DescentBB

woodchip wrote:It seems we have another nation ending crisis looming and by what Obama and the Dems are gnashing their teeth over, it will be the death of this country as we know it. In case you are out of the loop, Sequestration is the name, draconian budget slashing the game. But is it really a trigger for the new economic apocalypse?

First off lets remember why we have sequestration. Back two years ago, we had another crisis (seems this administration has lots of em) where we need the deficit ceiling raised. Out of that came a plan where if congress agreed to raise the deficit, a bi-partisan committee would set up some sort of deficit cutting plan. Failing that, automatic budget cuts (sequestration) would take place. Remember too that back then, Obama was very clear that any attempts to circumvent sequestration would be veto'd by him. Of course back then Obama was needing the deficit ceiling raised so he could spend more money. Fast forward and now and somehow sequestration will mean vast more unemployed and babies dying because parents can't afford food to feed them. What sequestration really means is Obama will have less money to spend and suddenly he realizes what he was so very much in favor of back in 2011, now will be a black eye against him.

But is it really such a hindrance on our national well being? First it will be a 85 billion cut in govt. spending. A little over 2% of the over 3 trillion dollar national budget. so out of the base line budgeting of say 7% yearly budget increase the govt. gives itself, now it can only give itself a 5% increase. Tell me something, how many of you are getting a yearly 5% pay increase, let alone a 7% yearly pay increase? Yet somehow the govt. will come to and end and the cries of hungry babies will fill your neighborhood if the feds get 2% less increase in their yearly budget. Let me go find a box of Kleenex as a feel a good cry coming on.

callmeslick wrote:I take(not surprisingly) a different view, Will, and one that keeps to old-school Republican principles: Figure out the budget, make the taxation equal to the budgeted amount plus a small provision for surplus(rainy day fund thinking) and maintain that from year to year. The problem around making any government spending/revenue plan MANDATORY is this: unforseen geopolitical and economic situations wreak havoc on a nation whose government is hamstrung by strict limitations on either spending or taxation. Time and time again, we've seen situations arise that dictate short term expenditure, or necessitate short term manipulation of taxation, and if that capability isn't there, the nation could face a world of trouble.

woodchip wrote:So slick, you don't have a problem with base line budgeting? Why does there have to be a mandatory 7-8% budget increase every year if the revenue side does not afford it?

Spidey wrote:Make a budget then tax accordingly, yup that is exactly where the problem is.

You don’t make a budget…then tax accordingly, you tax appropriately (ethically) then budget accordingly.

It’s all bass ackwards.

ACC units are currently executing the wing flying-hour program to maintain combat readiness, and will adjust as sequestration-driven specifics are available. Depending on the outcome of budget decisions, ACC may have to reduce flying operations for two-thirds of squadrons across the command by mid to late May. This includes fighters, non-nuclear bombers, command-and-control, personnel recovery, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

The 2013 Air Power Over Hampton Roads Open House and Air Show, scheduled for May 3-5, has been cancelled. Driven by the dual threat of operating under a continuing resolution and a potential sequestration, U.S. Air Force leadership at all levels are proactively implementing near-term actions to minimize impact to readiness and our people while protecting wartime operations.

"Our decision to cease planning for the 2013 air show comes after careful review and consideration of the fiscal challenges the Air Force, the Department of Defense and our nation face," said Col. Jeannie Leavitt, 4th Fighter Wing commander. "We're taking prudent measures and doing our best to mitigate our budget risks and align available resources with current and emerging operational requirements. Remaining as mission-ready as possible and preserving our combat capability is our imperative and we're prioritizing spending to ensure this priority is met."

With "fiscal cliff" budget cuts looming a few weeks away, Air Force leaders said Thursday they probably will cancel upcoming Red Flag air combat training exercises at Nellis Air Force Base and ground the Thunderbirds demonstration team if Congress and the White House don't agree on a solution to the nation's $16 trillion debt.

The U.S. Navy will delay the refueling of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) for an unknown period because of the uncertain fiscal environment due to the ongoing legislative struggle, the service told Congress in a Friday message obtained by USNI News.

UPDATE ON SEQUESTRATION FROM ICAS.

GROWING CONSENSUS THAT SEQUESTRATION CUTS WILL BE IMPLEMENTED ON MARCH 1

Despite dire warnings from virtually the entire senior leadership of the U.S. military, there is a growing consensus among congressional leaders that legislatively mandated budget cuts will not be averted, forcing the Pentagon to make draconian budget cuts beginning March 1. This article reports that making $46 billion in cuts during a seven-month period will result in 800,000 civilian defense employees being furloughed without pay for 22 days, cancellation of scheduled maintenance to 25 ships and 450 aircraft, and other emergency-type steps that would have been inconceivable just a few weeks ago.

In a speech on Monday, Senator Mark Warner of Virginia observed that sequestration cuts are a series of spending reductions deliberately designed to be so blatantly damaging that no rational person would allow them to happen. And yet, most politicians believe that the cuts will be made. On Tuesday, Missouri Senator Roy Blunt said, “I think sequester’s gonna happen.” Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma said, “We’re gonna have a sequestration. We’re gonna have some pain because the politicians on the Hill aren’t going to make cogent, smart decisions about alternatives to this until they start feeling some pain. It’s a stupid way to govern, but that’s the way we’re doing it right now.”

The sequestration portion of the 2011 Budget Control Act mandates $500 billion in across-the-board defense spending cuts during the next ten years. The current consensus opinion in Washington is that the sequestration deadline of February 28 will pass, forcing the Department of Defense and other federal agencies to make sweeping, across-the-board spending cuts beginning on March 1. According to that same line of thought, those spending cuts will remain in place as Congress and the country begin to feel the pain, eventually resulting in some sort of compromise that allows the military and other government agencies to “undo” or roll back the expense-cutting steps. Under this scenario, it’s unclear how long it will take to reach a level of pain that forces Congress to compromise.

IMPACT OF SEQUESTRATION ON AIR SHOW COMMUNITY

As reported in the last issue of Fast Facts, contingency planning by the U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army and Marine Corps calls for a complete end to all non-essential flying – including air show performances – if sequestration cuts are implemented. ICAS has learned that, if the March 1 deadline is not averted, the Blue Angels, Thunderbirds and single-ship tactical demonstration teams will continue to prepare for the 2013 air show season through March 31. If the situation has not been corrected by then, all preparation will cease and the teams will stop flying on April 1. In addition to an abrupt end to air show performances, the military will also stop supporting air shows with static display aircraft. Although specific details about air shows and open houses held on military bases have not been shared, it is likely that these events will also be cancelled.

AirFest Fans! We know there has been a lot of doom and gloom in the news lately related to sequestration and your 2013 MacDill AirFest so we wanted to provide a quick update. Your AirFest team is continuing to make preparations to hold your Airfest in April. As of right now, we haven’t cancelled or receive cancellations from any of our scheduled performers. However, we anticipate direction to cancel AirFest 2013 if the Department of Defense is directed to implement the sequestration requirements on 1 March. Obviously, this is not the preferred course of action but necessary nonetheless.

snoopy wrote:I gotta say...

As much as I like air shows, if they are the worst that's going to get cut (they aren't but hey) I won't exactly be upset.

Spidey wrote:I think people are deliberately trying to make these and most other budget cuts as painful as possible, in an attempt to play on peoples sympathies.

Any budget cuts should be done in the most painless way possible…example:

You have 10 people on the payroll, and you need to cut the budget 10%, you have the option of letting one person go, and therefore feeling all of the pain…or you can cut each employee's pay by 10%.

So you see what I’m getting at here…

Spidey wrote:I think people are deliberately trying to make these and most other budget cuts as painful as possible, in an attempt to play on peoples sympathies.

Any budget cuts should be done in the most painless way possible…example:

You have 10 people on the payroll, and you need to cut the budget 10%, you have the option of letting one person go, and therefore feeling all of the pain…or you can cut each employee's pay by 10%.

So you see what I’m getting at here…

Flatlander wrote:My post wasn't just about air shows (although they will certainly be affected, and will have a ripple effect to civilian performers/vendors/tourism/etc.), but also about drastic military cutbacks that will impact combat readiness / effectiveness.

callmeslick wrote:


Thus, if 7% budget increases are mandatory, so would tax hikes of similar magnitude.

tunnelcat wrote:Maybe sequestration is going to cut deeper than you think. It was supposed to be an idea soooo painful that the President and Congress would never want to do it. But no one is blinking or calling "chicken" and it looks like it's going to cut to the bone if it happens. Cuts to ALL the government agencies are in order. Nothing is spared.

In fact, Congress can't even get the mundane stuff done. They're just NOW, on the 25th of Feb., releasing the printed 1040 instruction booklets and forms for mailing out to the taxpayers. Kinda late ain't it? And there's no release date at all for the 1040 ES Estimated Tax forms, evens on the IRS website.

Ferno wrote:really minor in the grand scheme of things...

Spidey wrote:So the congress’s idea of a nuclear deterrent was supposed to be so horrible that it would never be used, turns out to be “no big deal”.

Scary thought, if applied to military thinking.