A New Year’s Resolution for the Ruling Classes

A New Year’s Resolution for the Ruling Classes—————————

                A commentary

                By J. F. Kelly, Jr.

Year’s end is a time for sober reflection on the events of the past twelve months and to resolve to do better in the next. Things weren’t all bad in 2014 and there were even some pleasant surprises.  The United States became the world’s largest oil and natural gas producer. Not unrelated, the economy improved and unemployment decreased. And Jerry Greenspan actually agreed with something I wrote (with reservations, of course).

But things were far from perfect and there’s always room for improvement. Religious hatred and persecution still abounds in many Muslim lands and violence directed against Americans and other westerners is a constant threat. There is a growing threat of cyber attack which could bring our economy to a near standstill and alter our very way of life. Police actions in Ferguson, New York and Cleveland and subsequent grand jury findings were used as excuses to riot, burn, loot and terrorize promoting disruptive demonstrations around the country, creating an atmosphere that helped precipitate attacks on police, and degrading race relations to a level not seen since the urban race riots of the 1960s.

It has been my custom at the end of each year to suggest New Year’s resolutions for the elected officials who govern us and are far too busy to formulate their own. I usually offer a half dozen or more but this year I’m shortening the list to one. Since they’re probably too busy to read this, it won’t make much difference anyway.

My suggested resolution is simple. Work together and get things done. Don’t just talk about it, actually do it. That’s why we elected you. It may come as a surprise but governing does not consist mainly of speechmaking, bickering and campaigning for re-election. Poll after poll indicates that Americans are tired of polarization, paralysis and politics as usual.

Politics is the art of compromise. Governing successfully requires give and take. Polls also show that most Americans are mostly moderate in their views. They place themselves near the middle of the political spectrum. But it’s mostly those at the extreme ends of that spectrum that make the most noise. They need to tone down their rhetoric and elected officials need to listen more closely to the quiet voices of the great majority of Americans who will accept compromise solutions. They don’t want to be limited to a choice between just conservative and liberal ideologies. They want elected officials who will put the good of the country ahead of political careers and ideology and get things done. The good of the country is not achieved by deadlock.

There is much that needs to be done. It hasn’t been talked about much lately, but the national debt is still out of control, notwithstanding reductions in the annual deficit. They aren’t reducing the debt; they are simply slowing its rate of growth. We must spend less than we take in in revenue and that will require trimming entitlements  and/or raising the retirement age.

Our defense capacity has been harmed by budget constraints and will be devastated if sequester cuts are allowed to kick in. At present we are only marginally able to meet commitments set by higher authority and the armed services are stretched far too thin, given the threats we face. Defending America against such threats is the greatest priority of government. Among the threats is the threat of cyber attacks which could target the electrical grid and paralyze our economy.

The world is full of people who want to live in the United States, most to better their lives but some to do us harm. Our borders are still porous and need to made secure. For the safety of the nation this must be accomplished before any immigration reform makes it easier for people to come here. It is a broken border more than a broken immigration system that needs fixing first. It’s a matter of priorities.

Our infrastructure is crumbling, especially our roads, bridges, port facilities and air traffic control facilities and equipment. Efficient, safe transportation is essential to a growing economy and the longer improvements are deferred the greater will be the inevitable cost of repair or replacement.

Finally, our tax system is a complicated mess. It simply shouldn’t be necessary to hire lawyers and accountants to figure it out. It can be simplified and still produce more revenue. It’s time to do it.

This is a partial list, of course, but it’s enough to keep you productively busy, albeit allowing little time for travel boondoggles and posturing for re-election.  Happy New Year.

December 23, 2014

Christmas is for Everyone

Christmas is for Everyone————————-

                A commentary

                By J. F. Kelly, Jr.

 

For Christians, Christmas is supposed to be a season of peace on earth, good will toward all. The sentiment applies to all people of good will and of all religions, whether or not they believe, as Christians do, that Jesus Christ, the son of God, was born to a young Jewish virgin in a manger to redeem the world.

Before political correctness spread across the land, wishing folks a merry Christmas wasn’t widely protested by non-Christians as being disrespectful or showing a lack of sensitivity to their beliefs or non-beliefs. It was mostly a simple expression of good will. One doesn’t have to be a Christian to join in the festivities and joy of the season, not to mention the income-producing commercial aspects.

But the birthday of Jesus, of course, is still, as they say, the reason for the season and no amount of commercialization can change that. Religion can no more be separated from Christmas than it can from Easter. Attempts to do so by law or public policy, moreover, are offensive to most Christians as are restrictions on public displays of nativity scenes depicting the very event for which we celebrate the day.

Christmas Day is, after all, a national holiday for all Americans. It is also a holy day for Christians and a joyous one; one that they have long celebrated publically as well as with family and friends in the privacy of their homes. Sharing their joy at Christmas with non-Christians has always been a part of the seasonal celebration.

Christmas 2014 finds the world still a troubled place. Religious-fueled conflicts still rage in the Middle East and Africa. Peace on earth and good will to all is a distant concept there. In some regions, Christians are persecuted for their beliefs and cannot openly practice their religion. In many Muslim lands, Christians and Jews are not welcome at all and even Muslim sects feud with each other. In America we are taught to show respect for other cultures but it is difficult to respect those that teach hatred of others in the name of religion.

America is still a bastion of freedom but all is not peaceful. We have become increasingly polarized by political differences and racial animosity. Our culture is rapidly changing; too rapidly for some. Generational differences in values and in the way we communicate are becoming more pronounced. Many older people resent what they perceive as their values and traditions being trampled and displaced by a new permissive morality.

Society is changing and with it the structure and nature of the family unit, the bedrock on which our society is built. Too often there is no father in the home to model acceptable male behavior and too many sons grow up to be angry and resentful young adults, prone to violence and sexual aggression. Single parents struggle to balance workplace demands with parenting leaving insufficient time for the latter. Single parent families are far more likely to live in poverty. As the percentage of out-of-wedlock births grow, so also does poverty and the gap between haves and have-nots.

But Christmas is also a season of hope. As we reflect on the events of the past year, some good and some bad, we can be thankful for our many blessings and freedoms as Americans. As we experience the joy and fellowship of Christmas, let us fervently hope and strive for a new year of peace and greater understanding and acceptance of each other, both at home, and throughout the world.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all.

December 18, 2014

Remembering Pearl Harbor; Lessons Unlearned

Remembering Pearl Harbor: Lessons Unlearned————————-

1. F. Kelly, Jr.

I am one of a dwindling number of Americans who were alive on December 7, 1941, listening in disbelief to radio reports of the attack by Japanese naval forces on our bases in Oahu. It came as a complete surprise to most Americans who wondered how a Japanese task force could transit the vast Pacific Ocean and catch our military totally unprepared for an attack that crippled our Pacific Fleet and killed nearly 3000 Americans.

As the reality of war and an uphill fight sank in, I said goodbye to my older brother who shipped out for duty in the South Pacific, not to return home for nearly four years. It was a long war and one for which we were ill-prepared. Our force levels were near historic lows and our initial lack of readiness cost us heavily in terms of casualties in early battles.

We eventually prevailed in that war to end wars except, of course, it didn’t. Soon after, we found ourselves engaged in a brutal ground war in Korea and once again we were unprepared, having downsized the military at the end of WW II and again our unpreparedness resulting in heavy initial casualties. We never seem to learn that, in our rush to disarm after every conflict and savor the so-called peace dividend, the future is unpredictable and threats don’t wait for us to get ready for them.

Sixty years after Pearl Harbor, on September 11, 2001, America was again attacked on its own soil, killing about the same number of Americans as in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Since then, America has fought wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and is currently engaged in a limited effort against Islamic Republic (ISIS) which may eventually expand into yet another ground war.

Americans are understandably war-weary but, unfortunately, the threat of future conflicts is as great as ever and wishing won’t make it go away. In the Pacific, an increasingly assertive and powerful China is at odds with its neighbors over disputed Islands and claims of sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, through which, much of the world’s commerce, including ours, passes. Russia’s revanchist moves in Eastern Europe are stoking new fears of a resumption of the Cold War. The Islamic State threat is resulting in a new military commitment of yet unknown magnitude. Piracy at sea threatens maritime commerce and requires a constant commitment of naval forces. There is a need for additional specially-equipped Aegis warships to provide for ballistic missile defense. The Middle East remains in turmoil and Iran moves closer to acquiring a nuclear weapons capability in spite of sanctions and frantic diplomatic efforts.  Meanwhile, we have committed 3000 troops to fight Ebola in West Africa.

It is reasonable to ask where the military resources needed to counter growing threats will come from. Our military force levels are again at near-historic lows and current levels are not enough to fully meet even current commitments as enumerated by higher authority. The services have been wracked by budget constraints including sequestration. Maintenance of ships and aircraft has been deferred and training curtailed. Ship deployments have been lengthened and will probably need to be lengthened again to meet commitments, with inevitable impact on crew morale and maintenance. Senior leadership has even recommended capping military cost of living pay increases to help preserve funds for readiness.

As we should have learned from history, if we wait for the threat to be upon us before preparing for it, we pay a price in casualties in the initial stages of conflict. It isn’t as though one can just turn on the spending spigot again and ships, aircraft, weapons systems and trained people will suddenly materialize. It takes years to build a ship and years to rebuild the military capacity that has atrophied over the past decade.

Defense critics will remind us that we spend more on defense and have a larger and more capable Navy and Air Force than any other nation but that misses the point. As the world’s largest economy, we have much more to protect than any other nation. We shouldn’t for example, determine the size of our Navy by comparing it to other navies but rather by determining what is necessary to protect our vital interests which are many and widespread and to be able to project power and influence anywhere it’s needed. Our ships, however capable, can only be in one place at a time.

Our military forces are currently over-committed. This is not an isolated opinion but a consensus of most military leaders. They will, of course, always answer the call to respond but continuing to do more with less obviously comes with a cost in readiness and retention. The fact is we will need a larger military to adequately meet just the challenges that we know about now. Military strength deters threats. The military buildup during the Reagan years contributed greatly to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.  Military weakness and over-extension, on the other hand, invites threats as we are seeing now. It will take time to rebuild capacity and the hour is late.

As in the past, future security in this dangerous world will depend more upon military strength and capacity to respond to any threat than on diplomacy, much as we might wish otherwise.

(Dr. Kelly, a resident of Coronado and a retired Navy Captain who commanded three San Diego-based ships and a Navy laboratory, writes on military and defense issues. This column originally appeared in the San Diego Union-Tribune)

December 7, 2014