French Army Falling Apart

A quote from The Daily Telegraph, 6 June 2008

Most of France's tanks, helicopters and jet fighters are unusable and its defence apparatus is on the verge of "falling apart", it has emerged.

According to confidential defence documents leaked to the French press, less than half of France's Leclerc tanks – 142 out of 346 – are operational and even these regularly break down.

Less than half of its Puma helicopters, 37 per cent of its Lynx choppers and 33 per cent of its Super Frelon models – built 40 years ago – are in a fit state to fly, according to documents seen by Le Parisien newspaper.

Two thirds of France's Mirage F1 reconnaissance jets are unusable at present.

oh, maybe thats good news,

oh, maybe thats good news, the more military material they possess the more eager they'll be to fight. Suppose they made war, and nobody came, or nobody had a gun, maybe that would be a fair war :p (but the guns will always be in the wrong hands, so that classifies as utopian nonsense). In military terms, i don't think europe can win it from russia, china or america, there are no real armies in europe, but again, i do not consider that a bad thing, war doesn't benefit the civilians, its a grand game of chess between the leaders, and i dont think there will be much difference in the european union with the lisbon treaty and the russian, chinese or american governments; fascism sold as democracy, even now there is no real democracy, we can only elect socialsts (even though some may claim to be liberal, democratic, green, right, left, central...).

FLLegal: i think there will be conflict between europe and the islam, but the conflict will be from within, not from the outside, it has already started, and it will continue at an ever increasing pace, no matter what. If the rise of islam in europe continues at the same velocity it has in the last decade, then there'll be democratic elected islam governments (how ironic) all over europe in 30-50 years. The main defense we have to stop the islam is to liberate their women. A monogamous marriage (patriarchy) is one of the cornerstone of a civilization (matriarchy produces things like african societies, there is no drive for innovation), the feminists (but primarily the women that followed this ideology) destroyed that cornerstone in the west (id est: they destroyed the best deal women ever had in a civilization, which is the christian marriage). Actually i dont think there is much that can be done, the western civilization is a sick animal that is now being infected with a parasite that will go on till the animal is vanished, and a new and healthy one can take its place. One thing history has taught us is that civilizations don't last, most are consumed by other, new and rising civilizations when the old one becomes decadent. So be it, thats the nature of things: growth, stagnation, decline. Much of what is will be lost, and much of what is will be recycled. The damage now done is unrepairable, its a matter of time, and if we speed things up we'll see the outcome :).

@FFLegal

FLLegal: Europe had it easy for about a half a century.

 

Not exactly. European military activity during decolonisation, internal security tensions and rearmament to counter the Warsaw Pact beg to differ. Moreover, the whole of European history is fraught with wars, atrocities and mass criminality.

 

FFLegal: The Americans footed most of the military bill and costs of defense for Europe, carrying the overall burden of Europe's defense with their tax dollars, as Europe used the majority of their collected taxes for socialism...

 

Again not true. The United States was the largest Western contributor to the arms race and proxy struggles against the Warsaw Pact, whose largest contributor was the Soviet Union. Without the Red Army's backing, Baltic and East-Central European communists would never have seized power, and Germany would never have been divided. Without the American presence, Western Germany, France, Italy and Greece would have become Soviet client states. Welfare statism was a direct result of Keynesian policies and was enacted from Sweden to Canada, and LBJ's "Great Society" was the American step in that direction. Lastly, the French military was more formidable during the 1950s and 1960s than today.

 

FFLegal: I would like to see America get out of Western Europe, NATO, and the U.N.

 

Agreed.

France's Military Falling Apart? I'm shocked........NOT!

I'm shocked........NOT. The leftists who had control of France were more concerned about socialist welfare programs, providing a place for all the pigs to feed at the trough, than the military. Europe had it easy for about a half a century. The Americans footed most of the military bill and costs of defense for Europe, carrying the overall burden of Europe's defense with their tax dollars, as Europe used the majority of their collected taxes for socialism. America early on should have told Europe you're responsible for your own defense and the costs of same. You will have to make the hard choices between "guns & butter". It was the poor ole' American taxpayer that helped to subsidize much of Europe's socialism. Well thank God those days are over I hope.

I would like to see America get out of Western Europe, NATO, and the U.N. Perhaps we should work more closely with Eastern Europe, whose governments understand the true state of the world and the evils faced by free men, which is far more realistic than the understanding held by most Western European governments and/or their people.

I read some delusional idiotic inane comments from some Western Europeans in an Irish blog, who consider America and President Bush a greater enemy than Iran, Ahmadinejad, and/or Osama bin Laden. What fools. Western Europe is headed for defeat via Islam and I'm not surprised as to why. Western Europe a land that strips its own people of precious freedoms, like Free Speech, appeases, and welcomes the enemy within, i.e. Islam. If Islam prevails in Europe it will not be because Islam is better. It will be due to Europeans hating themselves and their wonderful culture(s), not willing to stand up and fight against evil, and having leadership that would rather appease & submit...than fight. There are too many "Chamberlains" in Europe and not enough (or any) Winston Churchills. 

Speaking of military, I saw an ad for French rifles on Ebay. It said:

FOR SALE: French military rifles - Never used. Dropped once.