The assessment, done by the nation’s top military officer, Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, represents a worsening from a year ago, when that risk was rated as moderate.

The report is classified, but on Monday senior defense officials, speaking on condition on anonymity, confirmed the decline in overall military readiness. And a report that accompanied Pace’s review concluded that while the Pentagon is working to improve its warfighting abilities, it “may take several years to reduce risk to acceptable levels.”

Pace’s report comes as the U.S. is increasing its forces in Iraq to quell escalating violence in Baghdad. And top military officials have consistently acknowledged that the repeated and lengthy deployments are straining the Army, Marine Corps and reserve forces and taking a heavy toll on critical warfighting equipment.

The review grades the military’s ability to meet the demands of the nation’s military strategy – which would include fighting the wars as well as being able to respond to any potential outbreaks in places such as North Korea, Iran, Lebanon, Cuba or China.

There is more to read, but read it in context, not what you choose to imply.

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,126681,00.html?wh=wh

More to come….

I’m watching the Washington State Dhimmicrats and anti-war loons melt down, and savage Senator Murray (herself anti-war and nearly a total moonbat) in the process. The pity is, I can’t decide on whether I should complain to my representative (who is not involved in that fiasco), or just sit back with a can of beer, and enjoy the spectacle.

I’m not quite sure why the wingnuts are happy about the sorry state of the U.S. military and applaud any delays in the attempt to fix it, so I’ll just chalk it up to the usual reason – the pleasure you guys take in the destruction of anything.

*Snort*

alphie, you wouldn’t know a military unit ready for war if it came up and kicked you in the ass. But that’s cool……we have freedom of speech, and that includes the right for you to make a fool of yourself in public. That we derive endless amusement from your silliness is gravy.

Because it’s hard to kill people, break things, and control what’s left in the rubble (which is what we like best, after all, as you so sagaciously noted) when you don’t have all the lastest and greatest gear.

Oh, and we want pay raises, too! And our amenities are nowhere *nearly* obscene enough to keep us in an indolent torpor between the chances we get to kill people, break things, and make the rubble bounce.

And this comment is mostly me having fun, rather than really tweaking what you said. That’s what my first comment was for.

Hi Jules! Yer lucky I don’t have the time to make you regret giving me a password… 8^ )

We have oh, 75% of the Navy available. And about 80% or so of the combat aircraft of the Air Force. That’s a lot of bombs and missiles.

Given that generally, early on, what we provide “mostest, bestest, and fastest” is airpower, I think that indeed we can provide meaningful military assistance. And in many cases that’s what they want more than anything else.

True, any significant ground presence, and especially the logistics to support it, is going to be problematic.

We could flip the coin however, and point out that if our allies were stepping up to the plate more – even if only in Afghanistan – there would be more available for their use.

I would submit that many of our allies, for good reasons and ill, did the analysis that said they’d rather watch us bleed in Iraq than help us preserve forces for their use.

Their call.

Congress (and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs) are concerned that America itself is now practically undefended because of the erosion of our armed forces.

And we are currently unable to offer any meaningful military assistance to any of our allies should they need it.

I’m not quite sure why the wingnuts are happy about the sorry state of the U.S. military and applaud any delays in the attempt to fix it, so I’ll just chalk it up to the usual reason – the pleasure you guys take in the destruction of anything.

The rout couldn’t be because the American people were justifiably appalled with the idea of Congress being the ones to slowly bleed our forces in Iraq, now could it? Toad?

Is the “Mission Accomplished” banner back from the dry cleaners yet?

It’s so hard to get those pesky blood stains out.