Vieques closure......be careful what you wish for Puerto Ricans!

I read recently about how the U.S. Navy is going to withdraw from the naval base at Roosevelt Roads because the main reason for the base, the range at Vieques Island, has been closed to live-fire exercises because of public pressure by the Puerto Ricans. For several years, they started a movement to get rid of the range, but what they didn't realize is that if the Navy closed the range, there would be no reason to keep open the base at all. Now Puerto Rico is going to lose 300 million a year from closing the island's largest employer.

Puerto Ricans Lament Loss of Vieques Dollars Puerto Ricans Lament Loss of Vieques Dollars

Monday, July 28, 2003

MIAMI — File this one under "Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it."

The people of Puerto Rico are facing some unanticipated consequences from a victory they won in 2001.

For several years, Puerto Rican protesters demanded that the U.S. Navy leave the island of Vieques (search). Groups staged violent protests outside the main gate of "Camp Garcia," saying they were sick and tired of the live-fire bombing exercises.

The violence resulted in the gates of the base being torn down. Several U.S. troops and police dogs were injured in the demonstrations.

In response to the years of protest, former President Clinton agreed to stop Navy exercises there. Congress and President Bush ratified the deal and live-fire exercises were halted last May. But with its mission muzzled after 60 years, the Navy has decided to pull out of Puerto Rico completely.

That means the largest employer on the island, the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station (search), is now slated for closure that could come as early as October.

Island workers are accusing the Navy of economic revenge.

"You dedicate all your talents, all your efforts. You're loyal to your employer, this case being the U.S. Navy, and what do you get in return? A kick in the you-know-what," said Ana Angelet of the Puerto Rican chapter of the American Federation of Government Employees.

The 2004 defense-spending bill that is working its way through Congress has a provision in it to close the base down officially. With the loss of the base, Puerto Rico will also lose nearly $300 million the military pumped into it each year.

Puerto Ricans say the Navy is just mad because they won, and forced the live exercises to end. The Navy does not hide its disappointment. Navy officials say the location was long considered the best overall spot for exercises and stopping the live-fire training cost American military lives.

Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., a member of the Armed Services Committee (search), said Puerto Rico's politicians are to blame for the financial misfortune since they backed the protests.

"I just think it's a shame that the people, the ones that are suffering, are the people of Puerto Rico because it was the politicians that did it to them," Inhofe said.

Puerto Rican Gov. Sila Calderon, who backed the booting of the Navy from Vieques, made no apologies for a decision that could crush the Puerto Rican economy.

"We are partners with the U.S., but definitely the rights of the people of Vieques are not for sale or for any other purpose," Calderon said.

She also refused to discuss the possibility that the base closure could become law.

"This decision is not final at this point. The bill is not approved, and our aim as the commonwealth government is to have the decision postponed for 2005, when all the bases are going to be evaluated," she said.

The U.S. government may decide to hold onto the more than 8,000 acres, rather than returning it to the people of Puerto Rico.

"Those that don't want that to happen say well, 'Let's just give back to the Puerto Rican politicians,' and reward them with an asset that's worth $1.7 billion for kicking us off that range that has cost American lives. That's just not going to happen," Inhofe said.

The sense on all sides is that Congress will give the green light to shut down "Rosie Roads" officially. Bush could sign the bill into law as early as next month.

Fox News' Orlando Salinas contributed to this report.


I don't have a bit of sympathy for those bastards. Our military needed the range at Vieques for training and without, our training has suffered considerably. As much federal money that is poured into Puerto Rico (more than half the island is on some kind of federal assistance), all we ask them for is the use of part of an island to train our troops defending them and the rest of the U.S. and it is too much to ask for those idiots. It really does prove be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.

 

The problem is that the range has been there for years. Hardly anyone lives on the island of Vieques. When I was in the Marines, it was the only place we could engage in the kind of live-fire exercises that we needed to hone our skills. Nothing builds confidence in a Marine than putting live ammunition in his hands. The amount of loops you had to jump through to even shoot one single round were designed to protect people.....but yet.....that wasn't enough. Now why should the base stay open if the main reason it existed no longer exists?

 

There is nothing illegal about firing those depleted uranium shells.....they are harmless. And if you knew anything about the situation, you would know that the kind of live training rounds we fired from 20 mm Gatling guns did not use depleted uranium. They are not nuclear weapons, nor are they radioactive. They use depleted uranium (uraninium that has lost its radioactivity and is nearly lead) as a heavy metal penetrator able to penetrate the armor of tanks and ships. The Navy only uses the depleted uranium in their CIWS (close in weapons system) which fires a 20mm Gatling at missiles and aircraft.....not land targets. There would be no way that the Navy would shoot a CIWS at targets on the island of Vieques.

 

I think we should use training ammunition (without the depleted material) on our ranges, but I don't see a problem with using it on the battlefield. You should see the terminal characteristics of this stuff......it is awesome! It's why an A-10 can destroy any Russian tank with only a few rounds from its evil 30mm Avenger Gatling. The USMC uses it in the 25mm Avenger on the AV-8B, which is nearly as potent. I don't give a damn about the environmental impact if the stuff kills the enemy and saves some Marines. We can't use environmental standards on our weapons, otherwise we might as well scrap all of it. Fuel air explosives, giant MOAB bombs, fragmentation grenades and other fun items of mayhem are not what I'd call enviro-friendly. And frankly. I'd like to keep it that way.