Military change in the wind... now i'm REALLY worried!

today, one of my adopteds in the air force called me.  he "recertified" in weapons training after slipping through the paperwork for several years.  the air force recerts every 2 years - he made it to five before being sent out to spend the day doing weapons handling.

i jokingly asked if he was being deployed - for the moment he is safe because of his field.  he DID tell me something that is extremely worrisome - and should have everyone who knows military folk deeply concerned.

come with me to see where we are headed - and why you should talk your kids out of joining the air force and the navy!

the air force has changed it's program for basic training.

in the years gone by, the joke was that you learned to fold your shirts into PERFECT FLAT squares!  it HAD to pass the wrinkle free test! since the air force and navy traditionally were forces that did not serve as ground troops - and the basic training never required extensive weapons handling or ground combat training.  yes, the troops were required basic physical fitness, running, etc., but the emphasis was not on hard ground combat.

now the air force is requirng intensive combat training for ALL its new recruits.  i am seriously betting the navy also has adapted its basic training programs as well.

why?

the simplest answer is that we are running out of foot soldiers.  the army and marines are both stressed and stretched.  recruiting is down and is opening the doors to standards never before accepted.  so, where does the defense department make up the slack in an all volunteer force?

look to the air force and navy!  already, both airmen and seamen are being deployed to iraq as "support services" for the army.  they drive trucks, they perform on the ground operations.  they get killed.  just like the soldiers and marines.

if we extend this scenario out another year or so, what happens when we run OUT of army, marines, guard, airmen and women, and sailors?

there is only one alternative left if the recruiting numbers don't make up for those who ARE leaving - in droves.  that, my friends, is the draft.  three years ago, another army friend who worked in personnel said that the military was proceeding even then at full speed to get ready for the draft.  did they see it even then?  is it inevitable?  are we too late to repair this broken system?

no matter how unpopular, how distasteful - the hard core reality is that we are running out of fighting forces - we are using up our reserves and we are in serious danger of being a country without a military force in the very near future.

the recent stories of recruiters who lie (my friend assures me that ALL recruiters lie) are strong deterrent to those who are beginning to see the heavy toll on our military members and their families.  people see the lies - the promises unkept.  people are learning again not to TRUST the government regarding the military - so who will join?  not the numbers needed to sustain a defensive force in this nation!

another one of my adopteds (also air force) tells of a sgt who left at the end of his commitment and within six months, was on the ground in iraq in the ARMY!  he was called back and placed "where needed".

sadly, another legacy of george w. bush is a severly broken military, broken troops, and a nation unprotected.

kansas:  case in point:  tornado:  no national guard equipment to dig out the ruins of a little town in middle america.

things are only going to get worse... unless we do something.

finally, i am clamboring aboard the impeachment wagon.... if there is any room left.  we are running out of time.  it may already be too late to save our broken nation.  

i hope not. i truly hope not.