"To Win Our Nation's Wars"?

Lions Led by Donkeys

The 248-year-old institution that this country depends upon to fight and win our wars has lost its focus, which is, “to win our nation’s wars.”  Preparing to do that is one of the most complex tasks on earth.  There is no profession more complex, more dangerous, or more crucial to the country’s survival than the United States Army. But its focus on “woke” social solutions has diluted the necessary focus on that duty. 

The Army has thousands of magnificent and highly skilled officers and enlisted men and women who perform continuously at the highest levels.  Yet, as German General Erwin Rommel said of the British after he captured Tobruk, they are “lions commanded by donkeys.”  Today’s donkeys are officers and civilians in the highest levels of the current administration, up to and including the Commander in Chief, Joseph R. Biden and a Secretary of the Army who wants to reduce recruiting from families with a tradition of service because she fears a “warrior caste.”  Donkeys indeed. And they set the tone for all their subordinates in the Army.

The latest display of the donkeys’ madness is an article on the Army’s official website, lauding another man who claims to be a woman.

U.S. Army photo by Sarah Patterson

The first sentence of the article accompanying the photo pronounces that “Coming out as a transgender female saved Maj. Rachel Jones’ life.” It goes on to describe how an in-the-closet Jones “lived every day deeply depressed and suicidal.”  After President Joe Biden lifted the prior ban on transgenders in the military, “Jones was finally able to come out publicly as transgender.”  The Army’s article does not state that Jones had any type of so-called “gender affirming surgery,” so presumably “coming out” merely means that he announced that he now prefers to be known as “she.”  This allows “her” to “live her truth” and be “so much more comfortable with myself.”  The article claims that any thoughts of suicide are now a thing of the past.  It does not explain how an obviously unstable Jones managed to remain in the Army and get promoted to major.  Nor does it mention the suicide rate among transgenders who have “come out” or had the life-altering surgery, such as the 30+ year study that concluded that “Ten to 15 years after surgical reassignment, the suicide rate of those who had undergone sex-reassignment surgery rose to 20 times that of comparable peers.”    

Now, this author’s quarrel is not with MAJ Jones, who obviously is a person in need of help.  No responsible person wishes him or any other human being to suffer depression to the point of potential suicide.  No, the proper quarrel is with the donkeys leading the Army who create the command climate that tells subordinates that, in the words of West Point’s Battalion Orders in 1820, Jones is a soldier to be “venerated and emulated.” The article is correct in saying that it is “important for Soldiers and civilians to support their peers by watching for depressive or suicidal warning signs and changes in behavior.” But from that proposition it does not follow that the U.S. Army should hold Jones up as a military model to be admired and emulated, as the Army’s article has done. 

The Army need not and should not laud mentally disturbed people by featuring them on its official web site.  Rather, it should compassionately empathize and seek treatment for such troubled people. Here is a typical reaction from a veteran of Army combat in Vietnam: “This is not just any old article by some unknown blogger.  It is a posting on the official U.S. Army web site.  Of all the people in the Army, this is the person the Army chooses to fawn over by plastering a fawning article about them on the pages of its government web site? 

And make no mistake about it.  The faceless officers who approved this article and the photos on the Army’s official web site did so because they know it is consistent with the wishes and intent of Joe Biden and the other donkeys running him. This president has made clear that the “eyewash” of transgenders and other LGBTQ+ appointees in high places and the resulting popularity with his leftist base, takes priority over competence and safeguarding national interests.  Let us not forget Sam Brinton, the assistant secretary responsible for spent nuclear fuel, Rachel Levine, the phony four-star admiral, the incompetent “Mayor Pete” Buttigieg, the hapless White House press secretary, and many, many others. These high-profile appointments, especially when married to obvious incompetence, leave no doubt about what the President prioritizes. There is a pattern here and military officers know well that such a pattern reflects the “commander’s intent,” which guides their actions under standard Army doctrine.

Consider the message sent to other soldiers and to potential recruits and their families by the Army’s article.  Rather than photos of soldiers performing challenging tasks or even looking like they are prepared to engage the enemies of the United States, we have this:

U.S. Army photo by Sarah Patterson

Stuffed animals, some sort of rainbow-patterned knitting, and pronoun commands!  This from a U.S. Army major. But military observers will instantly notice more: the obvious lack of physical fitness.  Every soldier is required to pass regular physical fitness tests.  It is not only a job requirement, but also is part of the required image that the Army wishes – or used to wish – to project.  Virtually every soldier who looks at the picture of Major Jones will react, “And he is supposed to lead me?”

Here is a succinct reaction from a former Green Beret officer with extensive combat experience against ISIS: We once celebrated selfless service and warriors like Ulysses S. Grant, Audie Murphy, and Roy Benavidez who did great things under fire - now we celebrate self-centered identities and cross-dressers who can’t pass height/weight standards.”  

Consider also the effect on recruiting:  The Army is struggling with recruiting enough people to fulfill its critical mission of defending the country. And they then post this article on the Army’s official web site. Does the Army think that Major Jones projects the kind of leadership image that will build confidence in potential recruits and cause them to say, “Now that is the kind of officer that I want to serve under.”?  And I hasten to add that I am sorry if it hurts Major Jones’ feelings to point this out, but this is not Boston University Law School; if your feelings are hurt that easily, you don’t belong in the U.S. Army.

Some will say, “But, but, … but … What about her life’s story? Look how she overcame hardship that could have taken her life.  Isn’t that a positive story that should be told?” Stories like that are worth telling.  However, perhaps the Army officers who oversee the Army’s official web site should have insisted upon another soldier to illustrate that story.  Maybe the story of Special Forces Sergeant Nick Lavery, pictured here:

Nick Lavery

I ask the Army Recruiting Command:  Which is more inspiring?

Perhaps there is some good that can come out of this ill-advised adventure.  After all, there is some chance that this story and its images will help recruiting – for the Marine Corps.  Its recruiting philosophy is decidedly different.