Evening star., 1945-10-28

a~ S.11,a 1,G tiona defense" advisedy
<1O"t'1A h1"o and in the that it in
everything country which important to our
national security no longer fought solely by
armed forces Directly indirectly the whole citizenry
and the entire of Nation go There
be convincing evidence of this fact than the
which has just ended
Working Problem Backward.
In spite of these victories in spite of the security of
this country maintained by of the present military
organization and in spite of the fact that currently
engaged in the allout effort of demobizng and
version proponents of the bill before this committee
assert that our military organization bascaly nef
fective and deficient that it must be Immediately
recast not by the orderly of study discussion and
evouonbut by the method of assuming the answer and
then 1t working the problern-backward 1
not bring myself to in this view in this method
The problem before is what is the most effective
organization of the executive departments directly
cerned with national defense The this problem
selected by the proponents of this bill single
partment of national defense. The process of working
backward this has progressed
through but study-that made by special committee
under the direction of the Joint Chiefs of Staff the
suits of that study the principal Army supporters the
general proposal in disagreement the basic question
of whether there should be military commander of the
armed forces.
strongly in favor of an exhaustive study being
made of entire national defense situation-poitica
military economic industra-before proceeding with the
consideration of radical change in the organization
Defects Are Listed.
In my considered opinion, the main defects of the
pending proposals
ta) The Army and Navy today large organizations
Even though now have peace be prepared
war-and large organizations, again. Each has had
pex administrative problems occasioned chiefly by
The capacity of those in authority their departments
efficient basis has admittedly been greatly
do not how be argued seriously prob
lens will be simplied the two departments merged
The result would trend toward the weakening of civil
control.
Still another objection "supersecretary" is the
vesting of that much the armed services
art tho pracd ca
concerned, consider that it needs right
cabinet member not only for matters decided at that
level higher but also for the adequate handling of bus
ness with the Congress The position occupied by the
two Secretaries providing they the civil
the military constituting connecting between
the military and all civil functions including industry
of the greatest elements of national strength
System Failed Abroad.
b) Examination of the experience of foreign governments
affords little ground for the expectation that single
parment would provide military establishment competent
to the test of With the exception of Germany,
those countries which had experimental with unified ad-
mnisration of the armed forces abandoned either
the Second World War began under the impact of
c) At least proposal includes single commander
of all armed forces which radical than that
single secretary is, potentially the man on horse
back 1t is aegedy based the premise that unity of
military command in Washington is necessary to insure
unity of effort in the field This position supported by
the experience of the recent The Joint Chiefs of Staff
adopted and provided for the and exercise
unified command in the field Neither it supported by the
reports received some commanders in the field who
faced with the basic problem of coordinang into joint
operations functions that fundamentally heterogeneous
have expressed themselves well satisfied with the
operation between services
Fears Development of Prejudice
1t is to be noted that the number of examples which
all the armed forces of nation have been committed
single supreme commander few In history
many has been the only country to adopt system
pleey with the result that existing prejudice
Army frozen" experience of Germany as
well the other historical examples indicates great
danger of the system that makes difficult impossible
recognition of the potentae of the service which the
supreme commander does not belong.
AS integral part of the single department of armed
forces has also been proposed to create superior general
staff suggestive of the German great general staff The
result would be akin to the Ober Kommando Wehr
macht of the recent do not believe that type of
ganzaton has place in the armed forces of this
Sees Principles Confused.
I'D The net result of the consolidation proposed will
be- paradoicaly enough further separated At least
proposal advocates that the existing departments
ed into three components with maximum autonomy
and that the three be drawn together in single depart
(e) do not believe that our procurement difcultie:
wholly be solved by consolidation superficial other
wise. Maximum efficiency will be realized by fol-
lowing whatever suited to procurement
the type of material required 1t generally agreed that
standardized items to both services and should
be procured by central purchasing that specialized
equipment must be obtained by the user the latter the
sound theory that the duty design engineer should
carry with it the right to procure. sA.
Affords Regmented Thinking.
d) Unity of purpose is essential but it is mistake tc
think that it be achieved wholly by mechanical means
regard step packard to attempt to regiment military
thinking particularly at high levels This Nation has come
to be the most powerful in the world by following the
posite theory The ingenuity and independent thought
the part of military personnel constitute of the
greatest elements in our fighting strength
ego can believe that the organization proposed viii
esee KING. Page c-lo0