The annual military budget of the U.S. is around $800 billion. That is a serious chunk of change. At its most basic, the military’s sole goal is protecting the country. If it is not going to do so, why spend the money?
Let me explain. I live in Colorado and a significant national transportation conduit is the interstate highway I-70. Like all interstates, an incredible amount of material rolls along it 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
Interstate 70 is a significant national time saver as it cuts right over the top of the Rocky Mountains. At the very top, at an elevation of just over 11,000 feet is the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel – two 1.7-mile tunnels for both directions.
Without the tunnels, traffic must go up and over the 12,000 foot Loveland Pass. It’s a beautiful drive but not one a lot of over-the-road truckers would like to drive, especially in the winter.
A couple well-placed truck bombs could easily damage, if not destroy this vital national transportation artery. It really wouldn’t be that difficult to do – and given the incredible traffic volume the tunnels handle on a daily basis, it would be very difficult to predict and stop such an attack.
There are literally hundreds of similar transportation choke points around the country. Few, if any, have any serious protection from someone bent on doing the country harm.
Throw in unprotected electrical generation facilities, substations and power lines, train tracks and bridges, fuel refining, pipelines, water facilities, and other national infrastructure and there are thousands of targets for those who wish us harm.
With coordinated attacks, this country could be brought to its knees without our enemies firing a single missile. And recovery would not be quick or easy. It could take years to get things operating at a somewhat normal level.
It is not beyond the realm of possibility that full recovery would never happen. It would require trillions of dollars and millions of man hours to fix this carnage.
Our enemies know this as well. Would they rather have a possible nuclear exchange with us or simply destroy our country’s ability to function from the inside? Why risk going mano-a-mano with the most powerful military the world has ever seen when a far simpler strategy presents itself?
A few hundred pre-planned saboteurs could do the work – and stop our country in its tracks – all with little risk to their home country.
They could in effect win a war with the USA without ever directly confronting us – at least until after the mayhem is unleashed on the country. Would the country give a damn about defending Taiwan – or any country – from Chinese conquest when food, water, fuel, electricity, and medical care are nowhere to be found?
Then the USA would face a conundrum. Unleash nuclear weapons on this foe killing millions, who perhaps hasn’t fired a single shot at us – and who would maintain deniability – or acquiesce to the will of those who plan to be our new rulers.
So, why have a military if at the same time we aren’t going to have borders? This is a serious question. Let’s save the money for the rebuilding expenses which are certain to come.
I respect the intelligence of our enemies and I would be astonished if the Chinese communist government hasn’t already sent thousands of agents across our southern border – each with a specific target(s) in mind.
That’s what I would do. We know that more than 10,000 Chinese nationals are already roaming freely somewhere in our country. The number could be far higher – we really have no idea. Russians, Iranians, North Koreans – they all may be playing this game.
When the word comes, each executes their plan and the USA becomes a third-world country overnight with hundreds of millions of citizens crying out for help – all without firing a shot. And pounding our chest about the damage our nuclear forces could do would do nothing to reverse the carnage that has already been done.
Starvation, a lack of drinking water, death on a biblical scale is not out of the question.
If I were on the other side, this is what I would do. So, let’s get rid of the military and accept our coming defeat and destruction. What is the military “protecting” if there really aren’t borders, and therefore really not a country.
That, or get the damn border sealed and under control and rid ourselves of all these recent invaders. It is a rather binary choice and for those who love the country there is only one option.
John Conlin is an expert in organizational design and change. He also holds a BS in Earth Sciences and an MBA and is the founder and President of E.I.C. Enterprises, a 501(c)3 non-profit. He has been published in American Greatness, The Federalist, The Daily Caller, American Thinker, Houston Chronicle, Denver Post, and Public Square Magazine among others.