Barack Obama To Shut Down Southern Air Defense Systems

[CuteOldGuy]

What is the President up to now? He's shutting down our Southern Air Defense, and turning the radar inward? On Americans?

This guy is seriously dangerous. Why would he need to keep track of Americans more than potential threats from the outside? Why would he leave a door wide open for terrorists and others?

Here's the article:

As the U.S. government continues to expand surveillance and monitoring systems to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars within the borders of the United States, a recent announcement regarding the country’s southern air defense systems is raising eyebrows.
Our southern border is, in part, protected by the Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS), which utilizes moored balloons hovering at about 15,000 feet to identify low flying aircraft and missiles that may penetrate the border and cross into U.S. airspace.

The system is utilized by the U.S. Air Force, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for a number of missions including detection of drug smuggling and preservation of the air sovereignty of the continental United States.

According to Exelis Systems Corporation, the company that built and jointly maintains TARS with the U.S. Air Force, the government has ordered a complete shutdown of Aerostat flight operations:

The government also indicated its intent that aerostat flight operations will cease on March 15, 2013, and that the remainder of the fiscal year will be used to deflate aerostats, disposition equipment, and prepare sites for permanent closure. We are currently reviewing all the details of the RfP and evaluating the possible impacts on the program and our workforce. We continue to communicate with the government on this matter, and we will have more information in the coming days and weeks.

An Exelis employee close to the TARS project had this to say about the closure of the sites:

“Not only will this closure mean hundreds of people will be out of jobs, but it also means our borders will not be safe, especially along the remote U.S. Mexico Border like in Texas.

These defense radars detect low flying aircraft infiltrating our borders.
Without these defense radars, low flying aircraft will go undetected.

It will be open season for any drug/gun/slave smugglers, terrorists flying in with nukes, low altitude missiles, or even a full scale low elevation invasion/attack against America.”

With China actively and openly deploying Russian-made low altitude strategic bombers, designing EMP weapons capable of disabling the country’s power grid infrastructure, and establishing economic zones within the United States, it’s difficult to imagine the motivation behind the move to further weaken U.S. air defenses on the southern border.

If September 11, 2001 was any indication of our air defense capabilities, and considering that any ground invasion of the United States would originate on our southern border, then wouldn’t we want as many early warning systems as possible to be actively protecting our country in these specific areas?

The U.S. government has chosen to shutdown this outward facing surveillance system, and has instead turned the surveillance inward, on the American people.

Read more at http://marketdailynews.com/2013/01/2...miGFHFd107b.99

[joe bloe]

It's a big mistake to elect someone president that hates the country. Obama is running this country the way Bill Ayers would run it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnlRrxXv-v8

[Laz]

I have to wonder what we don't know. If he is shutting it down with no alternative I would be concerned. However, if he is implementing something better that might be classified it is not necessarily a bad thing. How do we know? Sadly we must trust Congress to raise a stink if the national defense is being compromised. Some of them have to be in the loop on this and not all of them are democrats.

[Guest040616]

StupidOldLyingFart, don't look now but Obama will be be in office for four more years!

Eat your heart out LOSER!

(That goes for you too, Joe the Bloehard!)

[Guest123018-4]

Blond devotion to a person that will one day come for some of, or all of, your rights.

[Guest040616]

Originally Posted by The2Dogs

Blond devotion

You got that right 2Pups. We finally have something we can both agree upon.

Indeed, my ATF is a sexy "blonde."

[i'va biggen]

Originally Posted by CuteOldGuy

What is the President up to now? He's shutting down our Southern Air Defense, and turning the radar inward? On Americans?

This guy is seriously dangerous. Why would he need to keep track of Americans more than potential threats from the outside? Why would he leave a door wide open for terrorists and others?

Here's the article:

As the U.S. government continues to expand surveillance and monitoring systems to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars within the borders of the United States, a recent announcement regarding the country’s southern air defense systems is raising eyebrows.
Our southern border is, in part, protected by the Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS), which utilizes moored balloons hovering at about 15,000 feet to identify low flying aircraft and missiles that may penetrate the border and cross into U.S. airspace.

The system is utilized by the U.S. Air Force, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for a number of missions including detection of drug smuggling and preservation of the air sovereignty of the continental United States.

According to Exelis Systems Corporation, the company that built and jointly maintains TARS with the U.S. Air Force, the government has ordered a complete shutdown of Aerostat flight operations:

The government also indicated its intent that aerostat flight operations will cease on March 15, 2013, and that the remainder of the fiscal year will be used to deflate aerostats, disposition equipment, and prepare sites for permanent closure. We are currently reviewing all the details of the RfP and evaluating the possible impacts on the program and our workforce. We continue to communicate with the government on this matter, and we will have more information in the coming days and weeks.

An Exelis employee close to the TARS project had this to say about the closure of the sites:

“Not only will this closure mean hundreds of people will be out of jobs, but it also means our borders will not be safe, especially along the remote U.S. Mexico Border like in Texas.

These defense radars detect low flying aircraft infiltrating our borders.
Without these defense radars, low flying aircraft will go undetected.

It will be open season for any drug/gun/slave smugglers, terrorists flying in with nukes, low altitude missiles, or even a full scale low elevation invasion/attack against America.”

With China actively and openly deploying Russian-made low altitude strategic bombers, designing EMP weapons capable of disabling the country’s power grid infrastructure, and establishing economic zones within the United States, it’s difficult to imagine the motivation behind the move to further weaken U.S. air defenses on the southern border.

If September 11, 2001 was any indication of our air defense capabilities, and considering that any ground invasion of the United States would originate on our southern border, then wouldn’t we want as many early warning systems as possible to be actively protecting our country in these specific areas?

The U.S. government has chosen to shutdown this outward facing surveillance system, and has instead turned the surveillance inward, on the American people.

Read more at http://marketdailynews.com/2013/01/2...miGFHFd107b.99

Maybe you should ask yourself if they stop using one thing what do they have now that is better. I did that when they quit using the SR71.

[Sidewinder]

Originally Posted by i'va biggen

Maybe you should ask yourself if they stop using one thing what do they have now that is better. I did that when they quit using the SR71.

The SR-71 was retired twice. It sat in mothballs for a few years the first time, and then a small project brought them back into service for a while. The USAF crew chief had some pointed things to say about the restart: Lockheed-Martin apparently made some MAJOR management blunders.

It is not at all clear that something being retired is being replaced by something better. As an obvious example, consider the F-14. The Navy lost a BUNCH of capability when the Tomcat was retired: the F/A-18 has less than half the combat radius.

And note that we STILL don't know why the BATF gave all those guns to the Mexican drug lords.

[i'va biggen]

I think a satellite doing surveillance is better than radar hanging from balloons. Hell you can google your home.

[CuteOldGuy]

Why is he turning the radar inward, instead of outward, oh dumbest-of-all posters, Eva?

[Laz]

Originally Posted by CuteOldGuy

Why is he turning the radar inward, instead of outward, oh dumbest-of-all posters, Eva?

According to the article he is shutting the systems down. If that is the case he is not pointing them in a different direction. The last line about surveillance on the US is curious since it seems inaccurate regarding these systems and aimed only to incite people.

As for satellite surveillance I am not sure that it is as good as land based systems for everything.

[CuteOldGuy]

I hope you're right, Laz, but that would be inconsistent with the direction this President is taking the country. I hope for more information soon. But to discount the idea that this President would opt out of a way to further spy on the American people simply ignores his history.

[Laz]

I agree that this president sucks and his policies, with a very few exceptions, are horrible. I am just pointing out that this article sounds like a contractor trying to save his government income stream. Way to much information is unknown to make any valid conclusions.

[CuteOldGuy]

Then let the government come out and explain themselves. It's their duty to keep us informed. However, they keep too many secrets, and do a lot of things without explanation. There can be only one answer why they operate this way. They don't want us to know.

[Laz]

There are good reasons for military secrets to exist. The less the enemy knows the better so I do not expect them to explain everything to the public. However, there is congressional oversight of the military and I do expect them to review this to make sure it is a good decision.

In reality I suspect that this was a decision made by the military and presented to congress and the white house for approval and they probably signed off on it based on the military recommendations. I don't know that as a fact but the government bureaucracy is simply to large for any one person to know everything about.

Now when this is applied to non security issues I want FULL disclosure since light makes the rats hide.