VDH: How To Erode the World’s Greatest Military
You may wish to read Victor Davis Hanson’s piece regarding America’s recruitment challenges. (My Comments and a discussion thread follow, as pasted below). In addition to moving the military forward through time with the necessary readiness, there must be effective recruitment of healthy individuals and subsequent valid training in service to future readiness: The present state of all that is perilous thanks to CRT, Wokeness, and the destruction of standards of fitness… and more.
Access the article here: https://amgreatness.com/2022/07/24/how-to-erode-the-worlds-greatest-military/
My comments, a few responses, and my subsequent responses. This is as of 7/25/22, 1510 EST. I may update if and as comments are added:
I'm a vet (and retired Fortune500 I.T. exec). I was, and am, aware of most of what VDH says - but there were also some things I learned just now from him. America at present is like a deck party: The deck (still) looks and appears reasonably solid. But underneath, each day, a hole is drilled in one of several beams supporting the deck (I'm going by the design of my own, large, deck). A beam is selected at random, and one hole is drilled. Next day: another hole... and so on. This is analogous to the slow-rolling destruction of education; the politicization of the DOJ, FBI, CIA, Executive Branch, etc.; the smearing and defunding of law enforcement; the destruction of our southern formerly sovereign border and allied attack on border agents; the destruction of our energy independence; the ruination of relations between people and groups of people, and so on. Eventually the deck - that foundation upon which we lived and partied and enjoyed a measure of freedoms on, will collapse. Absent a reversal of course, in deliberately weakening the infrastructure of the deck, it will fall down. No matter how slow-rolling the weakening, the compromising, of integrity - so long as it progresses inexorably forward - the deck (as America) will fall down. It is a given.
It is clear that America's destruction, by aggregate parts, is by design. That is clear just by fact that all institutions are under simultaneous attack for whatever former integrity and effectiveness they may have once possessed. Once the country falls - likely in tandem with a comprehensive power grid failure - it will be remade as a "plug-in" to a new world order. This may sound radical, but what is transpiring is very obvious, and plain for all to see. Those counting on a "red wave" this fall may naively believe we'll have fair, or fair-enough, elections. The Dems will cheat - and cheat bigly. The question is: Can republicans/independents/former clueless-Dems, vote in numbers substantial enough to overcome the margin of the cheat? Sobering, and frightening, times. I wish people of VDH's status (and Carlson's) would call traitors for the traitors they are. It's time.
HANGTHEOWL davidscott999 • 32 minutes ago
The NWO started in 1913,,,,brush up on your Latin and read the back of the dollar bill in your pocket around the pyramid under the all seeing eye of Horus,,,,
The Sawdust Kid davidscott999 • 32 minutes ago • edited
It might be that reams of pink slips firing gads of fed, fed, feds, with the wide coalition you wisely point to, as a necessary prerequisite to righting the ship, happens easier without emulating the Dem Rat and Cheney/Kinzinger/RINO line that the opposition are traitors.
Naturally, we have can and should have differing opinions on this.
Bottom line though, we need wholesale reform and a downsizing of DC more than we need a few heads on pikes.davidscott999 The Sawdust Kid • 19 minutes ago
There is a management maxim: Resolve problems at the lowest possible level. IOW: You don't call the president of the power company if your streetlight is out. The maxim serves efficiency: If one level fails to act/solve, you escalate - and the next level becomes the "lowest possible level," (if solved) and so forth. Your comment makes a good point, but seems better positioned for years ago. I believe we've run out of time - America has the look and feel of being past the tipping point, to wit: Drag (sex) shows in elementary schools; Covid shots for 6 mo. olds (children are immune through an age of 16 to 20, and besides which the shots are not vaccines by design or effect; different standards of justice for right vs. left - as evidenced; destruction of energy independence and the supply-chain; baby formula (non)availability?? Out-of-control crime, and the prosecution of people who defend their very lives? "America" has merely become a name on a map. The country I knew, grew up in, and served, is already gone. It wasn't perfect (nothing is), but was just about universally-acknowledged as the greatest country on earth, and constantly improving. My gosh: That’s why people are coming here in a constant and increasing flow. Can we get a sovereign, and safe, America back?- and to be clear, for the diverse citizenry already here… um… legally? (Remember the quaintness of “legality”). We never should have risked losing America in the first place. We are in deep, deep, deep trouble. I want to be clear: I never called for anyone's death ("...a few heads on pikes"). Treason and traitors are punished via arrest, indictment, fair trial, and then only through conviction for crimes (rising to treason or otherwise).
darwin davidscott999 • 38 minutes ago
The left is all in.
They're not going to stop just for elections.
Something will happen.
davidscott999 darwin • 37 minutes ago
Yes - something will certainly be attempted - the only question is: Success or Failure for what's to come?
Beisbolfan davidscott999 • 43 minutes ago
I am also worried about the monstrous ability and willingness of the leftist criminals to steal elections. If the polls still look in October like they look today, but the leftists pull out a miracle "win" something bad is gonna happen.
davidscott999 Beisbolfan • 39 minutes ago
There is also the possibility of an "emergency," and the suspension of elections. My understanding is the President can suspend Federal elections in times of certain defined emergencies. An emergency can be dummied-up - and a large portion of a gullible public will go along with it. Just consider the lunacy of the Covid response - we should be 2+ years into Herd Immunity. As Goebbels said (paraphrasing): 'Make the lie big, tell it over and over and over, and you can make the people believe anything.' Hitler said much the same.
Douglas Proudfoot • an hour ago • edited
I'm a Vietnam Era US Air Force Veteran. My view is that we have given up on fighting wars because the US government doesn't think wars are important enough to win them. Our strategies are generally designed to postpone losing, rather than win. The architects of failure suffer no penalties. As a result, fewer people want to fight.
My first example is Vietnam. In December, 1972, 11 days of unrestricted bombing and sea mines delivered by air closed all the ports in North Vietnam. We could have done that in 1965 or 1968. Our casualties would have been far lower. We might even have won.
It was obvious to me as a Reserve Officer Cadet in 1968 that we weren't using our air power effectively in Vietnam. It must have been obvious to many generals and admirals. Not one resigned in protest. The only general punished after Vietnam, General John Lavelle, was punished for bombing Cambodia without orders. Congress forced him to retire as a 2 star, instead of a 4 star, general. Lavelle was posthumously cleared when President Nixon's secret orders to Lavelle were discovered.
The next example is Afghanistan. You can't win a guerilla war if your enemies have a reliable source of funding and supply, can use human shields effectively and have sanctuary to retreat to where they can rest and regroup. The US allowed the Taliban to collect and sell opium. The US required artillery and air strikes to be cleared by lawyers, some of them stateside. The US allowed the Taliban sanctuary in Pakistan. The US continued this folly for 20 years. It was a guaranteed loser.
Again, no generals or admirals complained about our losing strategy, neither in the US nor any other country. There was no penalty for anyone for playing along with a losing war.
Why would anyone want to be a soldier in an army that fights to lose? Unless the US gets serious about winning, we're not going to find as many volunteers as we might want.
In 1757, British Admiral John Byng was famously executed for not fighting a battle hard enough. Voltaire wrote at the time that the execution was to "encourage the others," the other admirals. Although Voltaire meant it as a sick joke, it actually worked like that. Britannia ruled the waves until 1939.
While I'm not recommending executions, there are other things that we can do to generals and admirals who fail at war or managing the development of a weapons system. Bad performance should mean retirement at reduced rank.
In the US, the Senate has to confirm retirement at 3 or 4 stars, because 3 and 4 star rank is temporary. If the Senate doesn't vote to confirm your 3 or 4 star rank for retirement, you retire at your permanent 2 star rank. The Senate can impose accountability by itself. They did it alone to General Lavelle.
davidscott999 Douglas Proudfoot • 44 minutes ago • edited
On air power: My understanding is that McNamara (who had no qualifications for his position) emplaced a policy that U.S. Air could not bomb planes on the ground - they could only engage them in the air… and only then when fired upon! The Johnson Admin had forces in 'Nam fighting with one hand tied behind their collective back, while hopping on one foot.
The Sawdust Kid davidscott999 • an hour ago
There is no provision in the Constitution for suspending elections, and I doubt there is any statutory authority to do so. Can you share where your understanding comes from, that "the President can suspend Federal elections in times of certain defined emergencies." As you know, we did not during the Civil War or WWII 'suspend' elections.
davidscott999 The Sawdust Kid • a few seconds ago
You are correct in measure. It is Congress who can suspend. However, first, whatever we did in the former instances matters not - that is not an argument. As with most things political (not you), there are various terms-of-art and wishy-washiness involved - deliberately, no doubt. Federal elections can be "postponed" - for what conditions, exactly? I don't know and maybe no one does. A postponement is certainly a suspension. In fact, synonyms for "postponement" are "defer, reschedule, delay, suspend, adjourn," etc. A synonym for "adjourn" is "shelve." Shelving can be indefinite… as can a suspension or postponement. Congress needs to authorize a "postponement." The president can pressure Congress (as can other entities) - I wouldn't count on any fairness or adherence to reality. As to definitions of "emergency" used for justification of suspension/postponement - I imagine it can be anything no matter how ridiculous on its face. Just consider the Covid "emergency" and all that flowed from something that was no different in effect on society than flu - other than the political machinations and catastrophic consequences these past 2+ years. Don't know about you - but I'm concerned. Do your research and, if you don’t mind, report it here. I’ll be interested.
