Who are the advocates?

As a country, it has always been important to for us to separate the military from the government. The concept of separating elected leaders from our generals is in our DNA, going back to George Washington.

At the same time, you wonder how well our defense effort is being positioned in Washington and with citizens and voters across the country.

After a long day in the field on Tuesday, I watched a C-Span discussion on the national debt. It was casually mentioned that cutting the military budget would need to be part of any effort to close the gap. Nobody disagreed. You wonder if the people doing the talking knew how immense the task of defending the country is and how our long term interests are at stake.

You sense a theme inside the services that goes something like “if people only knew.” They are right, people do need to know. Our military needs to make it easier for all of us to understand their role. Citizens need a deeper understanding of the world. The conference is part of that effort. But non-military leaders need to lead in this area.

We have an all-volunteer military today. The draft has been gone for 37 years. Many of our most influential zip codes send virtually no young men and women to the military. How do communities like Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham and Ann Arbor gain an appreciation for this complicated world?

Who are the trusted, balanced, committed voices for America’s defense?

These people need advocates who can tell thier story.