Why Does The Department Of Homeland Security Need 450 Million Hollow Point Bullets?

[sad sally]

Thursday, March 29, 2012 - Michael Snyder, Contributor

Somebody out there has decided that the Department of Homeland Security needs a whole lot of ammunition. Recently it was announced that ATK was awarded a contract to provide up to 450 million hollow point bullets to the Department of Homeland Security over the next five years.

Is it just me, or does that sound incredibly excessive? What in the world is the DHS going to do with 450 million rounds? What possible event would ever require that much ammunition?

If the United States was ever invaded, it would be the job of the U.S. military to defend the country, so that can't be it. So what are all of those bullets for? Who does the Department of Homeland Security plan to be shooting at? According to the U.S. Census, there are only about 311 million people living in the entire country. So why does the Department of Homeland Security need 450 million rounds of ammunition? Either this is an incredible waste or there is something that the Department of Homeland Security is not telling us.

I could understand if the U.S. military was ordering ammunition in this quantity. When you fight wars you can go through ammunition very rapidly.

But the Department of Homeland Security is only supposed to be shooting at people very rarely. It simply does not make sense that they would need so much ammunition.

http://www.activistpost.com/2012/03/why-does-department-of-homeland.html

[niyad]

1. 1.5 for each of us?

[sad sally]

3. If they don't get us with the hollow point ones, maybe the rifle ammunition will?

We've also learned that the Department has an open bid for a stockpile of rifle ammo. Listed on the federal business opportunities network, they're looking for up to 175 million rounds of .233 caliber ammo to be exact. The 223 is almost exactly the same round used by NATO forces, the 5.56 x 45mm.

[CrispyQ]

4. +1 -nt

[indepat]

8. That was exactly my first thought

too.

[Dan]

12. well, if the American people wake up

to how much we are being screwed...it makes sense.

[DJ13]

2. Which company makes them, and who are the Congress members from there?

Always follow the money.

[sad sally]

6. Good guess - it's ATK Ammunition

posted yesterday (Gov Walker's state):

TOWN OF ONALASKA, Wis. -- More than 100 people in Brice Prairie will soon be without a job. ATK Ammunition is closing their plant this summer.

It was an announcement that came less than a year after the company added workers at the plant to bring production back from overseas and it was an announcement that some workers say they didn't see coming.
-----
The company is looking into expanding its facilities in Minnesota, Montana, and California. That could potentially make room for employees at the Onalaska location to transfer, but that still won't be an option for Walter.

http://www.news8000.com/news/Employees-shocked-ammunition-company-closing-Brice-Prairie-plant/-/326/9766142/-/7sfhd/-/index.html

[OffWithTheirHeads]

5. Same reason they need airport scanners, to make one of their cronies even richer

on the corporate welfare dime.

The whole fucking U.S. Government is just one big rigged game at this point.

[doc03]

7. Because 440 million wouldn't be enough. Seriously isn't hollow-point

ammunition banned for military weapons?

[razorman]

13. Yes. Also, hollow-point ammo is not used for target practice. Impractical and much more expensive.

[99th_Monkey]

14. Can't vouch for this site, but it quotes Maj. General Curry

saying that this ammo is banned by the Geneva Convention:

"And when Maj. Gen. Curry confirmed these suspicions in his article for The Daily Caller, it became clear that the Obama Administration has not been honest with the public concerning the current mass stockpiling of ammunition.

Curry stated,

Hollow point bullets are so lethal that the Geneva Convention does not allow their use on the battle field in time of war. Hollow point bullets don’t just stop or hurt people, they penetrate the body, spread out, fragment and cause maximum damage to the body’s organs. Death often follows.

In addition, Curry noted that during the Iraq War the U.S. military used 70 million rounds of ammunition per year. Compare that with the 750 million rounds of hollow point bullets that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ordered in March. And then it further ordered another 750 million rounds of various types of ammunition, some of which can penetrate walls. Curry declared,

This is enough ammunition to empty five rounds into the body of every living American citizen. Is this something we and the Congress should be concerned about? What’s the plan that requires so many dead Americans, even during times of civil unrest? Has Congress and the Administration vetted the plan in public.

I fear that Congress won’t take these ammunition purchases seriously until they are all led from Capitol Hill in handcuffs. Why buy all this ammunition unless you plan to use it. Unknown to Congress, Does DHS plan to declare war on some country? Shouldn’t Congress hold hearings on why the Administration is stockpiling this ammunition all across the nation? How will it be used; what are the Administration’s plans?"

MORE AT: http://www.pakalertpress.com/2012/08/19/feds-explanation-of-hollow-point-bullets-raises-more-questions/

[rug]

9. In case they miss.

[reACTIONary]

10. The DHS includes...

... the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Secret Service. The Coast Guard is one of our countries seven armed services, and they do have a significant amount of fire power, including fully automatic weapons. The Secret Service is a serious law enforcement agency that also has a need for serious weapons. ICE and Boarder Control have significant enforcement responsibilities that probably require weapons.

While these folks are not engaged in fire-fights and shoot-outs on a daily basis, it is necessary for them to train and practice, and that takes ammunition.

[krispos42]

11. Well, let's do some math

Each field agent is issued a gun that holds about 15 rounds of ammunition per magazine, and I would assume they carry one magazine in the gun and an extra 2 on their person someplace. So that's 45 rounds per agent, or thereabouts.

Plus, we want out agents to be well-trained, so we want them to put a couple of hundred rounds per month in training. Call that 2,400 rounds per year for 5 years, that's 12,000 rounds for training per agent.

450,000,000 ÷ 12,000 = 37,500 agents with enough ammunition for training. That doesn't seem unreasonable when you total up Customs & Border Protection, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Transportation Security Administration, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, and the Federal Protective Service.


Plus, the stuff lasts for decades. It's not like it expires and has to be thrown out.

[uamazeme]

15. Spam deleted by DURHAM D (MIR Team)