What impact will the all volunteer military have on our country’s political future?
I have another concern. My latest concern is that the one percent of Americans that serve in the military will not be accurately represented in the government in the future because none of the politicians will have served in the military. Why? Because they didn’t have to. Having someone with no military experience making decisions concerning the military is like an obstetrician saying labor isn’t painful when they have never given birth.
Now don’t go thinking there is currently a huge representation of former military members wheeling and dealing, passing or revoking laws in the this country; the Legislative branch members (Congress) who have military experience are less 22% based on info I found on www.whoserved.com. But hey, that is about one in four, and I’ll take those odds versus the direction I believe we are headed, which I fear is only down. The highest percentage is found within the Judicial branch of the government, with one-third having served.
When Congress used us as a pawn (my opinion) during budget scare tactics by saying the military won’t get paid, that was when my concern began. When I look through the paper and see how many men and women who served during both World War I and II, Vietnam, and the Korean War are passing away, leaving holes in society and visual reminders of the past (who can miss them, especially here around DC, proudly displaying decals on their cars, license plates, hats, and walking around the Mall), we lose advocates for our future. The military is reducing numbers…that is a fact. It is in the papers and I have heard it first-hand from many reliable peeps. Can’t really say we need more people to serve in the military if there aren’t any available jobs.
So where does that leave us.
Do we become better educated about the government so we know the proper channels for our voices to be heard? Do we encourage those with military experience to run for office? Do we take part of military remembrance services, such as Memorial Day and Veterans Day, so that our numbers can be seen? Do we act as advocates for the military, by whining less and standing up more? Do we stay strong together?
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. And yes.
What say you? Is this a concern of yours as well? And what do you propose we actively do about it?
Heidi is an Air Force wife, mother of boys, and has been blogging for four years. She was an athletic trainer in her “past life” and finds that her prior profession of working the sidelines of football games has adequately prepared her for working the sidelines in her day to day military spouse life and enables her to deal with just about anyone.
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Comments
Short of convincing some quality military folks to run for office, I strongly suggest that all military folks join the ranks and actively support such organizations as AUSA. These types of organizations were founded by retired military and are comprised of military and their dependents and others who have a strong sense of pride and support for the military. These types of organizations lobby the government and fight for the well being of the military. I just read my most recent newsletters and they are currently fighting for retirees healthcare and COLA, injured soldiers benefits, jobs for soldiers post-service, VA benefits, and family benefits. They are strong and could be stronger if we would all support their efforts. Afterall, they are simply trying to help us!
Thanks for the comment! This is what I mean by "actively" doing something!
yes! yes!
interesting question. it scares me to think of where this country is headed. even within the miltary there is a real problem at the top. remember congress promotes at the top. when i hear barry mccaffrey saying the marines were acting like teenagers i remember why the 24th id couldnt fight its way outta a paper bag. having served during the carter calamity i hope someone with a pair comes along soon with a pair. after all reagan and bush rebuilt what the carter clinton hollowed out. otherwise im afraid we might end up looking like what the last president from ill did. this time in a t. my suggestion though is to abolish the 2 parties and do gov financed campaigns with a threshold for money and all get the same. we still have a lotta people with strong morals but to get anywhere you need to be a party lapdog. until then we have to fight and claw for everything we get.
good post though
I read an interesting article in TIME magazine that talked about this and the general isolation of military members from the rest of the country. I think it is a major concern that so few people really know the people behind the uniforms, but I don't think we can really ask more people to serve simply to get to know us and what's important to us. I think it's important for the ENTIRE military to be more prevalent in the everyday person's life, not just at military holidays or functions. I think it would be awesome to have more outreach so that "the military" becomes "my military." Also, in the TIME article the author pointed out that because so few legislators serve our country in the military anymore, that come budget time they have basically given the DoD a "blank check" so to speak because they don't want to seem like the un-American congressman who told the patriots no. That's a little scary to me, in times like these, mostly because it just shows how out of touch our "representatives" really are. I have found the best way to show these out of touch legislators is to simply call and voice your concerns. Did you know that for ever call they get, the make a statistical "prediction" about how much of the population might be concerned about that issue and THAT'S how the decide what the people want?!?! So if even a few service members called and said, "hey, I'm more than a uniform" it could really go a long way.
I am going to try to find that article. Thank you for that!
Very well stated! I’ve always asked the same question of how can one make decisions for the military if they’ve never experienced it before. Personally, I think you should have to have 2 years of service to you country in some capacity. I don’t care if it’s Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, or Coast Guard. Our family is a family who serves. We’ve raised our kids to know it’s an honor to serve and we will be encouraging them all to serve in some form. I think it would go a long way to making things better for our country. It’s like, in a more minor way, if more people have been servers, maybe they’d be less inclined to mistreated or undertip one. I hope this all makes sense, because I’m typing on my phone before coffee…
Very well stated! I’ve always asked the same question of how can one make decisions for the military if they’ve never experienced it before. Personally, I think you should have to have 2 years of service to you country in some capacity. I don’t care if it’s Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, or Coast Guard. Our family is a family who serves. We’ve raised our kids to know it’s an honor to serve and we will be encouraging them all to serve in some form. It’s like, in a more minor way, if more people have been servers, maybe they’d be less inclined to mistreated or undertip one. I hope this all makes sense, because I’m typing on my phone before coffee…
Very well stated! I’ve always asked the same question of how can one make decisions for the military if they’ve never experienced it before. Personally, I think you should have to have 2 years of service to you country in some capacity. I don’t care if it’s Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, or Coast Guard. Our family is a family who serves. We’ve raised our kids to know it’s an honor to serve and we will be encouraging them all to serve in some form. I hope this all makes sense, because I’m typing on my phone before coffee…