Do they realize they are infuriating thousands of Guard and Reserve men and woman with that statement?
Do they realize they are infuriating thousands of Guard and Reserve men and woman with that statement?
I think the statement is meant to merely reflect accounting practices. How many in the AF? xx,xxx. How many in the Army? xxx,xxx. How many in the Air Force Reserves? xx,xxx. Etc.
No one is infuriated. It's really a budget thing. Each service has a hard-core of "regulars," who hold positions that are more or less permanent. Then there are the other components like reserves and guard. But the careerists want to be part of the "regular" force. Faster promotions, etc. Otherwise, no one cares. (Except the Kerry campaign.) During cutbacks and downsizing, the various components are treated differently. The regulars are the last to go. Also, reserves and guard are less expensive, because they're on active duty less than the regulars. To the guys on active duty, it doesn't matter very much, and it obviously didn't matter to Bush while he was in training.