“Great Green Fleet” Not So Great After All.

“Great Green Fleet” Not So Great After All.HT: Heritage.By Clark Irvine.

Charlie Houser/U.S. Navy/Newscom.

When it comes to funding the military, costly biofuel experiments should not interfere with U.S. security interests. However, that’s exactly what’s happening right now as the Navy pursues a “Great Green Fleet,” which some Members of Congress argue “makes no sense.”

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus warns that America’s dependency on foreign oil poses a strategic vulnerability and claims biofuels are the antidote. Thomas Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research, calls this notion “ridiculous,” arguing that biofuel production is “inefficient, expensive, and ultimately unsustainable.” 

The current price of one gallon of diesel fuel for the Department of Defense (DOD) is $3.60, compared to $26 for one gallon of biofuel.

Heritage’s Brian Slattery and Michaela Dodge outline some fundamental flaws of using biofuels in their paper “Biofuel Blunder: Navy Should Prioritize Fleet Modernization over Political Initiatives.” The principal flaw is based on evidence that biofuels are more corrosive than petroleum-based fuels, but even if the DOD committed to using biofuel, naval ships would still be forced to refuel with diesel in foreign ports due the lack of an international biofuel infrastructure.

A comprehensive study by the RAND Corporation also concluded that there is no direct benefit to the DOD or any branch of the military from investing in biofuels rather than conventional petroleum-based fuels.

Preparing the Navy to protect America’s national strategic interests should be the Obama Administration’s priority, not chasing political goals such as funding costly social projects. As further cuts to defense loom, Members of Congress should also act scrupulously to allocate sufficient funds to relevant Navy initiatives, such as shipbuilding and maintenance.

With the Navy’s fleet readiness already in jeopardy, neither the Administration nor Congress can afford to spend any additional time or money on expensive biofuel projects that sacrifice future responsiveness.Hmmm.....I'm sure the Russian and Chinese Navy were thinking: 

Video - Sen. Ted Cruz This Debate is About One Thing -- The Debt Ceiling.

"Grinding America Down" - Despite sequester, DOD signs contract for $59/gallon green jet fuel.

"Grinding America Down" - Despite sequester, DOD signs contract for $59/gallon green jet fuel.(WE).

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel recently warned that sequestration would cause “suspension of important activities, curtailed training, and could result in furloughs of civilian personnel” but the spending cuts haven’t killed the green fuels program, as the Pentagon has continued purchasing renewable fuel at $59 per gallon. “

In March, Gevo entered into a contract with the Defense Logistics Agency to supply the U.S. Army with 3,650 gallons of renewable jet fuel to be delivered by the second quarter of 2013,” Gevo announced this week in its first quarter financial report.
“This initial order may be increased by 12,500 gallons. All shipments will be at a fixed price of $59 per gallon during the initial testing phase. These shipments are in addition to the renewable jet fuel supplied to the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and the U.S. Navy (USN).” Conventional JP-8 jet fuel costs $3.73 a gallon, according to the Defense Logistics Agency.Hmmmmm.....If they really wanted to destroy America as a superpower, Would they do anything different?Read the full story here.

There's no Money to stop Iran by military means but there's money for this???

'PRIORITIES' - Obama increases UN funding despite sequester.

'PRIORITIES' - Obama increases UN funding despite sequester.HT: IsraelMatzav.

Priorities, man, priorities! With the United States trillions of dollars in debt and facing a forced budget cutback through sequester, President Hussein Obama has increased the amount of money that the United States is throwing into the black hole called the United Nations (Hat Tip: Bad Blue).

So, as the Federal government continues to cut White House self-guided tours, vital military spending, air traffic control towers, and now cutting 6 percent from the State Department’s budget, the state Department is now announcing that it will increase spending on the United Nations next year. The spending increase to the United Nations will be roughly $3.6 billion in 2014.

But don’t expect that to be the final spending increase dollar amount, as Fox News reports that this is not “the final tally of Obama Administration support, as hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. development, health and other funds are usually channeled through U.N. agencies and institutions — with the U.N. agencies taking with the U.N. agencies taking administrative fees as part of the deal. The most recent tally on the website of the White House Management and Budget website, for example, lists support for the U.N. at $7.7 billion — in 2010.”

Again, what purpose does the United Nations serve? None that I can tell, except providing a forum for Jew haters.Hmmmmm........."Israel's Staunchest Ally." Read the full story here.

Sequester? What Sequester? HUSSEIN Obama 'admin' unblocks frozen funds so Palestinian Authority can receive $500mn in aid.

Sequester? What Sequester? HUSSEIN Obama 'admin' unblocks frozen funds so Palestinian Authority can receive $500mn in aid.(RT).The US has unblocked almost $500 million in aid to the Palestinian Authority as it faces its worst economic crisis in years. The move comes months after Congress froze Palestinian aid in response to its bid for non-member observer status at the UN.

“To date, we have moved $295.7 million in fiscal year 2012 money…and $200 million in fiscal year 2013 assistance,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in a statement.

The first sum comprises around $195.7 million, allocated under the 2012 fiscal year budget for US Agency for International Development (USAID) economic, development and humanitarian assistance, as well as a further $100 million allocated to narcotics control.

The second sum of $200 million will come under the 2013 budget and be spent for direct budget support.

The news was announced after US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders in a visit to Israel and the West Bank earlier this week. It was Obama’s first trip to the region since taking office in 2009.

During a meeting with PA President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Thursday, Obama reportedly asked the leader to refrain from turning to the International Criminal Court.“for any reason,” including settlement expansion, the Times of Israel reported.

Abbas previously stated that he would turn to the court if Israel began to build in the controversial E1 corridor that connects East Jerusalem with the West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, but would wait two months before doing so, London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported.

Israel announced its plans to build in the area after Abbas’ move for a UN status upgrade.Hmmmm......“I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.”Read the full story here.

Related:  Sequester? What sequester? The Easter bunny comes early this year. Obama offers Palestinians $500 million and Jordan $200 million.

In a meeting with a group of Arab Americans this week, U.S. President Barack Obama revealed that he will not push the Israelis and Palestinians toward restarting negotiations or outline a new peace initiative during his upcoming visit to the region, but he will take with him a cash infusion of $500 million – which Congress will soon release – of much needed financial aid to the Palestinian Authority.

 "Which CONGRESS will Release?" 

Something very odd in the story.Obama claims that 'The money needs to be released by Congress',  but in an other article they claim the money was on board of air force one IN CASH.
Anyone still remembers the $720 million that was left behind for more 'Arab Spring'?

Sequester? What sequester? The Easter bunny comes early this year. Obama offers Palestinians $500 million and Jordan $200 million.

Sequester? What sequester? The Easter bunny comes early this year. Obama offers Palestinians $500 million and Jordan $200 million.(TheHill).

In a meeting with a group of Arab Americans this week, U.S. President Barack Obama revealed that he will not push the Israelis and Palestinians toward restarting negotiations or outline a new peace initiative during his upcoming visit to the region, but he will take with him a cash infusion of $500 million – which Congress will soon release – of much needed financial aid to the Palestinian Authority. 

President Obama said Friday he would work with Congress to provide Jordan an additional $200 million in aid this year, as the country struggles to cope with nearly half a million refugees who have fled the civil war in neighboring Syria.
King Abdullah II in Amman, Obama pledged to continue supporting Jordan and efforts to broker peace in Syria. He also predicted the number of refugees could double within the year, at a cost of $1.1 billion — a serious imposition on a country that economists say could have an unemployment rate of almost 30 percent. Nevertheless, Abdullah pledged to continue accepting refugees. "How are you going to turn back women, children or the wounded? This is just something we can’t do … that is a challenge that we just can't turn our backs on," he said. 
The president also warned that there was potential that a post-Assad Syria could become a breeding ground for other extremist groups, saying a chief challenge of the ongoing conflict was developing a stable government for the country post-Assad. "I am very concerned about Syria becoming an enclave for extremism, because extremists thrive in crisis. They thrive in failed states. They thrive in chaos," Obama said.Hmmmm.....Talking about 'extremists' New "Syrian PM" Yet Another 'Obama Approved' Muslim Brotherhood Extremist.Read the full story here.