There’s plenty to criticize about America’s current military—and I’ve done my share of criticizing—but there’s another issue that no one seems willing to address, and it’s frightening. The United States is not prepared for the type of warfare we’re witnessing in Ukraine, a peer-to-peer conventional conflict that’s rewriting the rules of what we thought war should be. With leadership in the White House seemingly out of touch, we’re not in a position to fix the issues that could lead to defeat in our next real war.
This isn’t just about wokeness and the way the officer corps has embraced the absurd doctrines of the progressive left regarding race, gender, and climate issues, though wokeness does tie into the problem that the Ukraine War has exposed. When leadership is preoccupied with trivialities like “white nationalism” and trans issues, it’s not focusing on the major changes needed to compete on a modern battlefield.
And we do need major changes. The old saying goes that the military always fights the last war. Right now, we’re trying to fight the last two wars, refighting the conventional Cold War model that won the Gulf War while also fighting the counterinsurgencies of the Global War on Terror. What we aren’t preparing for is the kind of war we’re seeing in Ukraine.
The Russo-Ukrainian War is a testing ground for new technologies layered over old styles of warfare, especially the static, entrenched warfare reminiscent of World War I. What’s different? A lot. For instance, electronic warfare (EW) has become a massive new factor. Remember all those precision-guided munitions America used in Iraq and Afghanistan? We gave many of them to Ukraine. According to open-source reports—nothing classified here—the Russians, who excel in this area, have figured out how to use EW to counter them. GPS relies on radio waves, which can be jammed, spoofed, or otherwise disrupted. A missile that misses its target is useless. Imagine America entering a fight with its precision strike capabilities compromised or nullified. Scary, right?
That’s assuming we have the precision munitions to begin with. We might not. We’re giving away much of our stock to Ukraine and Israel, and wasting it on minor skirmishes with the Houthis. This stuff isn’t in endless supply—it’s slow and expensive to produce. And given that the millions of Third World migrants the Democrats have welcomed into America are their priority, how fast would we burn through our stock if we got into a real fight? For that matter, how fast would we burn through our basic bombs and artillery shells? Everyone wants our 155mm shells, but how many do we actually have? It better be a lot because they’re consumed quickly. People don’t realize how fast we’d deplete our ammo reserves in a real war—think days, not weeks or months.
Here’s something no one discusses because it’s not glamorous—America fights with logistics. We overwhelm the enemy with sheer volume, including firepower. In the Gulf War, we moved a city into the middle of the desert and then advanced it in an attack. But we can’t do that today. Our military-industrial base has eroded. The “arsenal of democracy” has shrunk to a mere “gun safe.” We can’t just ramp up production to rearm once the next war—which is inevitable—begins. That applies to artillery, tanks, planes, and ships—the Chinese Navy is now larger than ours and expanding at an exponentially faster rate. Maybe their equipment isn’t as good as ours—though with Chinese spies rampant in America, stealing our secrets while the FBI is busy arresting grandmothers praying at abortion clinics, their ships probably are our ships—but the enemy has something we lack: quantity.
The combat in Ukraine is vastly different from how we train to fight. Consider the drone factor. Both the Russians and Ukrainians are using drones as precision weapons—there are countless videos online of drones taking out tanks, fortifications, and individual soldiers. Our enemies are aware of this. Hamas used drones to breach Israel’s defenses on October 7th. Our bases in the Middle East are being targeted with cheap drones, resulting in casualties. We’re not keeping up with the enemy in drone warfare, nor are we prepared to defend against the swarms that are coming.
The Ukrainians and Russians are innovating, adapting, and improvising, finding new solutions to emerging challenges. Our rigid military, which once relied on American ingenuity to prevail, can’t do that anymore. Our procurement processes are designed to deliver the wrong systems at excessive costs, and too late. At the soldier level, innovation is stifled by a risk-averse officer corps that prioritizes everything but warfighting. Do you think U.S. troops could acquire a bunch of cheap drones and turn them into tank killers without going through some cumbersome process? The Ukrainians managed it. Our future enemies will be nimble, agile, and able to outmaneuver our bureaucracy.
Finally, the disaster in Ukraine is highlighting another issue—casualties. We’re facing the worst recruitment crisis in half a century, largely because the military has aligned itself with the enemies of traditional Americans who once filled its ranks. If you’re straight, white, and Christian, you’re considered the problem, and it’s no secret that you’re unwanted and will be actively discriminated against in favor of others. Potential recruits know this—we veterans are warning them away from military service. They refuse to enlist. Why should they? To protect “allies” who imprison people for speaking freely? To die defending Europe’s dictatorships that arrest dissidents just like Russia does? To serve under leadership that despises them and hasn’t won a decisive war in 30 years?
No thanks. Hard pass. That’s the result of a military that’s more like Sergeant Major Tim Walz than General George Patton.
But beyond the fact that the current administration’s cronies have made it clear that traditional recruits are unwanted and their lives will be squandered, there’s what’s happening in Ukraine. The casualties are staggering, and if we get into a real war, ours will be too. Think dozens or hundreds of dead every week, maybe more—a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier has 5,000 sailors, and the Chinese plan to take ours out. Who wants to die in another poorly conceived and unnecessary conflict pushed by people whose only commitment to the fight is a Ukrainian flag in their social media profile? After Kabul—and the fact that no one was held accountable—does anyone believe that potential troops don’t realize that their lives mean nothing to the progressive ruling elite?
We’ve learned nothing from the Ukrainian-Russian War and apparently nothing from any of the other conflicts or potential conflicts around the globe. Unless we change course, it will catch up with us, but do you think Kamala Harris will do that? Do you think the thought of being commander-in-chief has ever crossed her Chardonnay-addled mind? Did her triumphant speech about how half of Americans are racist monsters who hate democracy and must be suppressed inspire confidence in you? She’s here for the socialism and the self-righteousness.
When our enemies strike, using the lessons learned from Ukraine—and her weakness and incompetence will make that inevitable—our failing military is going to lose badly. You should be scared, but there’s no way you’re scared enough.
