U.S. spending $600 million on Afghan police stations

[laststeamtrain]

Source: McClatchy Newspapers

U.S. spending $600 million on Afghan police stations
Thomas L. Day | McClatchy Newspapers

last updated: February 22, 2010 04:43:56 PM

KABUL — The U.S. military plans to spend more than $600 million to build nearly 200 police stations for the Afghan National Police over the next year. The massive investment in the Afghan police comes as the Obama administration intends to build the force up to 160,000 policemen by 2013.

At about $6 million a police station, the structures will look scarcely like your standard neighborhood precinct.

According to U.S. Corps of Engineers designs, most of the police stations will have a barbed wire perimeter with guards posted in each of the four corners. The walls and roofs will be built with reinforced concrete.

"There are five basic designs that are used for police stations, and they're all pretty similar," said Paul Giblin, a spokesman for the U.S. Corps of Engineers.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/02/22/87404/us-spending-600-million-on-afghan.html

[Newsjock]

1. I'll bet the residents won't have to pay $300 to call 911, either

We need this money here and now.

[kenny blankenship]

2. Excellent! Now they'll have clean, modern facilities

in which to traffic heroin, take bribes for even the simplest paperwork, and assrape young prisoners - the three things the Afghan police actually do.

[Turbineguy]

3. That's a great plan.

Separate the Police as far as possible from the population they are supposed to protect.

[heli]

4. Truly disgusting waste of tax dollars

Spending money like drunken whores, as usual.

[nolabear]

5. Well, once you've had your way with someone it nicely confuses the issue if you give them money.

[jtuck004]

6. We don't learn

When we put something in place it becomes a target when we do it because we think it's needed. Especially in places where people don't want us to be. Especially if it is someone else's country.

When people there decide they need it, and they build it, they protect it.

We could offer them materials, plans, etc - they provide the place and the labor. And we listen if they say they need something else first.

Like schools.

It would be nice if our money was biodegradable, since we might as well flush this one.

[maxsolomon]

7. the 2009 NOFA for the Hope VI program is 250 million dollars

that's all the money appropriated to redevelop Public Housing IN THE ENTIRE NATION.

41% of what we're using to build police stations in afganistan.

for the taliban to blow up.

on edit: NOFA mean Notice of Financial Award