Breaking Defense writes an article entitled "Guam Not Ready for 5,000 More Marines: GAO." COTTonLINE's response: no kidding.
I've got two problems with the article, the first is that its author's grasp of geography is lacking. Freedburg writes: "Guam is America’s unsinkable aircraft carrier in the South Pacific." Nonsense, the South Pacific is south of the Equator, Guam is north of the Equator, which is to say in the southern reaches of the North Pacific. Don't take my word, check Google Maps.
Secondly, Guam on its own is never ready for anything except a party or fiesta. The civilian government of Guam is very nearly helpless, stumbling from crisis to crisis. Guamanians, aka Chamorros, are warm, wonderful, hospitable people with almost no talent whatsoever for bureaucracy. Guam is the only place I have ever lived where school bus driver was a career position, a political patronage position.
If Guam is to be ready to handle the Marines and their dependents, it is up to the U.S. Navy to be certain the needed preparations have been made. Anyone who's lived there will tell you relying on GovGuam is a non-starter.
