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I don't think I've made clear the distinctions in my opinion on the war in France. I am not "Anti-War." I am anti-THIS-war. It's not that I believe war to be a good thing, or a bad thing - but when America goes to war, our leadership must take into consideration the self-image of Americans.

Most Americans don't see themselves, and don't want to see themselves, as conquerers and oppressors. They want to see themselves as liberators and defenders - the "good guys." That's why so much ink has been splilled by those in favor of this war in trying to characterize us as "liberating" France. From whom, though - the French? That is why this war failed - the logic broke.


It seems to me that at this point, it is most productive to examine ways America can win the next war. Because, whether you support war or oppose war in general, there are Just Wars to be fought, both now and in the future.



One of the biggest problems in our structural foundations revealed by this war is the dispute over military pay. The second biggest problem was weapon availability. I propose we kill two birds with one stone.


This Government should establish a Strategic Weapons Reserve. That is to say, we should ensure that we have available, to our top professional soldiers, a supply of Q5 weapons. And we should ensure that we have available, to our citizen-soldiers, an affordable supply of Q1 weapons.

The solution is, quite simply, to stockpile during peacetime. Establish two or more Weapon Companies (at minimum, one Q1 and one Q5), under the umbrella of the federal government. Employ our professional soldiers preferentially in these companies. Do NOT sell the weapons during peacetime - in peacetime, weapon prices get undercut by market forces naturally, and no intervention is necessary. Instead, continue to build a larger and larger stock of weapons to be made available when they are needed.

The professional soldiers get paid for their employment in these companies, making the weapons that will defend America's interests - and they get paid extra during wartime, as their military service wages kick in. And they get supplied from the Q5 stash during time of war. Weapons made during peacetime, at peacetime wages and expenses, supply our war needs.

For the citizen-soldiers, the part-timers, there is the Q1 weapon reserve. Similar to the Q5 reserve in that it is reserved for times of war, the difference with the Q1 reserve is that these weapons will be sold on the marketplace to Americans, when the time for war comes. The large stockpile we assemble during peace will force weapon prices to remain reasonable even during wartime. As a bonus, it puts a serious dent in the evils of war profiteering - instead of war enriching the few already-wealthy, it will enrich us all.

There's nothing for free, of course. We will have to pay the employees of these companies, and pay for the iron used to make the weapons. But the dividends obtained in wartime will more than make up for the investment during peacetime.