The fear of a professional military almost doomed our Republic before
it was even born. Contrary to the American myth, it was the
Continental Line (the professionals) not the Minute Men who won the
American Revolution. The fear and distrust of a professional military
under Pres. Thomas Jefferson and his "disciples" almost resulted in
our reconquest by the British during the War of 1812. We did manage
to lose Washington DC and but for a fortuitous delay of the attack
would have lost New Orleans. During the war our gunboat equipped Navy
was totally incapable of defending the United States and the British
blockaded our ports. It was only in a small number of single ship
actions that the excellence of our ships and sailors was
demonstrated. This ongoing distrust of a standing military resulted
in fairly severe defeats during the opening battles of WWI and WWII.
The statements Prof Finkelman expresses about our present
professional military are typical of those who have not served, and
lack knowledge of the way the system really works. The majority of
those who join do not make 20-30 year careers out of the military.
They serve a hitch (4-8) years and go home. Many after serving on
active duty for 2-4 years finish their obligation in the reserves. Or
stay in the reserves to complete a career (as I did). Taking myself
as an example. I served 8 years on active duty. Two years in the Army
Reserve in North Carolina. Six years in the Pennsylvania Army
National Guard. And finished up with 4 years in the Army Reserve in
Virginia. During that time I was on active duty a number of times to
attend schools in New Mexico and Oklahoma (with other officers from
all over the USA and NATO). I was also on active duty during Haiti
and Bosnia-Herzegovina in USACOM in Norfolk, VA. There I served with
USAF, US Navy, US Marines, and US Army personnel from all over the
USA (active duty and reservists). Most of us do go home. And even if
you serve for a full 20 years, most are enlisted and joined at 18 or
their early 20s. They retire and go home when they are in their late
30s or early 40s. Even those who serve 30 years on active duty are in
our 40s or 50s when they retire and go on to other careers. You take
that military experience with you. It enriches the communities you join.
The Founding Fathers were concerned about the problems inherent in a
standing military. One of the ways they sought to avoid what they saw
in Europe was to enshrine the principal of civilian control of the
military. The president, an elected official, is the commander in
chief. One of the problems with the military up to WWII was that the
majority of the officer corps was professional. While the soldiers
may have been citizen soldiers, the leadership were all graduates of
VMI, West Point, The Citadel, and Annapolis. With today's larger
military this is no longer possible and the majority of the officer
corps is commisioned via ROTC. All things being equal this should be
a way to prevent the takeover of the military by a professional
elite. However, the fear of a professional military on the part of
some in the US (like Prof. Finkelman perhaps) has forced the closure
of most ROTC programs. As a result rather than getting its officer
corps from across America, the majority come from conservative
southern and western backgrounds. There are exceptions. I knew a lot
of people from middle class and even upper class backgrounds who went
to Ivy League (or equivalent) universities and joined the military.
My father was a doctor, as was his father. I went to the Univ of
Pennsylvania and joined ROTC as a graduate student. One of my
daughters went to Wellesley and is now in the USAF. Another daughter
is on her way to Tulane in the Fall on an Army ROTC scholarship.
Their mother's parents were both college grads and her dad was a
professor. She too joined RTOC while at the Univ. of Pennsylvania.
As Prof. Finkelman has pointed out the military has served as a means
of upward mobility for many minorities in the USA. This is because
while some parts of the US denied equal education and equal rights,
the military has always been more merit based. And following the full
integration of the military by order of Pres. Truman this was even
more true.The color of your skin mattered less, and what you wanted
to do with your life mattered more, than it did outside the military.
The military provided opportunity that was denied to many on the
outside. Over my 20 years in uniform I saw lots of people who did not
see much opportunity in their neighborhood, so they put on a uniform
to get ahead. The military offered to teach them a trade, send them
to school, and offered the opportunity for those who wanted to attend
college. Many enlisted were sent to college or worked on degrees
while on active duty. When their hitch was up, or when they retired
they went out into the world with skills and education that would
have been difficult to get otherwise. Most officers are given the
opportunity to get master's degrees. I knew a lot of sergeants with
MAs. I knew a number of people who started out as privates and
retired as colonels, one even made three stars.
James Brothers, RPA
MAJ, FA Retired
MBA Duke, MA Wm & Mary
[log in to unmask]
On Jun 6, 2007, at 14:03, Paul Finkelman wrote:
> Both postings remind us that for most of our history wars were
> fought by
> men who lived together before and after the war. Regiments were from
> counties and cities and even divisions were from states. Such shared
> combat made wars more real to the people at home as well as to the
> politicians who sent men off to battle. Thus, wars had to have a
> purpose and political support at home. Since WWII this has not been
> the
> case; soldiers are in a professional army, disconnected from the home
> front and from regular Americans; the military is a place for the poor
> and unfortunate who see it as "a way out" of where they are, but the
> soldiers are not part of units that come from where they do. THe
> mixing
> in the military was probably a plus in and after WWII -- people
> from all
> parts of the country met and learned about each other -- even if they
> were in "home town units" like the 116th. In our modern professional
> army people also meet others from all over, but there is no going home
> after the war because the army is their home. In the long run this is
> probably not good for our Republic; it underscores the Founders
> fear of
> a standing army. We cannot always "learn from history" but I think
> the
> larger memory of the 116th (and thousands of other units like it) is a
> lesson we should learn.
>
> Paul Finkelman
> President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law
> and Public Policy
> Albany Law School
> 80 New Scotland Avenue
> Albany, New York 12208-3494
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