Does it worry anyone else that the two highest-ranking decision makers in the armed forces, the President and the Secretary of Defense, are not even in the military? Further, they dont even need to have any military background.
This seems ludicrous to me.
Yes, it is ludicrous, but logic and the military are not necessarily on speaking terms.
You have civilians with no military background, and no firsthand knowledge of the battlefield or conditions, making important strategic, tactical, and logistical decisions. Its absurd if you think about it.
I don’t know how you see it like that, but okay. From what I can see, the prez’s job as CinC is largely ceremonial, and the SecDef likewise has little say over the decisions you mention.
The Secretary of Defense however, really should be a member of the armed forces
Should have been, perhaps. I understand that a certain amount of mil. knowledge is necessary, but if you get someone in uniform for a long time, they start to forget what it’s like being a civilian.
Remember Vietnam? one of the major problems on our side was Washington trying to run the war from Washington.
Actually, the military command in that war did not have the correct mindset, from my readings on it.