Space Force?

[blipvertus 12359xp 5]

Before @warzan gets all worked up, let’s look at a few facts concerning Trump’s proposal for a “space force.”

First, the US Air Force has a Space Command. It’s part of the joint services US Space Command. This larger Command is majority Air Force personal plus smaller Army and Navy contingents.

Space Command is responsible for tracking objects in orbit, management of military satellites, missile defense and missile warning.

NORAD is the combined US and Canadian command responsible for missile early warning and air defense of the US and Canada. The US components of NORAD come from US Space Command and Air Force Space Command.

It should be noted that placing weapons in space is a violation of international treaties to which the US is a signatory.

It should also be noted that nothing in the Trump announcement changes the US position and that there are no plans to put weapons in space.

But we are talking about Trump so …
Feel to interpret as you wish.

What the announcement does do is study whether there should be another, co-equal, armed service.

Only Congress can create such a new service.

For what it’s worth, there is no reason in my opinion to create a new service as it would unnecessarily duplicate existing capabilities and missions.

[oriskany 60771xp 6]

I agree 100% with this post. Unnecessary, and in fact only shows how little these people actually know about the government and military they allegedly control.

* What branches of the military are already in place.
* The designated missions and capabilities of those branches.
* What is legal and not legal within the domestic policy and laws (and Constitution) of the United States.
* What is and isn’t legal in terms of international laws and treaties which we have signed.

It’s the dumbest thing since the recent announcement of new *ahem* “social policy” for the military, without informing or consulting the Pentagon, DoD, JCS, or really anyone who’s ever worn a uniform. Probably why no one paid attention after the end of that news cycle.

Besides that, the dumbest thing since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Just another 500-billion dollar hole in our deficit (aren’t Republicans supposed to be the fiscally responsible ones) to accomplish what the FBI is supposed to be doing.

Really just another clueless President trying to put an undeserved stamp on history.

[ghent99 3589xp 0]

So much here and yet most people outside the government wont understand what you guys actually mean.  🙂 Also, the good ol US of A has a different system than just about everyone else in the world on how the government structure is set up.  After working for one of the guys who helped found DHS (yes it is a boondogle and should have just been another Czar position like it had been for decades)

 

[ghent99 3589xp 4]

Oh and I forgot the most important work that NORAD does, following Santa around the world and making sure the Commies don’t shoot him down.

[lordofuzkulak 6332xp 1]

This seems poorly thought out.  As stated it’s purview would pretty much be covered by existing departments and by necessity, the required experienced personnel would need to be drawn from said departments so it’s not as if, for example, it’d suddenly free up all those Air Force personnel to do other Air Force jobs.  And it’s not going to save on the budget as the new branch will need funding which at best means diverting what was already being spent on the existing departments and at worse (and probably the more likely unfortunately) would be allocated by cutting funding to non-military things such as education, and that’s before factoring in the administrative costs that’d come from the reorganisation, purchase of new uniforms, etc.

 

Considering this is Trump, I find it entirely believable that his intention is not simply reorganising existing diverse departments into a single combined one for efficiency purposes, but rather to have an armed force in space.  If I was a conspiracy theorist I’d think this was a Russian ploy getting Trump to do this to give them a pretext to go to war without looking like the aggressors due to the breaking of the whole no weapons in space treaty.

 

 

[blipvertus 12359xp 1]

Not being much of a conspiracy theorist I think it more likely we’re just seeing a display of profound ignorance on behalf of Trump and a staff that is unable or unwilling to educate him.

[limburger 21704xp 0]

Anyone else reminded of the end of the ‘Iron Sky’ movie when every nation in space had secret weapons on their space stations/satelites ?
As such I’m not entirely convinced that everyone is following the ‘no weapons in space’ agreement to the letter.
(Although … that was a movie and a parody)

Anyways …

The whole announcement reads like the work of a new manager :
– the old stuff is bad ’cause it isn’t mine
– here’s new stuff that is exactly like the old stuff, but done my way

It’s much like his ‘wall’ … an old existing idea/project given a new name/status that has the appearance of being something ‘new’, but in reality is more about being perceived to be doing something as it is about actually fixing problems.

I hate politics and I’d rather not pollute this fine forum with this any further.
So let’s leave it at this and talk about what this means for gaming ?
Call of Duty already did have a ‘near future’ space force.
Are there any tabletop games that cover this same subject ?

[torros 23816xp 2]

1. Space Force?

I’m in!

Off down the local council to change name to Dan Dare right now

@warzan If you want to do the same and change yours to Digby I reckon we’d be a shoe in

Let’s go show that pesky Meekon what for

[elessar2590 18207xp 1]

This didn’t originate with President Trump it came from a Bi-Partisan recommendation by the House Armed Services Committee a few months ago.

“The military has not done a good enough job looking after space with all its other distracting priorities,” said Representative Jim Cooper, a Tennessee Democrat who has championed the idea of a space corps along with Representative Mike Rogers of Alabama, the chairman of an armed-services subcommittee in the House. “It’s just not getting the attention it deserves.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/08/military-space-corps/536124/

[wesadie1969 2729xp 3]

Why am I picturing Trump in the Oval Office with space themed action figures shouting “pew pew pew”?

 

[bigdave 3704xp 1]

Because it’s probably accurate? Then again, it’s a bit pot-kettle-black for us to tease someone for playing with soldiers…

[lordofuzkulak 6332xp 2]

@bigdave – difference is we’re grown up enough to admit we like playing with toy soldiers…

[limburger 21704xp 2]

Plus when we’re done playing we’re not sending real ones to play out all the fantasy scenarios …

 

[bigdave 3704xp 1]

True enough! We’d all be better off if they realised the consequences of their actions…

[linuxnavigator 499xp 1]

Without any prejudice to what Oriskany wrote, it is my humble opinion that the US needed a department of homeland security. Case in point to its usefulness, the US CERT ( Computer Emergency Response Team) which falls part of Homeland security has the painstaking duty of tracking malware and threat actors activity.

Link to their website is provided here.

Further to this, you may be interested in the links provided are related to Grizzle Bear and Hidden Cobra.

While it is very difficult to assess how true the information provided is, it still makes an interesting read.

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