As tempting as it is, I refrain from mentioning the obscene overruns, budget busting, and ineffectiveness of the F-35 jet that the US has poured $87.5 BILLION into the loser project since 1995. The cost per plane has risen so high that the military may actually be afraid of using them in battle for three reasons:
a. they break down too easily and are a bitch to maintain
b. if we lose one, the cost is huge
c. their legs are too short and supporting them with tankers adds a whole new level of cost, complexity, and risk
So, instead, lets talk ISIS, Syria, and butter vs. guns. I apologize for the hit and run nature of this battle. But, our anal-ISIS must start somewhere.
FROM THE CHURCH OF INEFFABLE STUPIDITY:
The Pentagon proudly reported that it used 46 cruise missiles in Syria, aimed at the leadership of ISIS. These shoot and forget weapons are a popular, low risk means of killing. Almost like being a white police officer in the Ferguson - St. Louis area. There is (as the pentagon argues) almost no downside. Well, for most people.
OK. Sure. Except for collateral damage, cost, and ineffectiveness.
The Pentagon also admitted that in that barrage, it managed to kill only two ISIS leaders. The others escaped, most critically a highly trained frenchman whose military background, training, and experience makes him a highly valued and feared leader.
EVERY CRUISE MISSILE COSTS $1.6 MILLION.
So, if we do the math, the two dead ISIS folks cost $38,600,000 each, not counting jet plane costs, satellite time, support, transport of the missiles to a close enough area to launch,
As a comparison, VietNam was one of the first CPA wars ever fought. By that, I mean that statistics, numbers, and raw data were kept in detail never before used during a war. After careful, repeated studies, in which false claims were dismissed, and confirmed kills were totaled, it turns out that
TO KILL ONE ENEMY IN VIET NAM, A SOLDIER USED ON AVERAGE OF 50,000 ROUNDS.
This includes suppression fire, air craft fire, and the most efficient of all, sniper fire. When you consider that even at today's costs, one M-14 bullet, the round most frequently used in Viet Nam, costs 24 cents per round, that means that
THE COST TO KILL ONE VIET CONG BY RIFLE WAS $24,000.
$38 MILLION per death, vs. $24 THOUSAND?
Considering how Bush's screwed up policies created the mess, the vacuum, and the hellhole which spawned ISIS, it is only fair that we use a lot more money to kill them per person. It only makes sense.