Boots I.
This is coolbert:
The News Hour this evening has a short but interesting discussion about the current state of the U.S. Army.
The feeling is that the army is near the breaking point. Forces stretched too thin, repeated and lengthened deployments to Iraq, not enough dwell time, NOT enough troops for contingencies, etc.
Statistics that startle:
* Three times as many moral waivers are being given to recruits as were given out only three years ago. Waivers for repeated misdemeanor violations or a single felony conviction. Normally, pre-2003, any misdemeanor or felony would have been a bar against enlistment.
* More troops than ever are being allowed to enlist WITHOUT A HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA. AND, OF THOSE WITHOUT A DIPLOMA, HALF [50 %] DO NOT EVEN COMPLETE BASIC TRAINING!!
[consider that a $40,000 signing bonus is now being offered to persons willing to enlist!!]
President Bush has promised - - NOW - - NOT to extend anymore deployments to Iraq beyond a 12 month period!
This all sounds bad. Iraq is a millstone around the neck that cannot be gotten rid of?
Solutions anyone?
coolbert.
Labels: Boots
1 Comments:
1-Offer operations to overweight recruits so that they enter a military-run fat farm while they're recovering and losing weight, then they go into the regular basic training. This would cost less than 40k I imagine, and the cohort would have greater life expectancy from it, even if all of them went into IED zones.
2-Offer treatments such as dental or 3- dermatological to 16 or 17 year olds for their enlistment promise. Give either or both parents veto on this.
4-Be generous with promotions and quick to retire officers who avoid Iraq and Afghan. Make room for the newly promoted by mothballing bases which are kept staffed higher for political reasons, retiring their officers who don't transfer where they're needed.
5-Eliminate all concern for the effect on racial, ethnic and gender proportions as between officers and enlistees. If the promotions at officer ranks go 90% white males, let that happen. The idea being that recruitment and retention are lessened by the majority having poor promotion prospects relative to groups which the military, even with two wars going, still finds that they must promote more quickly to make their matched proportions, diversity goals, or whatever they're called or not called. JSBolton
7:24 AM
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