U.S. Military Goes Nimble?

News from yesterday reads:

“We’re turning the page on a decade of war,” President Barack Obama said today at the Pentagon. 

For the Pentagon, that means reducing its number of conventional ground troops and moving away from old weapons systems that don’t make much sense in an age where our biggest threats may not come from another nation, but from terrorists who operate on their own. 

The new military will be “smaller and leaner,” [Defense Secretary Leon] Panetta said...

 I'm not really sure how I feel about this yet. I'm used to a big scary U.S. Military not one that jumps around all nimbly bimbly from tree to tree. This next part I'm on board with:

...but it “will be agile, flexible, ready, and technologically advanced.” 

The Pentagon will continue to invest in science and technology and will balance budget cuts “with the imperative to sustain key streams of innovation that may provide significant long-term payoffs,” the strategic report states.

We are an advanced civilization and keeping our military on the bleeding edge of technology will give us the best possibility of defending against attack or prompting attack in response. This next justification is just kinda BS:

“We’ll continue to get rid of outdated Cold War-era systems so that we can invest in the capabilities we need for the future, including intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; counterterrorism; countering weapons of mass destruction; and the ability to operate in environments where adversaries try to deny us access,” Obama said.

What are you going to do, have a big ass garage sale? Getting rid of Cold War-ear systems is not going to make us more able to invest. Sure, maybe if you melt down the copper wire and sell it to the guy with the storage container in a Wal-Mart parking lot; but other than that we're still in the same boat. Most likely this will cause a huge sucking black hole into which the defense budget will be thrown into, but that is business as usual.

They close with economic impact:

This will present new opportunities for innovators. The Pentagon will be looking for better ways to protect national security in both space and cyberspace... the new strategy calls for development of a new stealth bomber and improvements in missile defenses,

The old military-industrial complex is undergoing the process of creative destruction. There will be losers, just as there is in the civilian economy...but winners will emerge as well from this shift to a more nimble military.

I'm pro business, so I was happy to see the promotion of good ole' American capitalism in this process but I'm not sold on this plan yet.


Skeptical, Hopeful and Uncertain,
~Steve

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