Post by maylily on Oct 8, 2004 7:41:26 GMT -5
Here are just some of things that Secretary Rumsfeld has done or wanted to do (and was prevented from doing by 9/11):
snip
Somewhere along the line, both our uniformed and civilian defense officials have lost their way and have taken upon themselves the mantle of military royalty. There are flag officers now occupying Saddam’s former palaces while infantry privates swelter in 135-degree heat. We have a SecDef who last wore a uniform when the U.S. Navy was still flying straight-winged jets, and whose senior assistants and service secretaries are all corporate CEOs. Many of these same folks have never worn a uniform and yet, we are supposed to trust them with our safety?
From reading things like this, I think so. There used to be a perception that the American military establishment wanted war because they enjoyed war...the old gung-ho Marine type stereotype. Now, it seems that the military establishment is more interested in perks and power...I'm not talking about the average soldier but the men in the real positions of power.
Has the purpose and focus of the military in the United States shifted from defense and protecting our safety to being a vehicle for excessive perks and power?
- Canceled the Crusader Artillery program;
- Canceled the Comanche helicopter program
- Proposed the elimination of CONUS air defense, namely the inactivation of 1st Air Force and NORAD.
- Pushed forward with a BRAC for 2005, despite the fact that we are fighting a worldwide war.
- Insisted on the continued implementation of “transformation” in the middle of a war.
- Categorically refused to increase the overall size of the Army, arguing repeatedly that we don’t need more troops.
- Fired Secretary of the Army Thomas H. White for having the temerity to disagree with his “grand vision.”
- Stripped Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shikseki of his authority and influence by naming his successor (who subsequently declined the position) a year before Shinseki’s retirement date.
- Denied any responsibility for leadership failures related to the Abu Ghraib prison prisoner abuse scandal.
snip
Somewhere along the line, both our uniformed and civilian defense officials have lost their way and have taken upon themselves the mantle of military royalty. There are flag officers now occupying Saddam’s former palaces while infantry privates swelter in 135-degree heat. We have a SecDef who last wore a uniform when the U.S. Navy was still flying straight-winged jets, and whose senior assistants and service secretaries are all corporate CEOs. Many of these same folks have never worn a uniform and yet, we are supposed to trust them with our safety?
From reading things like this, I think so. There used to be a perception that the American military establishment wanted war because they enjoyed war...the old gung-ho Marine type stereotype. Now, it seems that the military establishment is more interested in perks and power...I'm not talking about the average soldier but the men in the real positions of power.
Has the purpose and focus of the military in the United States shifted from defense and protecting our safety to being a vehicle for excessive perks and power?
