Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

How To Erode the World’s Greatest Military
American Greatness ^ | 24 Jul, 2022 | Victor Davis Hanson

Posted on 07/25/2022 5:15:53 AM PDT by MtnClimber

Alienating half the country is not a wise strategy of military recruitment.

The U.S. Army has met only 40 percent of its 2022 recruiting goals.

In fact, all branches of the military are facing historic resistance to their current recruiting efforts. If some solution is not found quickly, the armed forces will radically shrink or be forced to lower standards—or both.

Such a crisis occurs importunely as an aggressive Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea believe the Biden Administration and the Pentagon have lost traditional U.S. deterrence.

That pessimistic view abroad unfortunately is now shared by many Americans at home. In 2021, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute conducted its periodic poll of attitudes toward the U.S. military. The result was astonishing. Currently, only 45 percent of Americans polled expressed a great deal of trust in their armed forces. Confidence had dived 25 points since an early 2018 poll.

Military officials cite both the usual and a new array of challenges in finding suitable young soldiers—drug use, gang affiliation, physical and mental incapacities, and the dislocations arising from the COVID pandemic and vaccination mandates. But they are too quiet about why such supposedly longer-term obstacles suddenly coalesced in 2022—as if their own leadership and policies have had no effect in discouraging tens of thousands of young men and women to join them.

The Greatest Skedaddle in Modern American History

A year ago, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley were assuring the country not to worry over Joe Biden’s strange ideas of abruptly pulling out all U.S. troops from Afghanistan. The radical step was purportedly to coincide with Biden’s planned 20-year celebratory event marking his role in ensuring an iconic end of the war on terror that began on September 11, 2001.

(Excerpt) Read more at amgreatness.com ...


TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans; Society
KEYWORDS: genderdysphoria; homosexualagenda; indiana; itistolaugh; markmilley; petebuttigieg; vdh; victordavishanson; woke; wokeism
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-49 next last
To: MtnClimber

Go woke, GO BROKE!

Let the Blacks and Browns fight the next war the resident gets US into!


21 posted on 07/25/2022 5:58:06 AM PDT by Harpotoo (Being a socialist is a lot easier than having to WORK like the rest of US:-))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: oblomov

“Who wants to serve the woke military of a decadent country”?

Certainly not the patriot types we need. They understand that over time the US military has turned into a tool of the NWO and not used for its intended purpose.

Patriots do not want to be used and abused.


22 posted on 07/25/2022 5:59:19 AM PDT by laplata (They want each crisis to take the greatest toll possible.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber
"How To Erode the World’s Greatest Military"?

An effective start is to declare its mission diversity and inclusiveness NOT NATIONAL DEFENSE!

23 posted on 07/25/2022 6:11:15 AM PDT by Savage Beast (The American People DESPISE the corrupt US elite and their corruption of the US government!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Who would enlist today with all the war bluster by people who won’t have to fight, and with all the effort spent to accommodate women and queers instead of properly training soldiers in combat tactics.


24 posted on 07/25/2022 6:18:14 AM PDT by bk1000 (Banned from Breitbart)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Howie66

They will have to reinstate the draft, hole remedial boot camps to get the fatsos in shape, then send them to boot camp.


25 posted on 07/25/2022 6:22:07 AM PDT by DownInFlames (P)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

I assume loads of young men are too fat, which means less volunteers total. I read the military is offering $50,000 sign up bonus for 6 years.


26 posted on 07/25/2022 6:27:29 AM PDT by NetAddicted (Just looking)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: DownInFlames

As a veteran there is no way I would recommend any sane person join the military in the USA at this point.


27 posted on 07/25/2022 6:30:02 AM PDT by Mogger
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: DownInFlames

And wait for all of the Tranny’s to get their nails done.


28 posted on 07/25/2022 6:36:08 AM PDT by Howie66 (Let's Go Brandon!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: RoosterRedux

They are offering free tranny bottom surgery. Who would ever pass on an opportunity like this?

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/06/28/army-provide-gender-transition-care-surgeries-transgender-soldiers.html


29 posted on 07/25/2022 6:46:46 AM PDT by packagingguy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Call intentional sabotage what it is. Don’t be shy comrade.


30 posted on 07/25/2022 7:10:07 AM PDT by TygertLane
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MtnClimber

Absolutely on target. Very well written.


31 posted on 07/25/2022 7:11:55 AM PDT by Midwesterner53
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mogger

Ditto what you said. I always recommended the military to young people who didn’t know what they wanted to do with their lives. I don’t do that anymore. I just remain silent.


32 posted on 07/25/2022 7:26:49 AM PDT by FlingWingFlyer (The House is supposed to represent the people, not the friggin' Federal government. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies]

To: Travis McGee

Dang that’s a large stack of pancakes.


33 posted on 07/25/2022 7:27:44 AM PDT by FlingWingFlyer (The House is supposed to represent the people, not the friggin' Federal government. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: Whenifhow; null and void; aragorn; EnigmaticAnomaly; kalee; Kale; AZ .44 MAG; Baynative; bgill; ...

p


34 posted on 07/25/2022 7:35:06 AM PDT by bitt ( <img src=' 'width=50%> )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RoosterRedux
Second, VDH assumes the military has a traditional recruiting strategy. What if the military now has a strategy of recruiting only Woke soldiers?

These people don’t want to serve. While military life has definitely gotten easier, it’s still hard work. I’ve seen plenty of soft young people show up to their first command only to get administratively separated with less than a year in the Navy and no deployments under their belt because, “this just isn’t for me.”

If they think they’re going to be able to man 9-10 month carrier deployments with a crew of woke snowflakes, they’re in for a surprise.

35 posted on 07/25/2022 8:31:27 AM PDT by Drew68 (Ron DeSantis for President 2024)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: Drew68; RoosterRedux

I read RR’s comment differently, as in, the new strategy is deliberate, intentional sabotage, designed to decrease our military readiness, wreck America’s position as a global superpower, and advance the cause of globalism.

In the middle ranks, useful idiots might believe the woke insanity. Closer to the top, the generals just want to protect their pensions and post-military “payoff” jobs on corporate boards, so they go along to get along.

But at the very top, it’s deliberate sabotage by globalists who want to wreck the greatest barrier to globalism: a free and powerful sovereign USA.


36 posted on 07/25/2022 8:48:59 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]

To: FlingWingFlyer

Me too. See above about sabotage.


37 posted on 07/25/2022 8:49:36 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: Travis McGee
That's what I was thinking.

And at the very bottom, you have new recruits eager to transform the military from one driven by winning through violence into one driven by enjoying life and spreading peace through pride (you know the kind), diversity, tolerance, and equality.

As the LBGTQ have said, nearly all the world problems can be solved if people just had more sex.;-)

38 posted on 07/25/2022 9:00:55 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 36 | View Replies]

To: Howie66
Put another way, the Courtney Massengales of the Pentagon are running off the remaining Sam Damons out of the military.

From "Once an Eagle" by Anton Myrer. This novel remains a part of the Army War College curriculum. Unfortunately, there is a growing movement, starting in the Pentagon, to minimize the importance of the Sam Damons.

Sam Damon was a goal constantly out of reach. You just couldn't achieve all that Sam represented. The closest I think came was during the last few ARTEPs I participated in: 3 as a Platoon Leader, 1 as an Executive Officer (wore a second hat as a Motor Officer), and 1 as a Battalion S-4.

It's only because I had the "game" down, i.e. knowing what the evaluators were looking for. Unfortunately, I had a Battery Commander who was a great staff officer and never should have been allowed near soldiers.

39 posted on 07/25/2022 9:07:32 AM PDT by Night Hides Not (Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad! Remember Gonzales! Come and Take It!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: bk1000
Veterans like me are doing our best to dissuade young me from enlisting in the military. My two sons and 6 nephews have heard a few of my "war stories" (all peacetime), where I extolled the virtues of the Army I served in.

I don't recognize today's Army, where senior leaders do not back the soldiers serving under them. There were no resignations from senior officers, or relieving commanders for their incompetence in Afghanistan. Instead, they got one more medal to pin on their chests.

40 posted on 07/25/2022 9:11:49 AM PDT by Night Hides Not (Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad! Remember Gonzales! Come and Take It!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-49 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson