How many generals are in the US army?

[T Roosevelt]

I heard Rummy make some comment about having "thousands of generals and admirals" criticizing the civilian leadership, and I'm just wondering how many 1-4 star generals actually serve. Since a major general (2-star) typically commands a division, there can't be many 3- and 4-stars. Certainly not thousands...

[atreides1]

1. More then there was

During WWII, and that was a 2 front war!!!!

[HereSince1628]

2. Someone wrote the other day around 800

I'm not sure if that was active and retired, or just active, and I'm not sure it's accurate.

[HereSince1628]

6. Explainer estimates that about 4,700 retired general officers

http://www.slate.com/id/2139847/

[hobbit709]

3. We are top heavy in brass

You forget those generals that are variations of pencil-pushers, staffers at the Pentagon, various support services, and the ones that were promoted to keep them out from being dangerous to our troops.
In the 70's, when I was stationed in Italy, the Italian Navy had 4 admirals for every 3 ships.

[av8tor05]

4. There are thousands of GOs.

Every level of operation has several Generals at the top. There are Personnel Generals, maintenance Generals, Supply Generals, Operations Generals, etc... For every 4 star there is at least one three star deputy.

Let me give you good example of what I am talking about: At Forces Command where I was recently assigned, it is Commanded by a General (4 star), he has a Deputy Commander (3 star), an Operations (G3) Major General (2 star) with two Brigadiers (1 star) assistants, an Logistics (G4) Major General with Brigadiers, an Personnel (G1) Major General with Brigadiers, a Resource Manager Senior Executive Service (SES are general officer equivalents). And so on.

Now take that example and use it for every major command of every service. Add to the mix three generals for each division and three-four generals for every corps. Throw in National Guard and Reserve forces and the numbers will add up very quickly.

Take a trip to the Pentagon and there are so many generals that the one stars are treated as coffee boys for the really senior officers. Heck, you can't throw a coffee mug at the Pentagon without hitting a general.

I hope my military experience helped answer your questions.

[lostexpectation]

5. bona fides wrong ratio ?

how many of the these 8,000 generals have had recent say since 1990 commanding vital 'success' in the middle east

how many of these are those 7 generals?

[av8tor05]

7. Every one has say.

You just may not be important enough to be heard. If a General really, really disagrees with the civilian leadership they should have the spine to publicly resign, not go along until they retire.

That my friends is the problem I have with the retired generals speaking out. They should have stood-up and retired over their disagreements, not hang on to their pensions and power in order to retire at a more senior rank. I never trust a suck-up yes man who stabs you in the back and later says yeah but I didn't agree with him.......

[bpj1962]

14. Generals

I grew up and still live in the DC area and I have seen the politics of the pentagon 1st hand. You know from your military service that there is an unwritten rule when it comes to criticizing the civilian leadership while still wearing the uniform. I don't think it has anything to do with retiring at a higher pay grade. Every one of these generals is 20+ in years of service and the minute they leave the military people are throwing lucrative job offers at them because of their connections. I truly feel that the military feels betrayed by the current political leadership but is bound by duty not to say anything until they have left the service. Everyone of the Generals was involved in Iraq either in the planning or with boots on the ground in Iraq so they have first hand knowledge of what was and is going on.

On a different note thank you for your service to our country. You do a job that many of us know nothing about and I know that you put your life on the line every time you fly.

[lostexpectation]

15. the damning assesment of armies isn't it?

I truly feel that the military feels betrayed by the current political leadership but is bound by duty not to say anything until they have left the service. Everyone of the Generals was involved in Iraq either in the planning or with boots on the ground in Iraq so they have first hand knowledge of what was and is going on.


hmm sounds a really crap way to organise things eh? that be army for you!

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

18. No, his point is that the 8,000 generals include active and retired. Of

the retired, most are probably not like these 6 who have actually been commanding troops, under Bush/Rumsfeld, in this failure of a war.

The 8,000 includes all kinds of generals who retired from the Vietnam era etc.

[sarge43]

8. According to Infoplease

as of this time last year, there were 870 stars on active duty (this doesn't include the Coast Guard). Unless DoD went apeshit on the last promotion cycle, that's near the number today. Retired number might be o/a the same.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0004604.html

Bush et al can not be trusted, even with a simple fact. They lie as easily as they breathe.

[av8tor05]

9. As I stated

through in the National Guard and reserves who are fighting in this war and you get your thousands. Infoplease is correct in their number of 870 "ACTIVE DUTY" stars. This number does not reflect the reserve components. Stop quibbling.

[sarge43]

10. av8tor05, "Stop quibbling."

I hope you're just being sarcastic.

[av8tor05]

17. Yes.

[sarge43]

19. Sigh

Things have become so heated lately; it's getting hard to tell.

Thank you.

[av8tor05]

20. Thank you, and thank you for your service.

[sarge43]

21. Oh damn.

Now you have me tearing up.

[izzie]

11. After reading all that I would say to many.

Now if we could only find the one that makes up all those names for the battles.

[Xenotime]

12. They are like CEOs with guns

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

13. Enough to justify the waste of money on "defense".

And, collect their payoffs from the "defense" industry when they retire.

[berni_mccoy]

16. How Many Sec. of Defense have been CRITICIZED BY THIS MANY GENERALS?

That's the question that needs asking... the answer: NONE.

[sarge43]

22. This is something new

Yes, a couple of stars criticized Clinton, like Powell about the "Don't ask" issue and got away with it. However, Big Dog has never been a vindictive man. Can't say the same for Smirky and company.