The goal of Obama and the Leftists has been to gut our military. It’s been their goal for decades because our military makes us stronger than other nations and the Social-Democrats can’t stand that the US is better than other countries. It violates their perverted sense of equality.

And please define, if you can , “right-winger”. I get sick of seeing that term casually tossed around.

Charlemagne on January 7, 2012

Well said, Carolingian. We have something in common.
Anno Domini 800.

‘Tis indeed a sad day when America can’t fight two small-scale wars without Reserves and National Guard troops. If cut further, re-instate conscription. Maybe someone in the Romney family will be forced to serve our country. None have ever volunteered.

~(Ä)~

Restart the draft. Induct a significant number of people each year, run them though basic training and a skill. Basically, give them an MOS. Then release them back into the economy on some sort of inactive reserve status.

In other words, train many more than you actually need at the moment but have a trained pool of civilians who know how to shoot and have some basic technical skills that can be drawn upon in a hurry. It also serves as an asset to the economy by providing a pool of workers who have some training in a technical skill.

This would provide an asset to the general economy of the country as well as providing some security in the case that a large call up is needed on short notice. These people would already know a column left from marching to the right and would need a shorter refresher training cycle to be useful in a combat situation.

So where does the rest of the money come from? Entitlement programs? Coming from a Democrat in an election year?

I wouldn’t think that would happen in any year?

The idea that we must be “invaded” in order to need a strong military is laughable on the face of it.

There is no use in wasting my time on someone who cannot fathom the complexity of foreign affairs and the geopolitical realities of the world as it is.

The notion that the RP fanboys have about foreign policy is pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking, if you can call it thinking at all.

Done.

hillbillyjim on January 7, 2012 at 8:21 PM

Right!!! The greatest threat to our security right now is enemies within our own government…consisting of outright enemies and their enablers, the incompetents.

There is no use in wasting my time on someone who cannot fathom the complexity of foreign affairs and the geopolitical realities of the world as it is.

The notion that the RP fanboys have about foreign policy is pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking, if you can call it thinking at all.

Done.

I guess you believe that we should either bomb or invade any country that refuses to trade with us. Please correct me if I am wrong. By the way, the only time what you described has happened is when the UN imposes and the US enforces trade sanctions.

That’s not what I said. I asked what if someone shut down the Persian Gulf? That’s different than a country refusing trade with us.

Even if China someday becomes self-sustaining, that doesn’t mean that war is the next step.

I agree, but then we have that nagging problem that they are growing their military by 10% per year and that when indexed with purchasing power parity, they’ll have a military expenditure equal to ours by 2017 or 2018. Of course RP would say that if we cut our military then they’ll stop growing theirs but that same theory never worked with the USSR.

I’d rather err on the side of caution and keep a strong military just in case. Especially since it takes about 20 years to get a new aircraft into production. We’re too hung up on this problem when the real issue that will bankrupt us is SS, Medicare and Medicaid.

What happens if someone refuses us access to oil or doesn’t allow our goods in international markets?

I guess you believe that we should either bomb or invade any country that refuses to trade with us. Please correct me if I am wrong. By the way, the only time what you described has happened is when the UN imposes and the US enforces trade sanctions.

Right now we are in a good position. We are their customer. One day China will turn their markets inward and won’t be reliant on us to sustain their economy. Then what?

Even if China someday becomes self-sustaining, that doesn’t mean that war is the next step. Chances are, they still will want to sell us stuff and they will still need to steal (err… I mean forcibly transfer) the technology from US companies. Maybe I’m wrong but I don’t think their political/social environment is conducive to innovation.

Calling this “massive cuts” is being as misleading as liberals were when Republicans proposed to slow the growth of entitlement programs. The White House blog claimed that such proposals would mean “ending Medicare as we know it, slashing Medicaid, and threatening Social Security.”

nazo311 on January 7, 2012 at 6:53 PM

I consider 500,000 jobs pretty massive, but I do see your point.

So China plans on invading? I guess that’s the only way they are going to get back all of the money we owe them.

Old: People’s Liberation Army

New: People’s Repo Man

antifederalist on January 7, 2012 at 6:44 PM

This isn’t the 1830s. The world is tied together and China doesn’t have to invade the U.S. to hurt the country. They are a competitor for world resources. What happens if someone refuses us access to oil or doesn’t allow our goods in international markets? I guess we always have diplomacy and that works really well when working from a position of weakness. /

Right now we are in a good position. We are their customer. One day China will turn their markets inward and won’t be reliant on us to sustain their economy. Then what?

http://visualeconomics.creditloan.com/military-spending-worldwide/

antifederalist on January 7, 2012 at 4:09 PM

No most likely China just plans on waiting on us to join a One World Government much more to their liking. They know at that point they can take Japan and any other country near them and incorporate them into China. Russia and China have most likely already determines who gets what in the World. Just wonder where we come in but do not really care. Both China and Russia have no idea God will actually decide by then.

Calling this “massive cuts” is being as misleading as liberals were when Republicans proposed to slow the growth of entitlement programs. The White House blog claimed that such proposals would mean “ending Medicare as we know it, slashing Medicaid, and threatening Social Security.”

http://visualeconomics.creditloan.com/military-spending-worldwide/

antifederalist on January 7, 2012 at 4:09 PM

Sure shows how Europe is getting a free ride.

We really should require that Europe pay it’s fair share.

Instead Obama fights Frances war in Libia to get the French cheaper Oil.

Though this will back fire on France as they will become the first European Islamic State most likely.

To a Ronulan everything is static. We spend more money than the next 10 countries combined…blah…blah…blah. What you don’t hear is that China (number 2 spender) has been increasing military spending by 10% every year for the last decade. Nor do you hear any questioning whether the actual numbers reported by China are accurate. Nor do they take anything into account like how much cheaper it is for China to produce weapons or how much less they pay their soldiers.

Nope. All you’ll hear is that we need a few nukes and everything will be ok. Of course I guess they’re willing to destroy human life on the planet when some nation closes down the Panama canal or closes the Persian Gulf, because our only option for a response will be a nuclear one.

ReaganWasRight on January 7, 2012 at 6:38 PM

So China plans on invading? I guess that’s the only way they are going to get back all of the money we owe them.

Old: People’s Liberation Army

New: People’s Repo Man

Educate yourself on the reality of the geopolitical world in which we live; then make your sweeping announcements of the ludicrousness of our military posture. The fact is that we need to be expanding our military and its capabilities while in fact we are downsizing our future.

Oh, I almost forgot. Eff RP and his blimp.

hillbillyjim on January 7, 2012 at 6:12 PM

To a Ronulan everything is static. We spend more money than the next 10 countries combined…blah…blah…blah. What you don’t hear is that China (number 2 spender) has been increasing military spending by 10% every year for the last decade. Nor do you hear any questioning whether the actual numbers reported by China are accurate. Nor do they take anything into account like how much cheaper it is for China to produce weapons or how much less they pay their soldiers.

Nope. All you’ll hear is that we need a few nukes and everything will be ok. Of course I guess they’re willing to destroy human life on the planet when some nation closes down the Panama canal or closes the Persian Gulf, because our only option for a response will be a nuclear one.

As I said earlier, you need to educate yourself about the realities of the post-cold war world.

We are going to need the capability to sustain more than one conflict without jeopardizing our troops unnecessarily.

We have many enemies, and some of them are expanding their military capabilities at an alarming rate.

If the government would get their busy fingers out of our everyday lives domestically and quit interfering with the free market principles which brought us such prosperity, we wouldn’t be scratching and scraping to fund our military.

Think a little bit before you post such drivel.

hillbillyjim on January 7, 2012 at 6:33 PM

Who is planning on attacking us? And since you insist that “we are going to need the capability to sustain more than one conflict without jeopardizing our troops unnecessarily,” which (multiple) countries plan to attack us in the future? Instead of insulting me, why not cobble together a few sentences that buttresses your argument?

Why do we need to expand the Federal government’s military capability?

antifederalist on January 7, 2012 at 6:22 PM

As I said earlier, you need to educate yourself about the realities of the post-cold war world.

We are going to need the capability to sustain more than one conflict without jeopardizing our troops unnecessarily.

We have many enemies, and some of them are expanding their military capabilities at an alarming rate.

If the government would get their busy fingers out of our everyday lives domestically and quit interfering with the free market principles which brought us such prosperity, we wouldn’t be scratching and scraping to fund our military.

Think a little bit before you post such drivel.

I guess it is because there are more infants, toddlers, dying cancer victims, and elderly white grandmothers that need to be molested.

He’ll cut the military and put those dollars into his national civilian police force, as well funded and as well armed as the military. The TSA is becoming the foundation for it.

TSA means “Transportation Security Administration.” That covers a lot. Everything from airplanes to cars to bicycles to your feet.

If Obama gets elected again.. it’ll only be for one more term. The problem is that term will never end.

Educate yourself on the reality of the geopolitical world in which we live; then make your sweeping announcements of the ludicrousness of our military posture. The fact is that we need to be expanding our military and its capabilities while in fact we are downsizing our future.

Oh, I almost forgot. Eff RP and his blimp.

hillbillyjim on January 7, 2012 at 6:12 PM

You said a lot of words and yet you managed to not say much. Why do we need to expand the Federal government’s military capability?

Oh, I almost forgot. Eff RP and his blimp.

hillbillyjim on January 7, 2012 at 6:12 PM

NOT THE BLIMP!

/

Lee Fang!

KOOLAID2 on January 7, 2012 at 4:40 PM

Anyone know what happened to Lee? He’s no longer at ThinkProgress; they have a page for him there but they refer to him in the Past Tense.

Del Dolemonte on January 7, 2012 at 4:51 PM

I don’t know…that’s why I specifically mentioned him.
You can’t die of Bullsh!t…can you?

I think it is ludicrous that we are spending more on the military than the next 10 nations combined and yet people here fear that if we were to cut military spending to the level of the next 3 nations combined we have opened ourselves up to a foreign invasion. Also, I think it is unwise that we are spending more on the military than the next 10 nations combined considering the deficit, debt, and unfunded liabilities are all well over $100T.

antifederalist on January 7, 2012 at 6:00 PM

Educate yourself on the reality of the geopolitical world in which we live; then make your sweeping announcements of the ludicrousness of our military posture. The fact is that we need to be expanding our military and its capabilities while in fact we are downsizing our future.

Oh, I almost forgot. Eff RP and his blimp.