(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The latest edition of the U.S. Army War College’s quarterly publication, Parameters, projects that the military would suffer about 3,600 causalities per day in a “large-scale combat operations” with another superpower like Russia or China—proposing a draft to help prepare for such a situation.
At 3,600 casualties per day, war with Russia or China means that the U.S. would surpass the roughly 50,000 casualties from the entire Iraq and Afghanistan wars within two weeks.
The Parameters article warned that the U.S. military is not prepared for such a scenario—citing the recent recruiting crisis as a major reason why.
“The Individual Ready Reserve, which stood at 700,000 in 1973 and 450,000 in 1994, now stands at 76,000,” said the article, written by Army War College professor John Nagl.
“These numbers cannot fill the existing gaps in the active force, let alone any casualty replacement or expansion during a large-scale combat operation.”
Nagl concluded that the U.S. military’s model of an all-volunteer force is outdated. He proposed bringing back the draft.
“Large-scale combat operations troop requirements may well require a reconceptualization of the 1970s and 1980s volunteer force and a move toward partial conscription,” he said.
While a hot war with Russia or China may seem unlikely, the Biden administration has been increasingly flirting with the idea.
As has been widely documented, the U.S. committed an eco-terrorist attack on Russia last year when the Biden administration sabotaged its Nord Stream gas pipelines. U.S. weapons and drone components have also been used on direct attacks perpetrated by Ukraine on Russian soil.
And the Biden administration seems to be ramping up for a similar conflict with China.
In July, the White House announced a $345 million military aid package for Taiwan. A day later, the Washington Postpublished a profile of a four-star Air Force general who is preparing his 110,000 troops for war with China within the next two years.
“I hope I am wrong,” Gen. Michael Minihan said of the possibility of a U.S.-China war. “My gut tells me we will fight in 2025.”
According to the Post, Minihan has told his troops to “get their personal affairs in order” and to “fire a clip into a 7-meter target with the full understanding that unrepentant lethality matters most.”
“Aim for the head” when doing so, the general directed.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
