Obama's defence cuts are a dangerous mistake

London Telegraph Blogs (U.K.) ^ | August 10, 2010 | James Corum

[Schnucki]

When President Obama was a student at solidly Left-wing and anti-military Columbia and Harvard universities in the 1980s students were not taught the simple fact that the Western democracies of today only exist because a lot of people put on uniforms and fought to preserve those democracies. The only reason that the American, British and other soldiers succeeded in their fight is because in the period between the wars a handful of military leaders fought to maintain a core infrastructure of the defence establishment.

Today US Defence Secretary Gates has announced that he wants to close Joint Forces Command stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. Joint Forces Command is mostly concerned with training and support of multinational and NATO operations. It supports one of the top schools for the US military – the Joint Forces Staff College – that came out of the major military education reforms of the 1980s.

Because of the Joint Forces Command and the Joint Forces Staff College, the US military is far more capable of combining the efforts of all the services. The command and school was created out of a direct need to solve major problems in the US military’s inability to operate effectively. It has done its job – and continues to do it.

Cutting such things is not cutting fat and waste – this is cutting out the bone, sinew, muscle and brain of the armed forces.

Robert Gates came into his job in 2006 when the US military was clearly overstressed by the disastrous Bush/Rumsfeld policies of cutting back the military in time of war. He authorized some minimal manpower increases for the army, but since 2006 has cut the Navy and Air Force to please President Obama.

Even though we are still at war, Gates is proposing major cuts in support staff,

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

They are a dangerous mistake, just as the current occupant of the oval office is a dangerous mistake.

[cranked]

Yeah, they were a major mistake under lamearse Clinton too, and look what we got.....9/11 plus a number of other terrorists incidents aimed at the US, but yeah..... =.=

[R. Scott]

Not just a big mistake, but a terrible mistake.
Joint Forces Command eliminates much of the interservice rivalry we used to have to put up with. It also serves as a training center to better coordinate between the services. Gates and his master 0bama are showing their ignorance.

[Paperdoll]

Treason anyone?

[NonValueAdded]

Gates and his master 0bama are showing their ignorance.

I suspect they know exactly what they are doing.

[tlb]

>>> Obama’s defence cuts are a dangerous mistake

Canceling new production of the f22 is a dangerous mistake. Rearranging comfy rear echelon staff positions is business as usual. Keep some perspective please.