
Jimmy Carter, as part of his ‘Human Rights’ campaigns (i.e., overthrowing friendly governments because they’re not yet Jeffersonian Democracies) was ready to take out the White government in South Africa.
Thankfully, he was talked out of it.
When the Army designed the Stinger, the US was the source of 95% of the World’s rare earth minerals. Our mines are now all shut down and China and Russia control the market. Our government was too busy making sure that boys could pee in the girls restroom and swim on the girls team. Priorities you know.
In the 60’s we bought Soviet titanium to build the Lockheed blackbirds.
Yea, they didn’t know they were selling it to us. 😎
“How did they make stinger missiles in the 1980s,”
The titanium used in the SR-71 came from Russia. It was a long, careful and convoluted process with cut-outs to buy it covertly without them knowing the end user.
We used to mine rare earth’s in California, besides other places. But in order to save the planet...
The mines that supplied them have closed or no longer exist. Thanks, ecomentalists.