We're in a Downward Spiral' ,,,National Guard and Reserves being drained

[RedEarth]

We're in a Downward Spiral'

Iraq and Afghanistan are draining the National Guard and Reserve, warns Arnold Punaro, the chairman of a congressional commission

March 12, 2007 - As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan drag on, America’s National Guard and Reserve are being called up and deployed on an unprecedented scale. A commission of independent experts set up by Congress in late 2005 to examine the state of the Guard and Reserve submitted its latest report on March 1. The report, which focuses on the Guard, warns of a looming crisis and calls for wholesale changes in the way the force is managed. Commission Chairman Arnold Punaro, a retired Marine major general, says that the practice of ‘cross-leveling’—filling out some depleted units by cannibalizing others—is especially dangerous. “Pickup teams belong on a sandlot,” he says. “They don’t belong on a battlefield.” Punaro spoke with NEWSWEEK’s John Barry. Excerpts:

NEWSWEEK: What’s the problem with the National Guard?
Arnold Punaro: The Guard and Reserve forces were organized to be a strategic reserve, meaning to be used in the event of an all-out war with the Soviet Union. But now the Defense Department has declared the Guard and Reserve are “operational,” which means that though it’s a part-time force, some of it is in use at all times and the rest has to be ready to go at any time. Yet Defense hasn’t changed any of the laws, rules, regulations—or any of the equipping and manning priorities. The current course we are on is not sustainable. And the ability of the Guard and Reserve to do their missions continues to deteriorate.

What are the signs of that?
Look at recruiting and retention. It’s fraying at the edges. The support of employers is weakening as they see their skilled personnel called up repeatedly. Family support is weakening. The number of prior-service personnel—that is, people already highly trained in the active force—going into the reserves is significantly decreasing. So the warning signs are on the horizon.

How did this come about?
The cumulative effect of several things. After the first Gulf War in 1991, we were downsizing our active-duty military quite substantially. But the threats in the world not only didn’t go away; in many ways they got worse and more complex. So that required an ever-increasing use of the Guard and Reserve. Then came 9/11. Since then, over 550,000 Guard and Reserve have been mobilized. You have units deployed not once but twice overseas. The equipping and manning and training haven’t kept up.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17581983/site/newsweek/

[kestrel91316]

1. Well, that means it's definitely time for an unprovoked attack on Iran.

After they are accused of lobbing a missile at one of our boats.

[Dover]

2. The big picture is corporate rule or 'governance' on a global scale.

They see our government as a poorly performing small business with excellent assets that can be an easy target for hostile takeover. In fact they've already succeeded, but no one noticed apparently.

So all our national assets, including the military arm, are being dismantled, dispersed and/or reorganized in a slow movement toward privatization. No more oaths to one's country. You will need to pledge allegiance to your corporate chief. Or at least that's how THEY want to see it. And so far, the country has been very compliant and/or too self-absorbed with surviving and shopping to notice or care.

But there is a grassroots contingent who also sees the need for globalization, but pictures it VERY differently. Sustainability and responsibility are key to their concerns.

[glitch]

3. That grassroots contingent will be the next target once the re-org is established.

Our corporate overlord-wannabes still won't win, but that is who their next serious target will be. And targeted with very little imagination. They're already foreshadowing their next move by labeling people who support sustainability as terrorists (I actually heard a RW preacher stating this, I am not kidding).
So sustainable = terror. Anything is possible when you're not constrained by reality.

[Morgana LaFey]

4. K&R