Reply #7: Rigghtt. [View All]

[achtung_circus]

Foreign policy should be under the control of elected representatives, it's a political arena. A military in-being is one of the tools of that foreign policy.

But this:

"The main thing is to reduce the military to a size that will not be an effective instrument of foreign policy while maintaining the ability to reconstitute a defense force if necessary."

is disingenuous. One cannot "reconstitute a defense force" by handing out a few rifles. The technical skills, the infrastructure, the leadership skills, hell the skills to be an effective infantryman, need to be maintained and practiced.

Unless you expect this "defense force" to be cannon fodder.

See Barbarossa for details on how that works.