No-Draft Military Creating A Warrior Class? By Matthew Schofield

DeM Banter: was this not an obvious outcome of ending the draft? The bigger issue is avoiding a gap in Civ-Mil relations, how do we do that? Ensure both sides are clearly understood and represented. Thoughts? January 2, 2013 Miami Herald January 1, 2013 Pg. 1 McClatchy News Service Some fear that an all-volunteer military …

Sequester and the fate of America’s national security by Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer (ret.)

View original DeM Banter: well, probably would have offered a different title...but other than that...spot on. Very much what we were driving toward at Stanford with Wondering Where The Lions Are. It's all about the strategy (or lack thereof). What will be the effects of “sequester” to our national security infrastructure now that it appears …

5 Key National-Security Issues For 2013 By Sara Sorcher

DeM Banter: not sure there is anything earth shattering or new here...but, heck--if nothing else it is a good refresher as we step toward the fiscal cliff and the New Year.... NationalJournal.com December 27, 2012 It has been a turbulent year, with violence continuing in Syria, heated debates over the defense-budget topline, and the terrorist …

Loyalty: DeMarco Banter

"The foundation stones for a balanced success are honesty, character, integrity, faith, love and loyalty."  -Zig Ziglar "Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence."  -Colin Powell Is loyalty important? Loyalty is faithfulness or a devotion to a person, country, group, or cause. (Philosophers disagree as to what things one …

APOCALYPSE NOT QUITE YET By Christopher Dickey

DeM Banter:  So how's that pivot to the East coming?  MidEast will be the focus for a long time coming... Newsweek.com December 26, 2012 The Middle East and North Africa are teetering on the brink. Notwithstanding sundry doomsday predictions—from the Mayans to Nostradamus and the ever-impending threat of Armageddon—we can now say with some assurance …

Overwrought Empire: The discrediting of US military power by Tom Engelhardt

DeM Banter: Interesting piece...albeit a tad old...but if anything recent events might make the article even more telling...thoughts? Wondering Where The Lions Are (WWTLA)? aljazeera.com / view original / October 12th, 2012 Americans lived in a "victory culture" for much of the 20th century. You could say that we experienced an almost 75-year stretch of triumphalism - think of …