Okaloosa County announced today that it intends to obtain bids to determine the scrap value of the SS United States, including pricing for major components, such as the funnels to be sold on the open market if deployment does not proceed. This is a striking development, especially given that just days ago the county was publicly assuring stakeholders through press releases and media interviews that the project was in its final stages of approval and still on track for deployment, pending weather and routine variables. So what changed? If the county is truly moving full steam ahead, why introduce contingency planning that points so clearly toward dismantling the ship? At the same time, the Conservancy continues to suggest that a museum remains possible under its stewardship. Now, with the county openly acknowledging that artifacts originally intended for a museum may instead be priced and sold, it strongly signals that the museum concept, as proposed, is no longer a realistic path forward. The reality is simple: there is no museum without the ship. If the SS United States is scrapped, the opportunity for a land based museum honoring the ship is lost entirely. For those who believe in that vision, preservation of the vessel itself is not optional, it is essential. Here’s how you can help: Contact your elected officials. Make it clear that you oppose the destruction of an irreplaceable piece of American history and that the SS United States deserves to be preserved, not dismantled @SSUSAlliance @Save_SS_US @SSUSPF488 @WKRG @FOX10News @MidBayNews

Mercy's AIS Track Points to Panama Canal—Not Greenland—as Hospital Ship Steams South gcaptain.com/mercys-ais-trac…

You still lost. Face reality. You never stood a chance.