Wed Apr 02, 2008 at 04:54:29 AM EDT
|
In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday, Army Vice Chief of Staff General Richard Cody sternly rebuked all those who've been blowing sunshine and spreading baseless happy talk for five years with regard to the war in Iraq. And he was blunt--blunter than I've ever heard him before--about the crisis facing the Army. He even went so far as to hint at the "D-word" in his prepared remarks:
Today's Army is out of balance. The current demand for our forces in Iraq and Afghanistan exceeds the sustainable supply and limits our ability to provide ready forces for other contingencies . . . Current operational requirements for forces and insufficient time between deployments require a focus on counterinsurgency training and equipping to the detriment of preparedness for the full range of military missions.
Given the current theater demand for Army forces, we are unable to provide a sustainable tempo of deployments for our Soldiers and Families. Soldiers, Families, support systems, and equipment are stretched and stressed by the demands of lengthy and repeated deployments, with insufficient recovery time. Equipment used repeatedly in harsh environments is wearing out more rapidly than programmed. Army support systems, designed for the pre-9/11 peacetime Army, are straining under the accumulation of stress from six years at war. Overall, our readiness is being consumed as fast as we build it.
And then he added the kicker:
If unaddressed, this lack of balance poses a significant risk to the All-Volunteer Force and degrades the Army's ability to make a timely response to other contingencies.
When Cody says "this lack of balance poses a significant risk to the All-Volunteer Force," he's really saying we have three options:
1. We can change course now and save everyone a lot of trouble.
2. We can maintain our current course in Iraq and watch the Army disintegrate as it did during and after Vietnam.
3. We can institute the Draft.
The adjective "All-Volunteer" is the key part of the statement. He's implying that if the force were not all-volunteer, then there would be no "significant risk." As no sane officer would accept the disintegration of the Army, Cody is saying that if we want to keep up this thing in Iraq, we're going to have to move toward instituting a draft. It's that simple.
According to the Washington Post, he went on to testify:
"I've never seen our lack of strategic depth be where it is today," said Cody, who has been the senior Army official in charge of operations and readiness for the past six years and plans to retire this summer.
::
The nation needs an airborne brigade, a heavy brigade and a Stryker brigade ready for "full-spectrum operations," Cody said, "and we don't have that today."
These comments, however, were neither made in a vacuum, nor are they random. In fact, they follow closely on the heels of comments made by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen last week, when he met with President Bush:
If the current round of fighting subsides and the U.S. withdrawals from Iraq go ahead as planned, Mullen says, he's exploring the idea of shifting troops to Afghanistan - an effort that he says is vastly under resourced.
"So, should we be in a position where more troops are removed from Iraq, the possibility of sending additional troops there - where we need them, clearly - certainly it's a possibility. But it's really going to be based on the availability of troops. We don't have troops. . .sitting on the shelf, ready to go."
In less than a week now, the Army Vice Chief of Staff and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have both expressed to Congress and the President that there are simply no more troops available to keep up the current pace of operations. And they've both implied that the "All-Volunteer Force" has reached the limits of its capability. I'd call that a pattern. And I'd also call it the first step toward giving the civilian leadership the ultimatum it apparently needs hear.
These comments are a not-so-subtle challenge from the military to President Bush and the Congress: Either get us the fuck out of here, or send help. |
| Brandon Friedman :: Chiefs of Staff: Change Course, Face Draft, or Lose Army |
|
|
|
| VetVoice Recommends |
|
"The War I Always Wanted,"
By Brandon Friedman
"The welcome mat for memoirs by veterans of operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom might never wear out so long as they write with the savvy of Brandon Friedman . . . Friedman's take is vivid, frank, precise and dramatic."
--Military Times
"Add Brandon Friedman's The War I Always Wanted to the ranks of outstanding non-fiction produced by officers from elite combat units in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Always truthful, often excruciatingly so, The War I Always Wanted rises at numerous points to the level of literature."
--Steven Pressfield, author of Gates of Fire
Buy The War I Always Wanted here.
"A Time To Lead,"
By General (Ret.) Wesley K. Clark
"A Time To Lead confirms the rewarding benefits of military service at a time when such service is experiencing considerable strain. It also includes a comprehensive description of America's current national imperatives, which deserve serious consideration."
--General Alexander M. Haig, Jr., former Secretary of State
"This is a primer on leadership forged in battle and by decades of experience. . .This isn't just a book; it's a manual for leading people and living a good life."
--Barry McCaffrey, General, USA (ret.)
Buy A Time to Lead here.
"Love My Rifle More Than You,"
By Kayla Williams
"Whip smart, sassy, with a mouth as foul as a sailor's, 28-year-old Sergeant Kayla Williams. . .tells what it's like to be a female soldier in Iraq."
--Booklist
". . .echoes military memoirists from Julius Caesar to Ernie Pyle."
--Publishers Weekly
". . .a shocking, on-the-ground view of one military woman's experience in Iraq."
--Bookmarks Magazine
Buy Love My Rifle More Than You here.
"How to Break a Terrorist,"
By Matthew Alexander
"...a riveting, fast-paced account that reads like a first-rate thriller."
--Publisher's Weekly
" ...an absorbing behind-the-scenes look at the secret intelligence war within a war."
--Military.com
Buy How to Break a Terrorist here.
|
| RSS Feed Links |
|
Subscribe to VetVoice in a feed reader!
Subscribe to VetVoice by Email!
|
|
Diaries and comments at VetVoice do not necessarily represent the views of VoteVets.org. VetVoice will strive to remove any illegal material as soon as it is flagged. Similarly, VetVoice will use its discretion in determining whether to remove exceedingly offensive material. However, between posting and removal, any offensive or illegal material does not reflect the condoning or endorsing of said material by VoteVets.org or VetVoice.
Similarly, the views expressed on this website are those of the authors alone. Opinions on this website do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense or any of its components.
|
| Veteran Candidates We Support |
- Congressman John Boccieri, U.S. House, Ohio-16
- Congressman Chris Carney, U.S. House, Pennsylvania-10
- Congressman Eric Massa, U.S. House, New York-29
- Congressman Walt Minnick, U.S. House, Idaho-1
- Congressman Patrick Murphy, U.S. House, Pennsylvania-8
- Congressman John Murtha, U.S. House, Pennsylvania-12
- Congressman Gary Peters, U.S. House, Michigan-9
- Congressman Joe Sestak, U.S. House, Pennsylvania-7
- Congressman Tim Walz, U.S. House, Minnesota-1
- Candidate Anthony Woods, U.S. House, California-10
- Emerging Leaders: State and Local Candidates
|
| Contact Your Elected Leaders |
|
|
|
