Public Service Academy??

I dislike this proposal as much as anyone and frankly dislike much of what this administration is doing as much as anyone, but give me a break! Having read this - you really have to be a conspiracy buff to believe that what the president is calling for in the speech Steve Holt posted is a paramilitary force or some nefarious "security force" . Clearly he is making a fairly sophisticated analysis of national security concerns and RIGHTLY- as virtually every professional soldier recognizes- asserting that national security in general and indeed success in the current wars is a function that requires assets, resources and expertise from various sources military and nonmilitary. Ditto domestic "security". FEMA for example in New Orleans was an utter disaster. Admiral Allen came in and did much to rescue that miserable response - but what really changed was that you had a professional command and control structure put in place and a guy who knew how to run a complex organization with multiple different civilian logistic, economic and legal assets required. It wasn't a military problem per se- it was an experience, resources and competency problem. Why shouldn't the government have recourse to non military people with the capability, competence and experience to do the same?

Whether you are a supporter of the President or a vociferous critic of this or all of his proposals- it certainly doesn't add much to your credibility when you approach this from the "area 51" or "Elvis is alive and living on Mars" perspective. Judge it on the efficiency (or utter lack thereof IMHO) of most government programs- it seems pretty darn easy to shoot holes in the proposal based on that perspective without resorting to the off the wall insinuations being thrown around here.
With that- I join Steve Holt and bow out- keep it civil and respectful folks and post away to your heart's content.
 
The problem with the proposal....each service academy has a pipe line for their members....

I assume a USPSA would require members to serve in federal spots...now would they focus on those areas while they were there? Once they're on that path, what kind of mobility would they have. How will they compete with kids from normal colleges?

This is more appropriate as a program/grant within regular civilian colleges...not as a academy.

Every federal service academy would suffer for this, as, despite the federal governments current spending, we don't have an infinite budget, so where do you think the "hit" would come from to pay for this "school?"
 
LineInTheSand said:
Heck, as a past Peace corps member. I understand the reason for it, but it never panned out the way it was supposed to.

LITS - Go back and re-read your peace corps reference. It confused me because it sounded like you HAD been in the Peace Corps. What do you mean "as a past Peace corps member"?
Thanks for the clarification.

Why are you asking me if I was ever in the Armed Forces? Did I claim that I was?
 
"As" should have been "Ask".

Don't worry LITS, just because we're being shouted out of the room here doesn't change that President Obama (BTW, that's out of consideration for current Military members here, I'm not now and can use my Freedom...) has dreams to start a US Academy for his new Security Force, equal to the United States Military. I guess some here don't give the POTUS the respect to use his own words as he said them. Some of us Patriots do use the English language "ver batem (sp?)" and take him for his word as spoken.
 
LITS - Go back and re-read your peace corps reference. It confused me because it sounded like you HAD been in the Peace Corps. What do you mean "as a past Peace corps member"?
Thanks for the clarification.

Why are you asking me if I was ever in the Armed Forces? Did I claim that I was?


That's a pattern forming, you need to have everyone re-read your posts many times over, you might want to re-write them so as we can understand them the first time. :wink: TYIA
 
MAXIMUS : the president doesn't need to start his new security force. It's already in place it has the same stature as the DOD. It's not as well organized yet. Perhaps cadre of new officers from a new academy could change that? It's called the Department of Homeland Security! current budget 55.1 billion but hey obama has 3 trillion to play with. Plus DHS already has it's own Navy.
 
The current DHS budget is less than the US Marine Corps. Also, it's made up of mostly reshuffled prior organizations. In addition to having it's own "navy" it also has it's own little air force.....and army.
 
Oh, come on guys you're talking about the Coast Guard here when you refer to the "Navy". The Coast Guard's role is to protect and save the citizens--not round them up as some secret police! And I'm assuming your talking about the Border Patrol when your talking about DHS "army". That's a joke in itself; Border Patrol can't even do the job it's supposed to be doing now!!
 
So you would choose to ignore the alien migrants interdiction operations? That should would have made my first duty station much easier.
 
So you would choose to ignore the alien migrants interdiction operations?

I don't think that is what Sam is saying at all. I think we can all agree that we have many many organizations within the USA devoted to our public safety and well being. On a national level, however, there are many examples of how these units are less than ideally coordinated for certain events, not that, in the past, this was a huge priority. Now it is. I applaud the fact that the administration apparently is seeking methods to facilitate this coordination. I also agree with most of the posters here that another Academy is the best way to do it.

I don't think the idea of another academy was to provide foot soldiers but to provide coordination. Coordination that perhaps can be provided with very little monetary outlay. How can we best do it?
 
LITS said:
alien migrants interdiction operations
These would not be "citizens". go re read post #90 again:
The Coast Guard's role is to protect and save the citizens--not round them up as some secret police!
I bolded "citizens" for you :biggrin:
 
Oh, come on guys you're talking about the Coast Guard here when you refer to the "Navy". The Coast Guard's role is to protect and save the citizens--not round them up as some secret police! And I'm assuming your talking about the Border Patrol when your talking about DHS "army". That's a joke in itself; Border Patrol can't even do the job it's supposed to be doing now!!

I'm sure that'll be the argument Barry tries to push about this idea after his Health Care Socialization plan completely melts down next month, off to the next agenda item!

Let's look at the current system's quick lib-facts: Border Patrol = George Bush and that's failure to them! Most libs don't understand that the Coast Guard is now part of HS Department, and he can't publicize that, plus they already have an 'old boy' Academy.
The problem is Barry won't be able to convince rank and file sycophants that a new 'Service Academy' is the way to go when many of his supporters just look at the traditional Service Academies as pillars of the 'old' generation and favoritism. Then there is that pesky 'service commitment" after the 'free education' is over, most liberals will not agree to a five year commitment, we'll be looking at the "Pro Sports" situation the academies struggle with now, how do you draw the talent when they can't use it the way they like after the 'free part' is over and real money can be personally generated? Plus, where will he come up with the money to fund this? Liberals will not be able to separate the stigmas of funding this when they could use that money to sprinkle around their other rackets like Acorn or the Peace Corps; and use them as the foot soldiers and just place their leaders like Rohm Emanuel in there to lead.

BTW, I'm sorry if the facts of the situation are inflammatory but...it is, what it is.
 
I don't think that is what Sam is saying at all. I think we can all agree that we have many many organizations within the USA devoted to our public safety and well being. On a national level, however, there are many examples of how these units are less than ideally coordinated for certain events, not that, in the past, this was a huge priority. Now it is. I applaud the fact that the administration apparently is seeking methods to facilitate this coordination. I also agree with most of the posters here that another Academy is the best way to do it.

I don't think the idea of another academy was to provide foot soldiers but to provide coordination. Coordination that perhaps can be provided with very little monetary outlay. How can we best do it?

What Academy provides "foot soldiers" for the military???
 
I'm sure that'll be the argument Barry tries to push about this idea after his Health Care Socialization plan completely melts down next month, off to the next agenda item!

Well, we know that there is no way President Obama can pass that through...fortunately the GOP and Blue Dogs are still united. It's a horrible idea any way because it actually enables them to ration health care.

Seriously, you guys are taking this from the perspective that President Obama has the ability to put these plans into play...the guy can't even do speeches without a teleprompter...

If the USPSA is created the cadets/midshipmen from the other academies might say this: I went to my SA to serve my country, you went to yours to serve your government.
 
What Academy provides "foot soldiers" for the military???

I don't think there is a legal cast-in-stone definition for 'foot soldier'. I know WP cadets/grads use it for at least some of the platoon leader type billets. However, I was using it generically to describe anyone down at the working-with-troops level as opposed to upper management. Just a run of the mill statement that anyone familiar with the military would understand.
 
Wow...reading some fo these posts, I'd think I accidentally went to the Weekly Standard's forums...
 
The obvious problem with a PSA would be that the curriculum would be subject to political bias from whichever party is in control at the time. i.e. Conservative administration, conservative applicants and professors given preference, and the opposite true during liberal administrations. I think a PSA would be an interesting( not necessarily good) idea, if political bias were taken out of the equation (which it never will be), but an obvious problem would be deciding what exactly the academy would be a "pipeline" for....federal government or state? And what agencies? and what degree would students receive?
 
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