Originally Posted by tjts1 (Post 3292304)

Don't confuse a training excersize with war. They'll use every opportunity to train their people in a realistic environment the same way we do.

War between the US and China is pure tin foil hattery. If there was a war you would be dead in the first 20 minutes.

Originally Posted by Botnst (Post 3292450)

The US military needs to reconfigure from a land-based, conventional, protracted war in Europe and Asia to unconventional projection of power of short duration and high lethality.

We don't need a vast amphibious fleet to carry armies around the world.

We don't need thousands of tactical and strategic nukes and delivery systems.

We don't need 12 carrier battle groups.

Originally Posted by Botnst (Post 3292450)

The US military needs to reconfigure from a land-based, conventional, protracted war in Europe and Asia to unconventional projection of power of short duration and high lethality.

We don't need a vast amphibious fleet to carry armies around the world.

We don't need thousands of tactical and strategic nukes and delivery systems.

We don't need 12 carrier battle groups.

Originally Posted by Dudesky (Post 3292514)

Don't bet on it. Do they put a hydrophone in the water and announce "training exercise under way-do not attack" ?

One must then ask, why did they surface?

Originally Posted by pj67coll (Post 3292547)

With the exception of the reference to the Nukes with which I agree I think you're wrong on the rest. I think the US is making a huge mistake with it's shrinking force structure and reliance on fighting by proxy.

To pretend they are able to guess the type of warfare that will occur in future is to fly in the face of history, the lessons of which indicate the need for a large balanced force capable of countering all possible threats. Not just a few current ones.

- Peter.

Originally Posted by tjts1 (Post 3292556)

For the same reason we sneak up and surprise their navy regularly. They pulled it off once, we do it more often than anyone cares to admit.

Originally Posted by tjts1 (Post 3292662)

Good thing you're not in charge of anything in the DOD. That would be a real disaster.

Originally Posted by barry12345 (Post 3292703)

There becomes also the reality of affordability for a large existing military force. This means with so much loss on the industrial front it is really not there. Some hard decisions should be made before the inevitable loss of the current standard of living falls seriously for citizens otherwise.

If excess money is continued to be spent on the military and the infrastructure. At some point there will be widespread poverty in one form or another to enable it. Economic games can be played until they just ultimately run out of options.

This already is noticeable. Social issues present from the ongoing drain of resources and money have already made their mark.

There are not too many nut case countries like North Korea and perhaps some in the middle east. There is something to be said for aid to Pakistan as well. The main one being why with their attitudes.

Russia and China are not really interested in outright aggression. Although China wants back territories that where historically theirs.

America is learning that their days of having excess influence in a region are slowly fading. No matter how much money is spent on the military.

Originally Posted by Air&Road (Post 3292709)

Well Dude, since the defense budget is about a fourth of the entitlement budget I think you are correct.

Originally Posted by JB3 (Post 3292334)

Lets have a show of hands of people who actually think that the US of A and China will clash militarily over some islands China and Japan have been bickering over for 150 years (which historically Japan stole from China in the first place in the 1890s), and some unpopulated reefs in the south China sea that China wants to exploit in the exact same way we operated and operate in the Caribbean.

China is our second biggest trading partner after Canada, we import 400 billion dollars of merchandise from them, and export 100 billion dollars in merchandise to them.

After the European Union, the USA is the second largest trading partner of the PRC, and twice as profitable considering the imbalance of good sent vs goods received. Plus they have the wonderful skill of stealing international and national product patents, then producing and selling them in the home country of origin with impunity. Much too profitable a practice to seriously upset.

This isn't 1914. We aren't just flashing our knockers at each other, but have been actively procreating in the same bed for decades spawing profitable children, with vast industrial and commercial interests in each other's countries. There would have to be a hell of a lot more provocation before either of us is willing to jump out of that bed of money. The loss of Chinese trade would be a huge upset to both our economies


Having said that, of course China is a military threat, but our spiraling national debt is a much greater threat to both them and us (since if we default, they don't get paid). We can afford to trim our military budget down by HALF, and will still be spending more money on it than China. Last I checked, The USA was spending 739 BILLION dollars on our defense budget. China is spending 89 billion. In fact, we are spending more than the next 10 countries combined, including China.

There is plenty of room to save some money, out spend China, and do something about our debt.