View Full Version : How good is the condition of the U.S. military after 3 years of Trump?
The next time you have a bit of spare time, peruse the link below and you will find some surprising facts.
https://www.heritage.org/military-strength/an-assessment-of-us-military-power
Since it's only our shores we care about now, we're way overspending regardless of condition. Use the savings to reduce the budget deficit.
we still have troops in many countries,
Vern Humphrey
11-05-2019, 08:12
Obama did a lot of damage, and it's going to take a long time to repair it.
Remember also, with all the money the government has squandered, and all of the wasteful, duplicative programs it has created, there isn't much money for rebuilding.
Obama did a lot of damage, and it's going to take a long time to repair it.
Remember also, with all the money the government has squandered, and all of the wasteful, duplicative programs it has created, there isn't much money for rebuilding.\
Remember Bill Clinton balanced the budget and reduced the deficit briefly. He still brags about it. What he doesn't brag about is that he starved our military doing it enabling countries like China to catch up. Giving and selling them our military secrets helped them as well. It will take decades (if ever) to recover.
The Rosenberg's were executed for far less.
Our military should always be fully funded but checks put on waste.
I wonder how many of Heritage's "team" ever actually wore the uncomfortable green suit.
The biggest issue with The Donald and the U.S. military is his wanting to take funds away from the military to build his silly wall.
"...money the government has squandered..." Every government, everywhere does that. Our local unelected civil servants(outside workies who don't fix the roads) were just handed a 2% per annum pay increase. So were our already over paid cops(all of 'em will be getting over 100 grand plus benefits). The CF needs to buy a bunch of new executive aircraft due to navigational technology changes Stateside and in Europe. It never ends.
blackhawknj
11-05-2019, 02:11
"You can have all the materiel you want, but without morale it is largely ineffective." George C. Marshall
Togor is a God. He read and absorbed and dismissed everything the military leaders said in the report that would take a mere human 9 hours just to read and did it in less than 40 minutes.
Togor is a God. He read and absorbed and dismissed everything the military leaders said in the report that would take a mere human 9 hours just to read and did it in less than 40 minutes.
:evil6:
m1ashooter
11-05-2019, 08:59
Read the whole article. They missed a critical part of the equation and that is people to man the weapons systems. Its estimated that 75% of our youth can't enlist. They don't meet enlistment standards. Of the 25% who can only 1% will enlist. In order to grow the force you have to have the manpower to do so. One of the reasons the Navy decommissioned the BB after the Gulf was because it took too many people to man them.
QUOTE=lyman;567995]we still have troops in many countries,[/QUOTE]
Stupid countries. Countries that make North Korea look smart. C'mon, Asians can be smart but hey, they eren't all smart. The 737 Max crashes were flown by Indonesians and Ethiopians(insert Ethiopian joke). Donald says, screw em. That's what I say. Not that I know what Donald is thinking.
Read the whole article. They missed a critical part of the equation and that is people to man the weapons systems. Its estimated that 75% of our youth can't enlist. They don't meet enlistment standards. Of the 25% who can only 1% will enlist. In order to grow the force you have to have the manpower to do so. One of the reasons the Navy decommissioned the BB after the Gulf was because it took too many people to man them.
Recessions have been known to improve recruitment. As for most not meeting standards...how so? It can't be physical fitness, which was the primary limit in 1940. The service is full of fatties. Maybe these days you have to be good enough playing Call of Duty to get in?
m1ashooter
11-06-2019, 09:15
Recessions have been known to improve recruitment. As for most not meeting standards...how so? It can't be physical fitness, which was the primary limit in 1940. The service is full of fatties. Maybe these days you have to be good enough playing Call of Duty to get in?
It is estimated that 75% of our youth do not qualify for enlistment because they can't meet the standards. They either can't score high enough on the ASVAB, meet stringent medical standards, have addictions or criminal records. One can always change the standards but they have been this way for awhile. Examples my sons, friend wanted to join the USCG but has had kidney stones, that eliminated him, young men placed on behavior control meds as a child are eliminated. Drop out of HS can't enlist and the list goes on and on.
A bad job market helps but only so much. As to being fat when in, thats after the fact. Being over weight will not get you shipped to boot camp from MEPS. I saw a upset young man who was to ship to the Navy that day in a side room at the MEPS station in Houston. He failed his weight check and couldn't ship.
It is estimated that 75% of our youth do not qualify for enlistment because they can't meet the standards. They either can't score high enough on the ASVAB, meet stringent medical standards, have addictions or criminal records. One can always change the standards but they have been this way for awhile. Examples my sons, friend wanted to join the USCG but has had kidney stones, that eliminated him, young men placed on behavior control meds as a child are eliminated. Drop out of HS can't enlist and the list goes on and on.
A bad job market helps but only so much. As to being fat when in, thats after the fact. Being over weight will not get you shipped to boot camp from MEPS. I saw a upset young man who was to ship to the Navy that day in a side room at the MEPS station in Houston. He failed his weight check and couldn't ship.
A friend's son went to college for a semester and decided that it wasn't for him. He got in his head that he wanted to be a rescue swimmer for the USN, so he talked to some recruiters and they told him it was a high bar indeed for that program. They did however make pool time available for motivated wannabes and so this kid swam and swam and swam and he made it in. I coached him in some sports as a youth, and it's fair to say he was not a high-motor kid. But some guys, something kicks in and they find themselves. I say good for him.
A friend's son went to college for a semester and decided that it wasn't for him. He got in his head that he wanted to be a rescue swimmer for the USN, so he talked to some recruiters and they told him it was a high bar indeed for that program. They did however make pool time available for motivated wannabes and so this kid swam and swam and swam and he made it in. I coached him in some sports as a youth, and it's fair to say he was not a high-motor kid. But some guys, something kicks in and they find themselves. I say good for him.
I agree. That is why the military can be a game changer for a lot of kids.
blackhawknj
11-06-2019, 05:28
Overemphasis on technology, little or no training, poor leadership-that's the problem.
Overemphasis on technology, little or no training, poor leadership-that's the problem.
The problem is that competition has been deleted from the education system. In the past if yoju flunked 6th grade, you had to go back and do it again... That is passe, and today everybody gets a medal. Nobody should ever excell... that is racist, sexist, abuse for those that choose not to try. Everybody should be EQUAL... Nobody should have more money, education, or prestige than anyone else. That's the Socialist utopia that fools believe can exist. It can't....
Competition spurns excellence. If you are limited by law to a fixed income, why would you try to do your job better. If you can't be promoted because of your outstanding performance, why would you make the effort?
Togor and his Communist/Fascist followers think that if you get a job as a burger flipper at McDonalds, you should be a burger flipper until you are 65. You should get raises every year and by the time you retire, you should be earning $100/hour... flipping burgers.
https://all4ed.org/articles/ready-willing-and-unable-to-serve-new-report-says-75-percent-of-young-people-are-unable-to-enlist-in-the-military/
Red this is not the 2A forum. Behave yourself please.
Clark Howard
11-06-2019, 06:30
Even the National Guard is exhausted from frequent deployments. Active duty units are almost on a continuous rotation of deployments. The dems would love to see the military crushed at home and abroad.
Roadkingtrax
11-06-2019, 06:55
The dems would love to see the military crushed at home and abroad.
Russian propaganda.
jjrothWA
11-06-2019, 06:59
you mean Trump sequesterred the DOD again, like the previousx occupant??
Roadkingtrax
11-06-2019, 07:02
you mean Trump sequesterred the DOD again, like the previousx occupant??
Deficit spending is certainly more in style for this occupant. Who will be paying that back?
Red this is not the 2A forum. Behave yourself please.
I thought it was a good day for Red. Made good sense with no verbal grenades.
Actually, it seems to me that things are kinda lax. I consider 911 a ten. We are way down from that. I used to expect a bombing of some sort every now and then and I could just about call it, but I can't count on that these days. I guess that means I'm complacent(so, that means an attack of some sort before too long). Or maybe not.
The Chinese are happy(smiling Budda) and everything is copasetick(I know that's wrong).
Donald doesn't drink. He doesn't smoke. He doesn't even drink coffee. I consider that to be kind of weird, but it does keep him on the ball. He knows business. He knows people. Is there something that he doesn't know that will trip him up? Sure. No one's perfect. I fear the next great attack on this country will be the onerous removal of Donald Trump. Fine, you guys run it. Talk about chaos. Maybe the Ethiopians can give us some tips.
I agree. That is why the military can be a game changer for a lot of kids.
Good.
A question is do we really need a $700B/year military? Well what's the mission? How has the mission changed under Trump?
I thought it was a good day for Red. Made good sense with no verbal grenades.
this
this
He called me a Communist, which I don't like, but since we lower the bar for Red so he can stay clear of the time-out chair, sure okay why not. Ironic though that he calls me a Communist when he is the one supporting a foreign policy goal of changing the outcome of the Cold War such that Moscow wins and collective security under US leadership retreats globally.
He called me a Communist, which I don't like, but since we lower the bar for Red so he can stay clear of the time-out chair, sure okay why not. Ironic though that he calls me a Communist when he is the one supporting a foreign policy goal of changing the outcome of the Cold War such that Moscow wins and collective security under US leadership retreats globally.
actually, he didn't,
Togor and his Communist/Fascist followers
he called your followers Communist/Fascist,,,,
but you do seem to be triggered,
Actually, what I describe is exactly the policy coming out of the oval office, and it's gaslighting to suggest otherwise.
m1ashooter
11-07-2019, 10:26
A question is do we really need a $700B/year military? Well what's the mission? How has the mission changed under Trump?
You have asked the $700B dollar question! I don't believe we need a defense department as big as it is. Who are the threats we need to defend against? We aren't going to invade China or Russia and I doubt they are going to invade us. Besides the force structure isn't big enough to do it. The days of large forces going conventionally head to head are over. We are being invaded over our southern border and we have a failed nation state on that border. That's where our defense focus should be.
free1954
11-08-2019, 01:06
. We are being invaded over our southern border and we have a failed nation state on that border. That's where our defense focus should be.
yes indeed.
blackhawknj
11-08-2019, 03:45
A lot of that $700B a year Defense budget goes to bases and their civilian employees, contractors and their employees. I recall some years ago a Democrat California congressman who was a big advocate for cutting the defense budget and spending that money on social programs had his district redrawn to include a large military base. He changed his tune PDQ. I recall a political cartoon from the early 1960s, showed a somewhat angry Congressman wearing a sandwich board which on the front said "Keep cutting defense spending ! " and on the back "But not in MY district!"
You have asked the $700B dollar question! I don't believe we need a defense department as big as it is. Who are the threats we need to defend against? We aren't going to invade China or Russia and I doubt they are going to invade us. Besides the force structure isn't big enough to do it. The days of large forces going conventionally head to head are over. We are being invaded over our southern border and we have a failed nation state on that border. That's where our defense focus should be.
No but China can take over Taiwan, the Philippines and all of indonesia. Russia can annex the Ukraine. Iran can attack and overcome all of the mideast... including Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
No, we are not being invaded from the south...it is not an invasion when the Democrats encourage and help illegal criminals come to the USA to help them overthrow our government.
Overthrow the government how? Is overthrow the correct word? It has a specific meaning.
No but China can take over Taiwan, the Philippines and all of indonesia. Russia can annex the Ukraine. Iran can attack and overcome all of the mideast... including Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
No, we are not being invaded from the south...it is not an invasion when the Democrats encourage and help illegal criminals come to the USA to help them overthrow our government.
curious,
did the R's or D's put the Shah in power?
we (both R and D) have a bad habit of messing with other countries politics,, with poor results, esp in the post WW2 years,
which seems to be OK,, until another country messes with or attempts to mess with ours,,
m1ashooter
11-08-2019, 08:50
Red
I respect your opinion, but Russia could have annexed the Ukraine and they didn't. Iran doesn't have the logistical tail to over run the Middle East nor does China yet. We also don't have the logistical tail. As you are aware you have to move people and parts and we don't have the shipping any longer to do so.
jon_norstog
11-08-2019, 09:45
He called me a Communist, which I don't like, but since we lower the bar for Red so he can stay clear of the time-out chair, sure okay why not. Ironic though that he calls me a Communist when he is the one supporting a foreign policy goal of changing the outcome of the Cold War such that Moscow wins and collective security under US leadership retreats globally.
Easy there! I get called that sometime too, I just laugh 'cause I'm way worse than that. I'm an Anarchist!
jn
- - - Updated - - -
Red
I respect your opinion, but Russia could have annexed the Ukraine and they didn't. Iran doesn't have the logistical tail to over run the Middle East nor does China yet. We also don't have the logistical tail. As you are aware you have to move people and parts and we don't have the shipping any longer to do so.
For that you can thank Dick Nixon, who dismantled the Merchant Marine just when I got out of the USCG and was planning on spending my life at sea.
jn
Easy there! I get called that sometime too, I just laugh 'cause I'm way worse than that. I'm an Anarchist!
jn
Anarchists at least have a plan!
jon_norstog
11-09-2019, 10:00
Anarchists do it without government interference!
jn
Vern Humphrey
11-10-2019, 06:25
\
Remember Bill Clinton balanced the budget and reduced the deficit briefly. He still brags about it. What he doesn't brag about is that he starved our military doing it enabling countries like China to catch up. Giving and selling them our military secrets helped them as well. It will take decades (if ever) to recover.
The Rosenberg's were executed for far less.
Our military should always be fully funded but checks put on waste.
Actually, the debt increased every year under Clinton (albeit slowly.) His claim to reducing the debt is based on considering Social Security a source of funding, not a trust.
blackhawknj
11-10-2019, 03:36
Since so much of Defense spending either involves bases and their civilian employees or contractors and their employees, trying to cut spending there causes job losses and angry voters. So the politicians go after the Operations and Maintenance budget, which leads to incredible short term savings. And long term problems.
Vern Humphrey
11-10-2019, 03:55
Since so much of Defense spending either involves bases and their civilian employees or contractors and their employees, trying to cut spending there causes job losses and angry voters. So the politicians go after the Operations and Maintenance budget, which leads to incredible short term savings. And long term problems.
It's all so damn' political. For example, contracts require the winning contractor to open an office in a certain congressional district, or that congressman will vote against the program. Fully half of all military spending is done to get votes for congressmen.
blackhawknj
11-10-2019, 04:44
Contractors make sure to spread the work around enough so that even anti-defense spenders have to think twice before a "No" vote.
For that you can thank Dick Nixon, who dismantled the Merchant Marine just when I got out of the USCG and was planning on spending my life at sea.
In my book, Nixon was the worst President in the twenty first century. Worse than Carter, worse than Clinton, worse than JFK, and worse than Coolidge. His wage and price freeze caused the runaway inflation and the devastating 1981 "recession." He ended the gold standard allowing the Fed to print dollars pretty much at will.
Many of todays healthcare problems was spawned by the Nixon wage/price freeze. If you had a very productive, hard working, outstanding, employee, you couldn't give him a pay raise and so the employers devised a system to reward excellence in the work place. They were prerequisites or "perks." Group health and life insurance was created and now we know now what that did.
The Gold Standard! US GDP has gone up by ~10X since 1975. That means the demand for money to facilitate commerce has gone up by that much. No way that happens on the gold standard. Added irony in that the current administration wants to print money like we're in another Great Depression while telling us this the Best Economy Ever.
Former Cav
12-04-2019, 04:10
certainly better then BHO's economy, or W's for that matter!
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