The National Defense Strategy recently released by the Pentagon places an overwhelming emphasis on irregular, unconventional warfare. However, Russia's war with Georgia, I think drives home the point that while these "small wars" and terrorism will be the most common threat, the most serious threat of all may come from countries like Russia and China.

I think with the way Russia chose to handle this situation as well as the incredible punishment they dished out, the American leadership, particularly the next president, needs to think about how we can prepare for the next big war. This is very much an economic issue, but other things are involved as well. As the country and the world moves further and further away from industrialization, the economy's ability to produce the necessary materiel for war decreases. In a major military engagement, the U.S. will need a large stockpile of ammunition, fuel, and spare parts. It will take a long time in order to generate the quantities needed to sustain a major war effort. If the U.S. does not do this, then in a rapidly-unfolding contingency in the Caucasus or the Korean Peninsula (the U.S. can be more deliberate in Iran), then we can expect to see a critical shortage of ammunition and spare parts within a few months. This does not bode well in the face of an aggressor that either exercises more direct control over its economy or is still in a more industrialized era (i.e., China).

Then there's the issue of training. One thing that cannot be denied about our performance in the Persian Gulf War was the skill of our soldiers. That skill and training was something that always stuck with us even after that war ended. The U.S. sustaining protracted war in Afghanistan and Iraq is a result of that. Unfortunately, fighting more capable enemies such as China, North Korea, and Russia will require more. In order to prepare for the next big war, the economy has to be molded so that people can be trained to not just fight, but to also create the things needed to sustain the effort, as well as find ways to incorporate an increasingly service-oriented economy into warfighting. This is something that will take several years.

Hopefully, the next president recognizes this and will take the steps needed to prepare for that next war. If we don't start within a year, we're in a very precarious position.

No, I am not a neo-con, I just tend to be realistic about things more than I am idealistic about them.

I am paleoconservative and non-interventionist. However, I also recognize that change does not happen overnight. The fact of the matter is, the U.S. has dug itself a hole we cannot get out of. As long as we're in that hole, we need to be prepared for a long road back home.

Also, my position differs significantly from the neo-con position in that I do not buy into this "full-spectrum dominance" BS and the false idea that the U.S. military is absolutely infalliable under any and all situations. We have all this military power and the limits of that power showed itself when we couldn't intervene in Georgia.

Whatever position we take, a confrontation with China and Russia is in our future.

I wholeheartily agree that we must re-arm and prepare for more aggressive actions from Russia and possible China as well.Isolationism leads to people like Stalin and Hitler grabbing power unopposed.No.We will not allow that to happen again.Already its looking like Putin is the short dictator in Russia.His warning to other states like estonia ,poland ,Latvia and the Ukraine is a warning that needs to be taken seriously by the world.Attack any one of these,and the West will respond with force as per our treaty with Nato and alliances.

An attack upon one is an attack on all.

Originally posted by The Godfather of Conspira


Apologies for jumping the gun, I guess I assumed by your profile and what-not you were a die-hard Neo-Con.

What, only neocons can be ultra-patriotic??? I am utterly appalled by people like William Kristol calling for military confrontation with Russia.

I mean really Foreign Policy is the root cause of America's incredible strain on it's military and record defence spending budget.

You'll get no argument from me there. Prominent paeloconservatives as well as libertarians all argue that war and a neo-militarized America has wrecked American society more than anything else. However, if we want to make this transition smooth, we need to do something other than shock therapy. The Russians tried doing shock therapy in 1993 and the country was in danger of civil war for the entire decade.

Forget addressing the military aspects, even fighting on 4 fronts at a time the US military can handle itself what with $500 billion that's being thrown at it every single year... the Army is far from "crisis mode", they've got the numbers and superiority to match all the threats it's currently facing.

I wouldn't be so sure about that. The combat readiness of Army brigade combat teams has been in doubt since 2006. Even if they were, we (nor is any other country) are not prepared for sustained high-intensity warfare, especially not against China, North Korea, or Russia. I guarantee if a big war broke out tomorrow, within a month or two we'd be suffering from a critical shortage of munitions and supplies.

Now, would this be detrimental? The answer is no, but it would certainly ensure there will never be such a thing as a quick, decisive, Desert Storm-esque victory in that war.

We need to address Foreign Policy now not later, otherwise before you know it America will have 10 fronts and 20 enemies to face.

We can effectively address it now by recognizing the threat China and especially Russia pose. Russia was a threat ever since the Cold War ended and we saw what these guys are capable of putting forth. Its unfortunate, but we need to prepare ourselves for the possibility we may be shooting at Russians.

Hopefully the next election addresses this issue once and for all... we shall see.

Hate to say it, but that's next to impossible. If this administration got anything right, its the fact this will be a Long War. We're past the days of having an enemy one day and a different one the next. We're in the days of long-term enemies and these will be indeed generational struggles. Our lives will be defined by this.

Our lives will be defined by this only because we are failing to do what it takes to end it! War for changing regimes or foreign policies we do not like is like using a sledge hammer to tighten a nut and bolt. War is for destroying enemies and conquering territory, our troops can do that quite well. We either get the guts to end it or we need to bring our soldiers home and kick out the foreigners and go isolationist. (I'm a staunch isolationist and am a firm believer The U.S.A. can thrive with such a policy, but hey that's my opinion.) Our founders realized that involving ourselves in Europe's affairs would bring us only sorrow, nothing has changed that reality.

Originally posted by racegunz
Our lives will be defined by this only because we are failing to do what it takes to end it! War for changing regimes or foreign policies we do not like is like using a sledge hammer to tighten a nut and bolt. War is for destroying enemies and conquering territory, our troops can do that quite well. We either get the guts to end it or we need to bring our soldiers home and kick out the foreigners and go isolationist. (I'm a staunch isolationist and am a firm believer The U.S.A. can thrive with such a policy, but hey that's my opinion.) Our founders realized that involving ourselves in Europe's affairs would bring us only sorrow, nothing has changed that reality.

I am a paleoconservative/non-interventionist of the highest order, don't get me wrong. I just think that such a revolutionary change to this country is something that has to happen gradually. Chances are, it may not happen in our lifetimes. Hopefully, it will someday.

We need to ask ourselves what we are willing to sacrifice in order to live in the America this country was supposed to be.

Well first "we" as Americans would have to agree with what we want our country to be, I'm afraid that will not happen in our lifetimes and probably never.
What I want to happen is complete fantasy, would it work? well it would if we as a whole wanted it to. Any group,country,people can make even a bad plan work if they are acting together but we are too divided to make even the best of plans work anymore. That would include anymore preparation for whatever might be coming down the road it will just waste more money and still fail because we are no longer united.