What exactly IS the "right size" military?

2015-11-11T05:15:21-05:00

The Presidential candidates all have their catch-phrases about strengthening the military, or making it strong, or cutting and decreasing the military - but do any of them have any idea what the military actually looks like now? Do we?

What do you think the "right size" military is? How big is the budget? How many troops? Aircraft? Ships? Tanks? Subs? ICBMs? What is the right number? What is too many? What is too few?

We have a lot of smart people here, I hope we can come up with something good!

Response by PO1 John Miller made Nov 11 at 2015 5:33 AM

2015-11-11T05:33:05-05:00

None of our conflicts are going away anytime soon. In fact, I think we as a country is starting to get involved in more than we can currently handle.

With that said, I am of the opinion that a military the size we had when Reagan was in Office would be a nice start. Along with an NDAA that won't be vetoed and will give us the budget we need to get everything done.

Response by Cpl Jeff N. made Nov 11 at 2015 6:48 AM

2015-11-11T06:48:26-05:00

It is pretty easy to get information about the size of our military both current and historical. It is available on line and in many military related web sites.

The real question is what should it be and that was defined, historically, by what type of missions/tempo/conflicts we needed/expected to be able to support. That is not the case as much these days. It is now a budgetary item that gets pulled like a tug of war rope.

This, of course, is not just about how many people it is also how many tanks, aircraft, ships etc we will have deployed around the globe. How many bases/installations/outposts etc.

I think the concern is that the numbers have been shrinking in the face of ever increasing danger and threats to us and our allies.

Response by Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS made Nov 11 at 2015 7:15 AM

2015-11-11T07:15:21-05:00

Break it down (Barney Style).

There's A LOT of Ocean. You need a number of Fleets capable of patrolling that amount of Ocean. That's 7. 7 Carrier Groups, with 4 in Reserve for 2 up, 1 down philosophy. Use that same methodology for the entirely of the Naval Services (including USMC).

There's A LOT of Air. You need an Air Force capable of covering that amount of Air Space. As technology improves, you actually end up needing "less" to a certain point, just because we can places faster, but you still need a methodology similar to that of the USN/USMC.

Ground forces are where things get complex. Assume our presence World Wide is stabilizing, and therefore our Bases World Wide are stabilizing. Those bases support Global Stability and therefore are the absolute minimum amount of troops we can have. Add in the Training installations and those which directly support them. That gives us a fair idea of our minimum. We can of course "divert resources" but Contingencies, Humanitarian Aid, and National Emergencies don't pop up when you want them to.

So that gives us a size, but not a budget.

For Budget, my response is simple. "Do we as the American People have the Capability to Produce the items needed?" If so, cut the check. Don't worry about the number on the paper. The number is imaginary at this point and it really doesn't matter. It's all about Ability and Need. Do we need it and can we actually do it. If the answer to both questions is yes, cut the check.

Response by PO3 Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 11 at 2015 8:27 AM

2015-11-11T08:27:46-05:00

Well ... the right size is relative to/with the economy :). A country can't support a massive military if itself don't have enough. :)

Response by Cpl Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 11 at 2015 8:59 AM

2015-11-11T08:59:57-05:00

The right sized military is the one that offers a peaceful deterrence to conflict. Too small and we get ISIS or Kim Jong Un or < insert any other tin-pot dictator >. Too large and we get an anti-military liberal bent in policy and press.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Nov 11 at 2015 11:48 AM

2015-11-11T11:48:10-05:00

I would say right size means something that will fight our most dangerous adversaries. Whatever that means!