McRaven: cuts hurting defense

Admiral William H. McRaven, Commander, of the U.S. Special Operations Command complained at the Institute for Foreign Policy Analysis’ (IFPA) annual conference that while the Defense Department is quickly becoming a hollow force, commanders are trying to be “good soldiers” by saluting and moving out smartly. But at the same time they feel like they need to voice their concerns for the good of the country. According to the Washington Beacon;

“One of the problems you know we have as senior officers in the military, as good soldiers, when given a mission we salute and move out,” McRaven said, noting that some insiders have encouraged him to protest the cuts more vocally.

“How do you work the part where you have to be a good soldier, salute smartly, but it’s important to tell the tale of the direction we’re heading,” McRaven asked [House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard “Buck” McKeon (R., Calif.)]. “With these cuts you won’t see it tomorrow or next year, you might not even see it in the next 5 years but one day you’ll wake up” and the U.S. military will be decimated.

Coincidentally, last night I got an autographed copy of “Chosin” from it’s producers and watched it again for the millionth time. It’s basically, the stories of several veterans of the Korean War who survived the withdrawal from Chosin in their own words from their memories. The part that strikes me every time I watch it is how unprepared they were to face the Chinese hordes. Most of them were reservists, fresh out of high school and rushed to war without even having attended basic training. Their basic training was conducted on the ships they rode from the US to Korea. Most of them didn’t even have rifles, or knew how to shoot one when they drew their weapons when they arrived. The only reason they knew anything about their impending jobs was because of the World War Two veterans who had hung around.

This administration is not only trying to reduce spending for arms and equipment, they’re doing their level best to drive off the veterans and the experience from our last ten years of war making continued military service less attractive to the lifers. Where will that leave the next generation of warriors who will be inevitably called upon once again?

It’s incumbent upon the McRavens, the Dempseys, the Odiernos, to remind their civilian leaders of the Task Force Smiths and the Chosin Reservoirs and how their battles against defense will have a real cost in blood and lives of our future defenders.

By the way, if you haven’t watched “Chosin”, you really should. I think it’s still on Netflix, or better yet buy it.

Category: Military issues