Great news: Russian attack subs spotted off east coast of U.S.
posted at 9:55 pm on August 4, 2009 by Allahpundit
Share on Facebook | printer-friendly
You know what this calls for? An Obama speech in Red Square about the common humanity that unites us in a struggle for blah blah blah blah.
But the collapse of the Soviet Union all but eliminated the ability of the Russian Navy to operate far from home ports, making the current submarine patrols thousands of miles from Russia even more surprising for military officials and defense policy experts.
“I don’t think they’ve put two first-line nuclear subs off the U.S. coast in about 15 years,” said Norman Polmar, a naval historian and expert on submarine warfare…
The submarine patrols come as Moscow tries to shake off the embarrassment of the latest failed test of the Bulava missile, a long-range weapon that was test fired from a submarine in the Arctic on July 15. The failed missile test was the sixth since 2005, and some experts see Russia’s assertiveness elsewhere as a gambit by the military to prove its continued relevance…
While the submarines had not taken any provocative action beyond their presence outside territorial waters of the United States, officials expressed wariness over the Kremlin’s motivation for ordering such an unusual mission.
“Any time the Russian Navy does something so out of the ordinary it is cause for worry,” said a senior Defense Department official who has been monitoring reports on the submarines’ activities.
A few possibilities off the top of my head for What This Might Mean in addition to the NYT’s “Bulava missile” theory. (1) Russia wants to see how much The One will let them get away with, just as Biden predicted would happen last year. (2) Russia’s pissed at Biden for his crack a few weeks ago about their economy “withering” and is flexing some muscle in response. (3) Russia’s looking to expand its presence in the western hemisphere more generally, which explains its naval exercises with Venezuela in December. (4) Russia’s gearing up to make another move on Georgia and is putting The One on notice that they’re not to be trifled with when they do. (5) Russia’s got a fee-vah and the only prescription is more bare-chested Putin photos, and a display of military strength in America’s backyard makes for nice optics on the front page tomorrow next to Vlad’s pecs. You’re free to vote for more than one theory — they’re hardly mutually exclusive — but as of right now I’m leaning towards number 4.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Comment pages: « Previous 1 ... 3 4 5 6 Next »
Not sure why, but things like this make me thank God more and more that I live in Texas.
GoodBoy on August 5, 2009 at 12:19 AM
Born in Tx and have seriously considered returning, what with the current enviroment and a Texan’s natural proclivities when threatened, it’d seem like home in more ways than one my friend.
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:22 AM
I don’t like seafood. Can you bake from scratch, fillet fish and know which parts of deer, raccoon, squirrel, turtle and various waterfowl can be kept and which should be discarded?
I could also use a HAM radio operator, preferably with equipment.
Bishop on August 5, 2009 at 12:22 AM
Agreed.
Since they closed both the SAC bases here many years ago, and most of the mines are all closed, there isn’t a target anywhere within 300 miles of me. Supplies and fuel in, water stored, private well, healthy herd of “government beef”, ammo and ammo-dispensers.
House density of less than 1 per square mile in the county. Population density about the same. It’s quite here. :-)
So, I sit and listen. I sit and watch. I sit and think. But I sit ready.
Yoop on August 5, 2009 at 12:23 AM
Just barely caught Captain Kangaroo and Kukla, Fran and Ollie. My favorite show was The Archies, but I had a Partridge Family lunch box with a Danny thermos. My last visit to the Smithsonian…I saw the same one in the American History Museum – OUCH!
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:23 AM
Don’t forget Sea Hunt and Nellie Belle on the Roy Rodgers show.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:23 AM
At this point it would hardly make a difference if they did launch from their subs tomorrow.
Obama will eventually achieve the same thing.
Yes, I do believe he hates this country that much. And I hate him 10 times more.
Spiritk9 on August 5, 2009 at 12:24 AM
Still way young yet… :-)
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:25 AM
As one of the resident Cold War oldies I must admit that the Russkies, with all their nukes, tanks, and aircraft never scared me half as much as three jihadis driving an 18 wheeler.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:21 AM
As much as I was trained to kill them, they were still a respectable enemy. I have an ex-soviet Col. in my bldg. whom I drink with up at the pool and wax nostalgic over the old days.
VERY strange days indeed!
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:26 AM
sorry…Rogers…damn commie-pinko keyboard strikes again…and again (wrong thread before)
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:26 AM
That’s the lower part, the troll land. Up here hasn’t changed since the glacier retreated.
Yoop on August 5, 2009 at 12:27 AM
Alas, I’m useless in that department, but I can snare and field dress a liberal in under 7 minutes;)
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:27 AM
My son is a tanker, 3rd Armored Cav. One of his M1Abrams drivers used to drive T-72s. We had a rip roaring time over brewskis talking about that.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:28 AM
LOL… hear ya… I grew up right next to Castle Air Force Base… SAC base… and my kids don’t really believe the storys of Nuc drills in school, sitting under the desk… twice a year…
One reason I live in Denver now though, if its a Jihadi strike, the coasts and border areas are much easier targets to hit…
Romeo13 on August 5, 2009 at 12:28 AM
You say the sweetest things!
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:28 AM
Mike Nelson, former UDT navy diver…
Still have an autographed photo of Roy and Trigger from one of his guest appearances at a local county fair when I was about kindergarten age.
Even in black and white…with rabbit ears, that was good TV.
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:29 AM
What the hell are you still doing here? I sold you to Canada 15 years ago….useless yooper.
Spiritk9 on August 5, 2009 at 12:30 AM
Russian’s off the East Coast.
Change We Can Believe In!
Techie on August 5, 2009 at 12:30 AM
And for you youngins’, yes coldwarrior and I watched ‘Godzilla’ six times a week on Million Dollar Theater. ‘The Crawling Eye’ came in a close second.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:33 AM
Lived in Sacramento for a while as a kid…right off the runway for Mather AFB. On scheduled drill days, they’d call over to the small army base where I lived and tell us to keep the kids and pets indoors, and bring in the laundry…kerosene all over the place as the B-52’s took off and went over the house at a few hundred feet…saw my first B-58 on one of those drills. It was the unscheduled ones that scared the bejeesus out of us…especially around Octboer ‘62.
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:34 AM
Alas, I’m useless in that department, but I can snare and field dress a liberal in under 7 minutes;)
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:27 AM
Honey, you just keep getting better and better with each line!
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:34 AM
Allah,
Haven’t read all the other comments, but a 6th possibility exists:
As proud as I am to be from the Silent Service, the article notes that the two SSNs are both Akula class submarines, the quietest submarines in their fleet. If I remember correctly, they are exceedingly difficult to track outside a certain distance from our own ships. A distance which happened to be uncomfortable in the extreme in my day. And while I am sure (and also was most recently updated by a comrade this is so) our technology has improved and our detection ranges have certainly been extended as our sensors get better and their ships age (Akulas have to be at least 15 to 20 yrs old by now, and that means ancient after the fashion at which the Russians maintain their ships), I am certain AntiSubmarine Warfare is still a difficult problem for our side.
For instance, the article indicates at least one of these SSNs was surveilled (by whatever multiple means probably) from the area at which she deployed till she arrived off our coast. That tells me she either has a “self noise” problem (she’s making too much of it to be quiet due to a mechanical or construction problem (noise as seawater flows over limber holes in her hull)), or we are pretty darn impressively good against them again. The “noise advantage” required of a US SSN over a former Soviet submarine such as an Akula would have to be significant to allow us to hear her very far away. And since they are their best, I doubt this is as easy as the games played in the 60s and 70s when you could hear a Soviet SSN farther away than you could actually shoot him. So this tracking was probably conducted via ocean floor SOSUS arrays, and P-3s for a large part of the way. [Not that our SSNs weren't or couldn't have been part of this, but do you honestly think I'd tell you or anyone if that was the most likely source? Not likely. Especially since, like the President, I really don't have the facts here, and shouldn't be speculating anyway...... but it is so much fun to do so.....]) The other SSN remains undetected (so I suspect that one is the Akula II).
Russians have deployed to our coast very infrequently over the last several decades. The last serious intrusion was in the 1980s, followed by smaller incursions every 4-6 years or so. The reason they haven’t been around till lately is because their navy quit working after the collapse of the Soviet Union and they are just now trying to reassert SOME kind of actual fleet presence in the world today, so they can enhance the prestige of their weapons systems, and convince folks like India to buy their old hulks. This is probably all about weapons sales. Why not?
Besides, the few Russian sailors who want to actually be, you know, good at their jobs need “training love” too! As for whether our guys are getting good “stack time” on our newly bold opponents, it would surely be nice, wouldn’t it? Fun as Hell. But somehow, I doubt we are getting as much good training as you might imagine. Them’s the breaks when you can’t hear a fellow farther away than you can spit the proverbial “loogie”. But it’s a good thought. I do hope our guys are “getting some”. Even if only for the really good sea stories.
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 12:35 AM
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:28 AM
If youn ain’t you ain’t shi…
3rd of the 5th cav myself, I tip my 10 gallon-crossed sabre blazoned-navy blue to you sir!
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:37 AM
Was a young Army brat in Korea when
Perry MasonRaymond Burr showed up in Pusan, Korea as part of a USO tour after filming a Godzilla movie in Japan…think it was King Kong v. Godzilla or Mothra…Burr played an American journalist.coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:38 AM
Laura,
You are definitely doing something wrong. There isn’t supposed to be enough left to field dress.
Yoop on August 5, 2009 at 12:40 AM
Thank you sir. That said, we all have some great sons and daughters out there. Doesn’t matter if they are flying at 30,000 ft over our heads, a thousand feet under the sea, or twelve inches inside a foxhole. Cooks, pilots, engineers, swabbies, squids, coastguardsmen, riflemen. God bless every single one of these ‘Killer Angels’.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:41 AM
Aw, shucks *blushes*
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:43 AM
We proved to be too unruly and uncivil. They gave us back in a trade for 2 third-round NHL draft picks.
Yoop on August 5, 2009 at 12:44 AM
ROFLMAO!
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:45 AM
Thank you sir. That said, we all have some great sons and daughters out there. Doesn’t matter if they are flying at 30,000 ft over our heads, a thousand feet under the sea, or twelve inches inside a foxhole. Cooks, pilots, engineers, swabbies, squids, coastguardsmen, riflemen. God bless every single one of these ‘Killer Angels’.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:41 AM
Indeed sir, and I concur whole heartedly. As a Scout,(19D) esprit de corps has never fully escaped me. Your point is well taken.
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:46 AM
We proved to be too unruly and uncivil. They gave us back in a trade for 2 third-round NHL draft picks.
Yoop on August 5, 2009 at 12:44 AM
Dad gammit! At this rate I need to inveast in “Handi-wipes just to break even!
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:48 AM
Svimwear!!! Veddddy Nice! Where’s the beef?
LOL. Kisses to you too, baldi….
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 12:49 AM
Another reason why I find the H/A crew a superior cut above the rest….
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:50 AM
In my day I was 11E…today 19K. Career change to 95B then 31D. Reverted back (my choice) to 11E because of the B.S.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 12:51 AM
In other important news….Paula Abdul is no longer part of American Idol.
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:51 AM
I’m sure Obama will learn the correct lesson from this…now’s the time to cut that bloated Defense budget some more. Since the Russians are obviously now protecting our east coast for us…helluva guy that Putin!
AUINSC on August 5, 2009 at 12:54 AM
Almost was about to ask for a sarc tag….but you know, I think you are on to something there.
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 12:56 AM
Well kids, at this point I am afraid I will have to bid you a pleasant rejoinder. A maiden of interest has rang and suggested that we join for a night-cap just around the corner. As a red blooded lad, a siren (pun intended)of duty has sounded.
Tally-Ho & g’nite all!
Archimedes on August 5, 2009 at 12:57 AM
Good night and Good luck;)
Laura in Maryland on August 5, 2009 at 12:59 AM
Maybe they just got lost?
- The Cat
P.S. I hate to say it but I think Medvedev could take Obama in a fight. I know without a doubt that Putin could.
What am I saying. Yulia Tymoshenko could take him in a fair fight.
MirCat on August 5, 2009 at 1:00 AM
Agreed. Day-is-done.
As for those Russkie screws off the east coast…I trust our friends in the U.S. Navy to keep an eye on them.
Limerick on August 5, 2009 at 1:02 AM
To stay with the navy theme…be sure to use bumpers when you bring her alongside.
G’night all…
coldwarrior on August 5, 2009 at 1:07 AM
No time to read all the comments. No doubt someone has already said similar… Nonetheless:
I choose to believe that this is not one of those international tests of which Biden spoke… I choose to believe that Putin is massing forces to liberate America from its evil marxist despotic dictator.
I will embrace the Spetznatz team that parachutes into my neighborhood as liberators, not invaders.
I’m not sure if the above is sarcasm or not.
LegendHasIt on August 5, 2009 at 1:24 AM
Wow. I was just dropped back into my childhood for a second. :)
baldilocks on August 5, 2009 at 1:24 AM
Hey Squid! What’s going on?
baldilocks on August 5, 2009 at 1:25 AM
They are going to move on Georgia again.
patriot2001 on August 5, 2009 at 1:34 AM
So Cal, unfortunately.
LASue on August 4, 2009 at 10:47 PM
Welcome to the resistance :) There are still a few of us here.
Fighton03 on August 5, 2009 at 1:49 AM
highhopes,
“Showing the flag is a provocative act by its very nature.”
Not in this context. It could be considered provocative if it was being done in a disputed area, such as what the U.S. does in the Gulf of Sidra. But these subs are outside the accepted international limits, they are not acting “warlike”, not interfering with our naval ops, etc. That is NOT provocative. It is outside the recent norm, but that by itself is not provocation.
exhelodrvr on August 5, 2009 at 1:54 AM
There’s that word again (optics). What do you mean by it? You’re not using it properly according to the normal definition.
B26354 on August 5, 2009 at 2:17 AM
have you seen Putin diving to the bottom of the deepest lake and riding horses sans shirt on drudge? He is clearly having a midlife crisis oh noes….
ginaswo on August 5, 2009 at 3:43 AM
If the Russians do make a move on Georgia, do you think they’ll land at Savannah?
IndieDogg on August 5, 2009 at 3:56 AM
It was Whirlybirds, Rescue 8,Highway Patrol, Sky King, Cheyenne,Sugarfoot,Maverick, Bat Masterson, The Detectives, and on and on….
Jeff from WI on August 5, 2009 at 5:04 AM
While the Russian Navy has decreased dramatically in size, look at our navy. We’re facing a crisis in the next 20-30 years where we will run out of warships. And, we need a lead time of years to spool up the land, plant, and materials to generate a new fleet.
Our two SSN, production facilities are are producing replacement subs at such a low rate our fleet will fall below 48 subs in the coming years. Initially under the peace dividend with Clinton the Navy was to fall to 72 attack subs from a force of 92 boats. Our sub fleet is now at 57 and sinking fast.
The Clinton administration’s cancellation of the Seawolf SSN program caused lots of high end blue collar workers and engineers to go elsewhere for work, often to less challenging and lesser paying jobs; so, we lost the institutional knowledge required to quickly and cost efficiently build certain aspects of the technology. There is an increasing lack of old engineers there to train new ones…
And, we are on the high side of the cost curve given the low rate of production. Whereas, we used to produce Los Angeles class subs at 1 billion a copy, the subs currently being produced cost 3 billion a copy. We could have up to 6 subs in production flow simultaneously. It would greatly reduce costs. We may in fact get more subs for less money. It would provide high paying jobs. 96% of a defense dollar spent finds its way back into the economy in a year, far exceeding stimulus programs “effects”. In fact, it will probably produce a positive multiplier effect as the dollars change hands through the economy.
We have the same issue with cruisers and frigates, bombers and fighters… Obama canceled the F-22 with a direct immediate loss of 100,000 high paying jobs — and more like a million jobs lost with the ripple effect through the economy. That, of course, causes housing to crash even more, consumer spending to be less, and unemployment, hence, dependence upon govt. services to rise.
So why should we be concerned? For instance, we are, currently, able to defend the straights of Indonesia with our Los Angelos class subs. But, with the huge sub building program in China, in a few years they will be able to swarm us under just with numbers. And, 50% of the world’s oil is transported via the sea lanes through the Indonesian area!
Same holds true with our fighters. I was been a military aircraft contractor for several years — from after 9/11 till I was recently let go by Boeing — in part for not supporting the ONE. I made my living upgrading old fighters with new weapons, communications and navigation systems. All I can say is most of our air defense fleet consists of 30 year old F-15C’s which are worn out, cost more to maintain every day, and, which have considerably less performance capability than new European and Russian fighters.
The F-15E’s we produced in the 80’s and 90’s are good for air to ground — not so much so for air-to-air due to their more sluggish performance. Our F-16’s are behind the curve relative to new foreign fighters. Ditto for the newest F-18’s. And, the F-35 is four years behind in development. And, it looks like it will slip to 6 years behind.
Due to the cancellation of the F-22 a lot of the people “fired” by Obama at Lockheed, et. al., will leave the industry in the interim until the F-35 reaches production.
So, same story for our Air Forces under Obama as was the case for the Navy under Clinton.
If we had focused the trillion dollar stimulus over, say, 8-10 years into spooling up building planes and ships our national security would have been insured. The value of the military systems built would have been counted on the govt. accounting books dollar for dollar, unlike social welfare which has a negative coefficient in the economy and does nothing for the assets on the govts. books; and, it would have created and maintained high paying technical jobs, where, people would have transferable skills to the civilian sector once the building programs were completed.
But, what do I know compared to THE ONE or Clinton. I only have 3 degrees from Duke and build aircraft for a living.
trollkiller on August 5, 2009 at 5:07 AM
Arrogance like that is extremely treacherous. It always leads to precarious military operations that culminates in a debacle or a disastrous miscalculation that will culminate in a debacle. Your hubris is indicative of an obtuse misanthrope, who shows a blatant disregard to our military, civilians and way of life. You and your ilk, like Obama share a ubiquitous and erroneous belief that nefarious players will somehow just quit if our Messianic president would just talked to them. You’re a moron, that’s all you need to know.
Cr4sh Dummy on August 5, 2009 at 5:17 AM
They’re just comin’ over to the States for a brewsky and a Reset button.
yoda on August 5, 2009 at 5:20 AM
Great
I’m probably one of the first to go, if they do attack, folks
Maybe I better go down the road and stay at the Kennedy Compound.
That way, the Russkies can take that place out too.
ToddonCapeCod on August 5, 2009 at 6:07 AM
Allah,
I think it is all of the above. Maybe they could send Bill to the Red Square to negotiate with the Russkies. It seems the commies miss him.
Terrye on August 5, 2009 at 6:50 AM
I’d suspect those subs were invited there. The Won needs some righteous cover and is running out of enemies….so, why not pay a few?
what could go wrong…
ted c on August 5, 2009 at 6:51 AM
Save us president panty-waist! Save us!
shick on August 5, 2009 at 6:52 AM
Even China Star Restaurant? Crap!
jimmy2shoes on August 5, 2009 at 7:00 AM
They will be met with brutal force by our Redneck Pickup Truck Brigade just east of Waycross. It will be ugly.
jimmy2shoes on August 5, 2009 at 7:02 AM
I doubt our sub fleet was surprised.
I vote for #5: they got lost on their way back from Argentina. “What, Yuri? You lost another sub?”
davidk on August 5, 2009 at 7:06 AM
Very sobering. If we don’t stop the “American” socialists now, they will be the least of our worries.
davidk on August 5, 2009 at 7:12 AM
I’m pretty sure it’s Sean Connery looking to defect.
“I would like to have seen Montana…”
Dash on August 5, 2009 at 7:21 AM
P.S. What’s with the use of the word “Optics” all of a sudden?
Dash on August 5, 2009 at 7:22 AM
“
YankeesRusskies at Tara?!” — Miss ScahlettKyMouse on August 5, 2009 at 7:35 AM
We’re at a very dangerous time. We’ve got an ego maniac in the White House trying hard to turn America into his own little kingdom. We’ve got morons, brainless dwits in the democrat party who do not have a clue they, too, are on the menu. Then throw in some RINO’s who desperately want to be loved by both,,,, all while we are circled by enemies and terrorists.
Can it get any better?
JellyToast on August 5, 2009 at 7:41 AM
Now that’s funny, I don’t care who you are.
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 7:49 AM
Hey baldilocks. Just killing time till vacation on Friday. Going to Maine. The folks up there are worried the heat will be too much for me, so they are putting in window ACs. LOL.
Gotta love Yankee ingenuity though. And this will be the first vacation I’ve had in 10 yrs. Ya’ll have a good weekend now. Ya hear!
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 7:52 AM
one ping only!
__________________
I’d go with all of the above myself with strong emphasis on #4
cmsinaz on August 5, 2009 at 7:53 AM
The good jokes in this thread just keep coming. I love it.
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 7:53 AM
I’m with ya buddy. Imagine if we had simply used the $787 Billion to buy aircraft, ships, and tanks and APCs and ammo instead of ruining perfectly good cars for $4500 ea, and paying bankrupt cities and states budget overruns? That money is at least 1.5 times the current DoD budget. We could have actually bought another whole Dept of Defense for the stimulus and then put at least 3 million people to work almost immediately. And think of the efficiencies created if we just used the same DoD bureaucracy to handle all the training, care and feeding of our new soldiers?
Not to mention, the Precedent’s budget of $1.4 Trillion for next year could buy ANOTHER three DoDs. It’s funny how Dhimmicrats always claimed the DoD was nothing but a corrupt pork jobs program for Republicans, ….. but when they really want to fix an economy and produce jobs they give the money to…..
ACORN. Like those nimrods ever held a job that produced anything useful. Gotta keep the proles under their thumb thru fixing elections though. ACORN got a fine education from the Al Capone School of Dhimmitude.
Subsunk
Subsunk on August 5, 2009 at 8:00 AM
Thank God for Hillary and her Russia relations ” RESET BUTTON”. That went well.
Dennis D on August 5, 2009 at 8:03 AM
“That was easy.”
Infuriating. Defense is the ONLY area in which Odufus is cutting spending, while escalating spending in everything else.
Fallen Sparrow on August 5, 2009 at 8:11 AM
Quick; Send out the “Car Salesman in Chief” to talk these fine Russians into the “Cash for Clunkers” program! The Russians are sure to believe that Obama has some more efficient subs to sell. And what about all those Canadian and Mexican cars (subs)?
Maybe Russia will send some of their old fighter jets and missiles over next week!
Yea; This program will be internationally accepted!
Cybergeezer on August 5, 2009 at 8:21 AM
CrockObama:
“Ummmmmmmmmm, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh, eeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrr,
uuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, aaaannnnnnnnnddddd,
…………………………………………………………………….present…….good night everybody”.
dthorny on August 5, 2009 at 8:32 AM
Let’s see…we just negotiated the release of two of Al Gore’s employees from North Korea (who shouldn’t have been there in the first place). And now a Russian attack sub is off of our East Coast. Man…they’re sure terrified of Obama, aren’t they? God help us.
kingsjester on August 5, 2009 at 8:35 AM
AW1 Tim is 100% correct. I too was in ASW for 9 years during the 80’s and 90’s. Our SOSUS systems have been systematically dismantled and converted to non-military use and our ability to track submarine threats is probably lower than anytime in history.
Never underestimate the Russians.
BierManVA on August 5, 2009 at 8:37 AM
They probably took Red Route One to get here.
NickelAndDime on August 5, 2009 at 8:38 AM
Argh! Can’t read all of these comments in a hurry… But my take on this when I read the article last night was that this was very possibly a Russian message about American support for Israel which is rumored to be planning to defend itself against Iran.
Maquis on August 5, 2009 at 8:39 AM
Olbermann –
In a bold display of military force, President Obama hit a three pointer at a Navy Base. A SWISH!
marklmail on August 5, 2009 at 8:39 AM
I am clutching my ‘Putin Action Figure with karate chop action’ in fear. Please don’t hurt us. please.
Funny thogh, they can be in international waters off of our coast but let us do that to China and see the crap we get in INTERNATIONAL WATER! Soon nothing will be international. It will all be CHinational.
johnnyU on August 5, 2009 at 8:40 AM
The KGB is here to protect their Kenyan Comrade.
bluegrass on August 5, 2009 at 8:42 AM
Red Scare? That’s what I get for Wednesday Morning?
Dr Evil on August 5, 2009 at 8:43 AM
lol~ ‘blah blah blah blah’
bridgetown on August 5, 2009 at 8:46 AM
Bring back the Medvedev Handshake pic.
That explains it all.
bluelightbrigade on August 5, 2009 at 8:47 AM
As Hot Air’s only resident former member of the Howdy Doody Peanut Gallery, I speak with total Boomer austhority.
TexasJew on August 5, 2009 at 8:48 AM
Russkies just slapped you in the face, Barry.
Whatcha gonna do about it?
You can’t put Slick Willie on a plane and send him to Putin with a suitcase full of cash.
David2.0 on August 5, 2009 at 9:07 AM
Yes. I didn’t say hot but there is something sexy about him. I’m so sick of metrosexual men (and presidents) and it’s refreshing to see a ‘real man’ who’s strong, confident and could without a doubt kick ass. It’s a bit of that caveman thing I guess.
Monica on August 5, 2009 at 9:23 AM
They’re not very good at their jobs if they’ve been seen.
HotWeaver on August 5, 2009 at 9:24 AM
My loins are starting to hurt from girding them so much.
vcferlita on August 5, 2009 at 10:18 AM
Send Gates out to yell at them, that will get them off the “lawn”…those Russian’s are probably a bunch of racists.
right2bright on August 5, 2009 at 10:20 AM
Jonesy heard them, it sounded like magma displacement.
Jeff from WI on August 5, 2009 at 10:23 AM
Cash for sub program…if these are those messy diesel engines, we can clean up our coast and the environment.
We can offer them a new nuclear clean energy sub for trade in.
And we can always resolve any differences with a case of Bud Light…
right2bright on August 5, 2009 at 10:23 AM
Didn’t the Ruskies get the memo that Obama is god-like?
Jeff from WI on August 5, 2009 at 10:25 AM
Perhaps the Ruskies are in here. Comrade Ann?
Jeff from WI on August 5, 2009 at 10:26 AM
There goes the neighborhood… CAN WE IMPEACH HIM NOW BEFORE THEY HIT US WITH AN ELECTROSTATIC BOMB
CynicalOptimist on August 5, 2009 at 10:27 AM
Comment pages: « Previous 1 ... 3 4 5 6 Next »