The conflict with Iran continues to deliver its mean shocks to an increasingly doddering US imperium.  Depleted munitions, depleted stocks of goodwill and, it would seem, a disruption in resupplying warships operating in the Middle East, have become dents in a struggling war machine.

This month, the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, lengthily stationed in the Arabian Sea, caught the attention of naval observers with reports of mental distress and sheer desperation on the part of members of the 5,000-strong crew of sailors and Marines.  Personnel had endured a nine-month deployment – a record – having made only one stop in Guam in mid-December since leaving San Diego.  (The previous record had been set by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in a stint lasting 206 days during the COVID-19 pandemic.)

Shortages of fresh food and necessaries, the presence of contaminated water, broken latrines, plumbing problems, disruptions in the mail system and exhaustion were just some of the things noted.   On August 12, the Navy Times revealed instances where individual crew members had tried to jump overboard.  Similar details were also reported in Stars and Stripes.

Shortages of fresh food and necessaries, the presence of contaminated water, broken latrines, plumbing problems, disruptions in the mail system and exhaustion were just some of the things noted.   On August 12, the Navy Times revealed instances where individual crew members had tried to jump overboard.  Similar details were also reported in Stars and Stripes.

Meetings between concerned family members and acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao were convened earlier in the month regarding the crisis.  At one virtual town hall meeting Vice Admiral Joseph Cahill, commander of Naval Surface Forces, conceded the strain placed on sailors and their families.  “We hear you loud and clear........

© Middle East Monitor