Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Uh, Oh: I Think I Know What This Means

Instapundit links to this discussion at Ammoland:

Des Moines, Iowa – -(Ammoland.com)- Those of you shopping for economically priced .223 and 5.56 ammunition may be discovering that it is getting harder and harder to find.
There is significant demand for these calibers at this moment, with the US Army the main buyer of the lower-priced ammunition.
From our various sources, we are hearing that the Army is bringing their reserves back up to a reasonable level in anticipation of the perceivable conflicts our military may be engaged in over the next 24 plus months.

Read more at Ammoland.com: http://www.ammoland.com/2012/07/03/another-ammunition-shortage-frank-talk-about-guns/#ixzz1zgN4S6le
And you thought the war in Iraq was pretty much over, and Afghanistan was winding down...  Hint:  four letter word for a country with nuclear ambitions.  And I rather doubt that the Obama Administration is making plans based on their expectation of a major change in policy after November.

12 comments:

  1. What scenarios can you envision that would result in the US military expending a lot of small arms ammo?

    Massive Ordnance Penetrators and their little 5,000 lb brothers the GBU-28, cruise missiles, GDAM kits mated to general purpose bombs, sure, but small arms?

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  2. More like giving it to causes in Syria and friends in Egypt. I can't see a senario for US boots on the ground.

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  3. I highly doubt that they are anticipating another ground war with significant participation by US troops. We aren't going to get into an infantry war with Iran - it would be idiotic and unnecessary.

    As hga pointed out, the armament needed for Iran involves big things that go boom that are delivered from a distance.

    I suspect an effective attack against Iran would also require a few raids by ranger/spec-op types into hardened target areas, but there is no way Obama has the cojones to order such a thing.

    The pentagon, of course, may be buying based on other contingencies, but since we have been in ground wars for almost 12 years, it is more likely that they are just restocking.

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  4. Or a lot of units coming back from the rockpile and needing to make themselves inspection-ready.

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  5. October surprise, that's what it likely means.

    Old Coot

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  6. You are expecting pre-election warmongering by the USA? You cynic. Next you'll be telling us that Congress won't even declare war before the attack is launched.

    Every year at this time when you chaps are celebrating that sleazy, mendacious Declaration of Independence, I weep metaphorical tears at how you ignore that fine and noble document, your Constitution. I suppose it was just too ambitious for fallible humans.

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  7. Buying ammo now makes sense for events even in 2013 and 2014. I wouldn't assume that this is a pre-election war.

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  8. A pre-election incursion into an oil-producing nation makes no sense politically because it would skyrocket the price of oil, with knock-on effects on the price of everything that travels by internal combustion; just on the news of such. As it is, I'm a little surprised we're being as publicly confrontational in regards freedom of navigation in the Straits of Hormuz.

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  9. as a former ammunition specialist for the Army at a Division and Corps level, I see this as a normal resupply of stock. Depending on the age of stock, we would often dip into the reserves to get older ammo out, and then replenish with newer stock.

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  10. Or it could be the government deliberately pricing civilians out.

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  11. Settle down there, the military's small and and ammo budget is a matter of public record. As is the spending.

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