Boots On The Ground Or Weapons In The Sky? -- Wall Street Journal
Budget Crunch Forces U.S. Military to Choose Which Form of Defense to Pursue; This-War-Itis vs. Next-War-Itis
For years, the military has been roiled by a heated internal debate over what kind of wars it should prepare to fight.
One faction, led by a host of senior officers, favors buying state-of-the-art weapons systems that would be useful in a traditional conflict with a nation like Russia or China. The other side, which includes Defense Secretary Robert Gates, believes the military should prepare for grinding insurgencies that closely resemble the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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My Comment: In the 1980s, the goal for the U.S. military was to be able to fight two major wars at the same time. In todays Pentagon, the shift will probably be able to fight one major war and a counter-insurgency conflict at the same time.