Thursday, October 9, 2014

Does the United States Military need to be reinvigorated?

   The United States Military is a constantly changing force: it's had a long road of ups and downs. From the Revolutionary War to the Civil War era, in peacetime, the military was small (10,000 or so active army personnel at most) and very much volunteer-based. During the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War, the size of the army swelled, yet when peace returned, the military would shrink back down to a tiny size. This trend of having a small, volunteer force that would be expanded during wartime would persist all the way until World War II. Before that war, our military started out rather small (even smaller than Romania's), yet by the end of the war, over 16 million Americans had served in all branches of the armed forces. However, this time, our military did not shrink back down. The Cold War had started, and the United States, for the first time in history, had abandoned its isolationist stance. America was now a world superpower, and it would be hard to maintain that role if Romania's army was still larger than ours! Therefore, throughout the Cold War years, the United States Military was a much-bigger and full-time obligation (it was active and large in times of peace and in times of war). At the end of the Vietnam War, conscription ended and the United States has maintained an all-volunteer military ever since. And though the United States has not been involved in a major war since Vietnam (or possibly World War II depending on how you look at it), millions of Americans have proudly served their country, and some have died fighting not only for our security and freedom, but for that of others as well. All Americans owe them, big time.

   Throughout American society, respect for the military and for the flag has fallen. Many people have accepted what they hear in schools and from others - that the United States is an evil, imperialist nation, and that the military is America's way of exercising its power. In other words, some people have decided that our veterans are not honorable American citizens who risk their lives to protect the freedom of their country and that of other countries. Rather, they believe that our soldiers are part of an imperialist organization seeking to dominate the globe, starting with Afghanistan (supposedly because we want to steal their oil). This disrespect towards our country and its veterans is widespread not only throughout society, but also within our government, where some of our politicians are working hard, not to defend the United States, but to offend it.

   Right now, the United States Military is being downsized. If current plans move forward unimpeded, our army's size will fall to pre-World War II levels within the next few years (about 490,000 personnel in the army). Our navy, air force, and nuclear arsenal are also being downsized. Our military is not prepared to fight on a global scale; while we have bases and troops in a large portion of the world's countries, we do not have the manpower and readiness to fight wars in faraway regions. As a nation, we have failed to put sufficient emphasis in maintaining our military strength or in increasing our capabilities in cyber or space warfare. Instead of spending enough of our money on this country's and its citizens' safety and security, we are pouring vast amounts of taxpayers' money into failed government programs that have no satisfactory effect in relieving our nation's economy or the millions of Americans that live in poverty.

   Meanwhile, countries such as Russia and China have vastly improved their military capabilities. China, empowered by its growing economy, is building a very large and increasingly-more modern military. While our nuclear stockpile dwindles, slowly but surely growing outdated, Russia is continually creating newer and more powerful nuclear warheads. If this pattern continues, the Russians might eventually build up the nuclear superiority that will allow them to launch a successful first strike on us. As the United States Navy shrinks, the People's Liberation Army Navy (the PRC's navy) is growing. If nothing changes, then the Chinese will have a larger navy than the United States by 2020. And contrary to popular belief, China's strengths don't lie solely in the large numbers of people that they can put into the field. The Chinese are not building a huge fleet of canoes! They are creating a powerful, modern fleet that will include aircraft carriers. Already, their navy has made them powerful enough to essentially control the East China Sea, and they are aggressively moving to secure disputed islands around them, such as the Senkaku Islands (disputed by China and Japan). Our regional allies (Japan, South Korea, Philippines), which have failed to receive sufficient support and a credible guarantee of protection from the United States, would be wise to negotiate with China in order to try and get the best possible deal that they can. Right now, our allies have no reason to have any confidence in us; we have let them down.

   Here in America, I have been repeatedly assured that the United States is so much stronger than everyone else that we don't need to worry. This reasoning likely comes from the fact that Americans feel so safe and secure. The last time that a foreign power threatened our country's existence was about two centuries ago, during the War of 1812. During World War I, World War II, and the Cold War, the United States was secure not only because of its military might, but also due to the fact that America's enemies were usually on the other side of the world, not right next door. As an American, I feel that it is a blessing to live in a safe and secure place (a blessing which most other people don't have). This is why I believe that America needs a stronger military! We cannot assume that because we currently have the world's most powerful military, we have justification to be able to sleep and relax. The reason is obvious; other countries will catch up to us! Consider this example: let's say you are the coach of a college basketball team. You are in charge of a group of professional, highly-trained and skilled players. In a tournament, your team is unstoppable; you haven't lost a single game. Then, the season ends. You decide that because your team beat every other team, your team is the best and the strongest out there, and that's all there is to it. Your team is so much better than all the others that you don't need to worry. Because of this logic, your team doesn't practice at all in the off-season. You and your players go home, throw a party, and eat donuts. While you are partying and relaxing, your competition, players from the rival teams, spend the off-season training and practicing. As your team's skills and greatness falter, your enemies are working hard and improving. By the time the next season begins, do you think that your team will still be the best?

   After hearing of such a story on the radio, Americans would be likely to laugh about this team's unwise decisions. Yet, by deciding that we don't need to improve our military capabilities in order to maintain our lead, we are doing essentially the same thing (except with far worse consequences). Many of the people that we meet everyday are aware that China has a larger army than we do; yet, too many of these people dismiss this concern. They assume that because we are America, and we have the world's best technology, we would emerge victorious in a conflict. Such logic is ludicrous. Yes, the United States is the world's leader in technology - for now. Yet, China is quickly catching up. They are building a powerful and modern military that, within a few years, might be technologically equal to our own. Their economy is quickly growing, and by some estimates, their economy may surpass ours as soon as 2016! As Dinesh D'Souza notes, economic superiority leads to military and political dominance, which China ultimately wants to grab for itself at our expense. And the fact that the Chinese have four times our population makes their advantage in any future conflict undeniable. China has hundreds of millions of people to fill not only jobs that power the Chinese economy, but also the ranks of the People's Liberation Army. The cost to them of fielding an individual soldier is far less than it is to us. Because of this, China will have not only a huge manpower advantage over us, but they would be fighting us on equal technological terms and with a larger economy, which is key to waging war. Furthermore, an American war effort would be hampered by several facts. First, our likely-outnumbered navy is and would be split between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. By contrast, the Chinese can concentrate all their strength against us in the Pacific Ocean. Second, lots of Americans would be less-than-willing to fight; a draft would not be acceptable to them, whether we were invading China or the Chinese were invading us. Why? For the same reason behind the common belief that America's military does not need to be strengthened. Too many of us have this idea that we shouldn't need to fight, because, as members of this free and comfortable society, we have grown beyond these things. We feel entitled to have our defense provided for us; it's the government's job to protect us, right? On the contrary, most of the Russians and Chinese people don't have this entitlement issue: they are patriotic and proud to serve their country, whether or not the choice is theirs to make. Furthermore, while the mainland United States has been largely undisturbed by foreign attacks for 200 years, Russia has seen invasions by Germany (twice), and China had to fight off colonialism and the massive Japanese invasion during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-45); all of these events happened in this same 200-year period alone. All these wars have ultimately taken tens of millions of Russian and Chinese lives (not to mention, both countries suffered massive economic and infrastructural damage in World War II), while the War of 1812, by contrast, resulted in a few thousand American deaths. As such, it is no wonder that many Americans would be less willing and less prepared to fight than their potential foes (considering how current events are playing out) would be.

   America, though a strong nation, is not invincible. By staying on the same path, our government is going to jeopardize our national security and the aspirations of future generations. History has proven over and over that military disarmament does not work. Our enemies will seize upon our weakness, and we will be in a bad spot to respond. Ultimately, Americans might end up sacrificing their security, future happiness, and possibly even their freedom by doing nothing to stop our government's downsizing of the military. If we sit back, do nothing, and allow current trends to move forward unimpeded, we will lose our military superiority. Our influence around the world will crumble, and no one will be safe. Everyone in the world will be negatively affected by this. Without the assistance of a strong United States, there's a good chance that the citizens of our allies might wake up one morning to find, say, Iranian or North Korean paratroopers landing in their backyard. Even the country/ies that would replace the United States as the world's superpower/s would be worse off, as the citizens of these countries would likely be living under a constant state of war and destruction. In the last few years, while America has been sleeping, we've seen that our current rivals don't make the best babysitters. Our isolationism in recent years has only caused the world's hot spots to burn with fire and become more deadly. This goes to show why strong American leadership is needed. Only in a western-led world will the rights of an ordinary person to carve out an extraordinary life be respected. Such a goal is not a priority for our rivals.

   In conclusion, the United States Military needs re-invigoration. America is the world's only superpower, but we will need a powerful military in order to continue in this function. Other countries are rising, and if we continue to do nothing to stop our own decline, we will fall behind. And if that happens, our future may be destroyed.

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