In a stunning display of callousness, the Defense Department has announced that thousands of soldiers — many serving as commanding officers in Afghanistan — will be notified in the coming weeks that their service to the country is no longer needed.
Last week, more than 1,100 Army captains — the men and women who know best how to fight this enemy because they have experienced multiple deployments — were told they’ll be retired from the Army.
The overall news is not unexpected. The Army has ended its major operations in Iraq and is winding down in Afghanistan. Budget cuts are projected to shrink the Army from its current 520,000 troops to 440,000, the smallest size since before World War II.
What is astonishing is that the Defense Department thought it would be appropriate to notify deployed soldiers — men and women risking their lives daily in combat zones — that they’ll be laid off after their current deployment.
As one Army wife posted on MilitaryFamily.org, “On some level I knew the drawdowns were inevitable, but I guess I never expected to be simultaneously worried about a deployment to Afghanistan and a pink slip because my husband’s service is no longer needed.”
Yet the issues go far beyond thanklessness. The nation should worry about the increased national-security risk of separating such a large pool of combat-experienced leaders. The separated soldiers are those who carry the deepest knowledge base of counterinsurgency operations.
More at the NY Post
Even as the Obama Regime claims they are just re-organizing the military to beef up Special Ops and put more responsibility on them, A-teams at Ft. Bragg, including my son’s unit, have been eliminated due to operators not renewing their contracts, and units are being cobbled together from team remnants. Many of those captains’ wives who have endured multiple tours without a husband have divorced them or given them the ultimatum to resign their commissions. My son after over a decade of deployments has refused a promotion and is completing his last contract; he’s through looking at the world behind a gun with the world, including his Commander-in-Chief, shooting back.
he is no commander-in-chief, he is a muslim terrorist
This country has been invaded from the south, and you thought Red Dawn was just a movie.
Wake up!
I’m so glad I only had to spend the last 4 months of my 30 years serving under this shitbag. I truly pity those who still are. Hopefully we’ll get someone in there in 2017 who will begin respecting the military again.
I would not recommend the military as a career to anyone right now. First and most valid reason is you can not be sure that anyone will have your back. There are other reasons like no consistent foreign policy and no assistance if you receive a life disabling injury.
I work for the Army. Since the war started men and women who normally would not get promoted did. Men and wimen who wouldn’t even be selected to go in the Army were. The LTC selection was about 92%, now it is about 32% and going lower. Some of those who shouldn’t have been promoted are now being SERBed however there are some really good soldiers that are in the mix. The Army is going from 545K to 430k, that is a lot of soldiers. However obama wants to encourage openly gay people to enlist and illegals. ( since most soldiers have a clearance how this isn’t going to present a security problem is an issue)
@Randy: My nephew is interested in going in. Fortunately by the time he’s old enough we’ll have a new POTUS.
@Disenchanted: Based on what you’re saying, there are parallels between what is happening with our military and what happened with the Roman’s military. We all know how that ended.
We will be lucky to even have a military with the dysfunction going on with our leadership and citizens here at home. I feel for our troops the brave men and women who stand up to evil and protect us…. It is sad to have a soldier feel this way about his Commander in Chief, although I do not blame him for doing so…
I hate what our so called leadership is doing to this country. I never thought I would live among so many stupid people.
I just wonder when America and Americans will start to take Radical Islam, and terrorists Seriously…it is, and it will be too late when it is at your back door…
…Ofraud is still an ass hat and that always includes his administration who are just as evil…
You need to read and understand Edward Gibson’s work the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
The two-volume set will give you a detailed insight on the parallels of the decay of Roman and America.
@another vet: until there is a new administration, nothing will be done. I am not saying there shouldn’t be a downsizing, but the administration wants numbers for ALL services at pre WWII numbers. I have the stats and they are low. I forgot to add the Army is making provisions for transgenders too. One day a GO could be wearing a tutu and the next day pants – and it will be all right. So in essence the Army will consist of boot lickers, openly gay, illegals and transgenders and if you aren’t part of that group what will their chance be in getting promoted? As a civilian I and a lot of others are pretty much done. The historical knowledge they will lose is tremendous and yes they can train new employees but like for me 39 years is a lot of experience and knowledge to recoup. I apologize I have digressed.
This is exactly what happened when that dirtbag Clinton was in office when we had the last drawdown. Funny how the ONLY department of government the leftists ever want to downsize is the only one that is actually called for under the Constitution. The dems did this under Carter, they did it again under Clinton, and now again under Obama.
Rather than wasting money on foodstamps, welfare housing and excessive unemployment checks, we should be enlarging the military and deploying troops to our southern border to stop the flood of illegal aliens breaking the law coming into our country.
Of course that will never happen so long as an anti-American marxist piece of filth is in the Oval Office because the dems need to bring in new hordes of government dependents to skew future elections.
And Vet – I only managed to do 25 years – and it absolutely sickens me to this day that my retirement certificate is signed by that disgusting, worthless, anti-American scumbag. There was a time I looked forward to the possibility of one of my kids joining the military, but since the last two years of my service I have been strongly counseling all my kids against serving so long as a leftist is befouling the presidency.
@Disenchanted: Our military will be reduced to incompetence and irrelevance. But that is what the left wants. They always were and always will be anti-military, even those who served. America is in a state of decline. Dennis Miller in his last month’s comedy special at the end brought out the point that this will all readjust somehow just like 1929 or worse, 1861.
@Pete: It’s definitely disheartening. Since you brought up Clinton’s reign, did you notice the about face Colin Powell has done? He refused to extend his tenure as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs because Clinton was going to downsize the military too much and he didn’t want to be in charge of a hollowed out military. I remember him using those words or something very close. Now Obama wants to cut it even deeper and he supports it. He opposed Clinton’s DADT saying it would be bad for morale but publicly supported Obama’s allowing gays to serve openly. Did you ever wonder what the deal is?
Anyone of us can see high casualties if we were to get into another war/conflict with the RIFs in progress. The loss of combat experience and knowledge is quite significant. Obama has clearly taken the knife to the military and gutting it with indiscriminate cuts.
@twolaneflash –
Understand that, many operators are leaving NSW, they are cobbling teams together. Most of my former teammates have retired from naval service, those still in are planning to retire. All but two had their wives walk out on them. Pretty grim.
@MOS 8541, Disenchanted, another vet –
I hope we don’t become like the Roman military, but the handwriting seems to be on the wall. Even if we were to get a good POTUS, who understands the military, it’ll take awhile to clean up the mess Obama is leaving behind and weed out the poor performers. Perhaps a generation just to get back to the 2008 level.
@David:
Too many people don’t understand that concept. It takes time to build a professional, efficient military. This country always makes the mistake of hollowing out the military after a war and then when the next one happens, as it always does, it has to play catch up at the cost of lives. The difference between the past and now is that the military is being hollowed while we are at still at war. As much as the left and Obama want to deny that fact, reality dictates otherwise.