[xzins]

Any Army leader who balks, drags his feet, or complains about working in a joint or coalition environment will be fired.

This sounds like a comment from someone who's been in special ops for a career, as has schoomaker.

He doesn't need to worry. All the officers I've known since 1995 would KILL to get a joint assignment. They believe them to be absolute career enhancers.

The other stuff sounds about right. The MIA2 until 2025 is unrealistic. I'd bet it'll still be the MI, but it'll be like the M1A4. Technology is changing, and so will our equipment, or our guys will die.

The housing business is humorous. The army has long hated having to manage on-post housing. Why haven't they changed it? Because there's a whole civilian government jobs system built in support of it. Everytime it's tried to change, the gov unions and politicians get called into it, and then the initiative dies.

If Rumsfeld leaves after Bush's first term, the civilians will outlast this one, and it will not change.

[inPhase]

Boy if what you said is not the truth!
And those civilians survive the military too, everyday counting the days to retirement paid out of that entitlement pie they "work" to create.

[TADSLOS]

The housing business is humorous. The army has long hated having to manage on-post housing. Why haven't they changed it? Because there's a whole civilian government jobs system built in support of it. Everytime it's tried to change, the gov unions and politicians get called into it, and then the initiative dies.

If Rumsfeld leaves after Bush's first term, the civilians will outlast this one, and it will not change

Actually, it's already in the midst of changing over to contracted support, as are many support roles in DoD.