Throughout recorded history during periods of relative peace, armed forces tend to be led by the politically adroit and well connected officers who are in tune with their political masters rather than virile, aggressive warriors. If you look at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, it functions as little more than any other Federal bureaucracy and can hardly be called a nest of warriors. Nice uniforms and pageantry but really a politically correct place at its core. If the US were faced with an existential war against Russia or China, our military leadership may be lacking.
If the US were faced with an existential war against Russia or China, our military leadership may be lacking.
Lacking to put in quaintly ... after the first ship with thousands of sailors is lost, the pentagon “leadership” will be looking at the very bad press and finding some PC way to surrender ... that since there is no way the US public would put up with WWII, Korea, or Nam levels of dead.
Today, if the D-day invasion were to occur with 4000 dead in the opening hours, surrender would be demanded on every news outlet, public demonstration and so forth.
On Pearl Harbor Day LTC Eisenhower was handling hay delivery for cavalry horses in Louisiana.
When real war comes, the first thing that has to happen is the dismissal of all the generals and admirals who are good at dress-up for dances and parades.