Saturday, April 19, 2014

A kickass treatise on our professional military

In terms of actual fighting, we've kicked ass and always kicked ass. If you want us to do something other than fighting, like Somalia, Lebanon, the rebuilding of Iraq an Afghanistan, by the very definition of what Armies are, we kinda suck at that. 

Seriously, do you want an Army that specializes in 4th Gen conflict when China is looking hungry and Russia is getting all imperial? This is a serious question, and one that the American public should probably be involved in. 

Do you want a Navy that keeps the sea lanes open, or a Navy that projects power forward to rattle the saber as needed? A Navy built around anti-piracy measures is entirely different from one built around aircraft carriers and cruise missile launch platforms. 

Do you want a Marine Corps that specializes in disaster relief and humanitarian evacuation? Or a Marine Corps that specializes in amphibious assaults and forced entry? 

Because right now, the Officer Corps in the Army at least, is working on trying to figure out what the fuck we'll be asked to do in the near future. From being Warrior Diplomats" in the Regionally Aligned Brigades to being "America's Kickoff Team" in the global ready brigade or Ranger Regiment. 

It is utterly impossible for a military to do all things well.  Hell, even with an extravagant budget we can't even do all things good. At the very best we choose where we are competent and where we suck.

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