Feb 28, 2011

Make ready, Gridley

The USS Iowa (BB61)  still floats but faces a wistful destiny as a tourist trap. The old girl is being fought over by two California SSRs -- Mare Island (a Frisco burb), and Los Angeles.

No contest. Moor her in the City of Angels. Go ahead and fill her with your tacky boutiques and souvenir shops.

Just keep the main battery oiled and the powder bags dry.

From LA, the Port of Long Beach is within easy range of the 16-inchers, allowing us to work our will on the container ships from Shanghai, just in case we ever need to declare war on China and /or WalMart. A half-dozen broadsides and we've  wiped out at least half the Middle Kingdom merchant fleet.

(The exit strategy is to get our plastic flashlights and cheap tee shirts from Malaysia.)

3 comments:

NotClauswitz said...

Mare Island doesn't get nearly the traffic of LA, not even on a good day - they could put her next to the USS Hornet in Vallejo and train the 16-inchers on Berkeley! :-)

Jim said...

<<>>

Crasher, that's the best goddam Plan B I ever heard.

Jim said...

And, it reminds me that I did business with Hornet on at least one WestPac cruise with the Seventh Fleet -- mostly "plane guarding" (1,200 yards, ten degrees off her stern, poised to try to fish out the unlucky airman).