Quote Originally Posted by AmericanPride View Post
I agree with Bob about the need for moral (and I'd add intellectual) courage.

My thought is that an unquestioningly obedient general officer corps undermines the democratic institution of the country. If the military is only responsible to the executive (and narrowly only accountable for the execution of predetermined policy), then that leaves no room for conversation about the most effective means when the executive more or less has the power to pursue military operations without Congressional input. DoD needs to adopt the slogan "See something, say something" into its values system. Even if the goals were unattainable, that does not excuse the senior military leadership from accepting it without question.
I am aware of specific situations where Generals did push back against prevailing strategic ideas put forth by administrations, but personalities close to the president were still able to push their flawed strategies through despite professional military advice recommending against it. Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz come to mind as self appointed experts who could influence the president to ignore advice to the contrary. It didn't help that general Frank's wasn't much of a strategist.

There is a tension sometimes between being a good citizen and a good soldier. Both want to the right thing for the nation, but in the same light a good soldier, as a good citizen, wants to ensure the military remains subordinate to civilian leadership. That can be a very gray line sometimes. Yes we have senior officers who look after their career above all else, but they don't reflect the whole. Too many comments are made with too wide of brush.