OK…the point being discussed is a set of people enjoying a whine fest over Trump being in the White House while assuming that a parade is planned for his self-glorification. I have no issue with that, people have their little takes on things. That, and that alone is the beginning and end of this particular thread - oh, and people justly complaining that parades really aren’t much fun for the participants- they have a point.
Trying to make this a “this is awfully expensive” argument from any armed forces officer is hollow bull shit. The military can find a way to buy penny candy for $20 without even trying so attempting to assume some moral high ground over cost is simply pathetic. Using the various military demonstration teams as a metric to deflect this approach is perfectly fine and you, dear Naval Post Graduate School graduate, know that for a fact. This is not a new argument…it was had in 2020 during the “American Strong” Flyover. Tiny minds wailed about the cost, but as the services noted in a joint statement announcing
“America Strong,” the US Navy and Air Force called the flybys “critical training requirements” for both squadrons: “Pilots must execute a minimum number of flight hours to maintain proficiency. These flyovers will incur no additional cost to the tax payer.” Well, Brett, the shoe leather worn out by the poor souls assigned to this parade “will incur no additional cost to the tax payer” just as the highly expensive Fleet Week in Philly will not actually cost the tax payer more…since ships and sailors move around anyway.
Next up…the “optics” of “slashing vital programs and firing thousands of mission essential federal workers.” Let’s see…in the years I worked for Uncle Sam in one way or another (military and federal employee) I watched Reagan cut over 100,000 federal positions, Bush ‘41 host a major reduction in force in the military (about 400,000 service members) and Clinton continued the trend dropping the Navy from 454 ships to 341 (mostly by allowing older ships to retire and not building new ones) - oh, and Mr. Clinton also RIF’d some 400,000 civilian federal employees. Bush ‘43 more or less left everyone alone, nut Mr. Obama followed up with a “soft-RIF” by freezing federal pay for three years while shrinking ranks via a long-term hiring freeze. During his first term I recall Trump RIFing a small number of people and also hosting a hiring freeze. Save your crocodile tears for people who remember beyond last month. Still, it is worth noting that every one of those administrations had parades, major events, and even cool singers perform at the White House so they did, in fact, “have it both ways!” Oh wait, I forgot, using historical facts in a debate is, to contemporary naval officers, a “straw man,” my apologies. 🤣
Let me know if I missed anything Brett, I’ll be happy to support my argument, even if you need to fall back on your pseudo-academic tropes in response.
