A More Perfect Military : How the Constitution Can Make Our Military Stronger

Surveys show that the all-volunteer military is our most respected and trusted institution, but over the last thirty-five years it has grown estranged from civilian society. Without a draft, imperfect as it was, the military is no longer as representative of civilian society. Fewer people accept the obligation for military service, and a larger number lack the knowledge to be engaged participants in civilian control of the military. The end of the draft, however, is not the most important reason we have a significant civil-military gap today. A More Perfect Military explains how the Supreme Court used the cultural division of the Vietnam era to change the nature of our civil-military relations. The Supreme Court describes itself as a strong supporter of the military and its distinctive culture, but in the all-volunteer era, its decisions have consistently undermined the military's traditional relationship to law and the Constitution. Most people would never suspect there was anything wrong, but our civil-military relations are now as constitutionally fragile as they have ever been. A More Perfect Military is a bracingly candid assessment of the military's constitutional health. It crosses ideological and political boundaries and is challenging-even unsettling-to both liberal and conservative views. It is written for those who believe the military may be slipping away from our common national experience. This book is the blueprint for a new national conversation about military service. The Purpose Of This Book Is To Change All The Rules That Limit The Way We Talk About The Military ... It Will Tell The Rest Of The Story Conveniently Left Out In All The Partial, Misleading Discussions We Have Had In Recent Years On Subjects Such As Military Recruiting And The Shared Obligations Of Citizenship; The Nature Of The Relationship We Want To Have Between The Military And Civilian America; The Meaning Of The Constitution For Members Of The Military In The Areas Of Equal Protection, Free Speech, Religions Freedom, And Respect For The Rule Of Law; The Proper Scope Of Military Influence In Civilian Society And The Proper Scope Of Civilian Influence In Military Society; The Cultural Flash Point Of Women In Military Service; And, Finally, The Post-vietnam Drift Toward A Politically Partisan Military And The Impact It Has Had On Civilian Control Of The Military--page 5. Slam-dunked Law Professors -- A Canary In The Civil-military Mine -- Inventing The Civil-military Divide -- Justice Rehnquist's Vietnam War -- Constitutional Bargains And Military Ethics -- Facing The Consequences -- A Dangerous Disregard For Law -- Recruiting For A Constitutionally Fragile Military -- It Never Was About The Mission -- How Long Can You Still Call It An Experiment? -- A Cautionary Tale About Military Voting -- A Part Of America, Not Apart From America. Diane H. Mazur. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Contents......Page 6 Introduction......Page 10 1 Slam-Dunked Law Professors......Page 23 2 A Canary in the Civil-Military Mine......Page 35 3 Inventing the Civil-Military Divide......Page 49 4 Justice Rehnquist’s Vietnam War......Page 60 5 Constitutional Bargains and Military Ethics......Page 81 6 Facing the Consequences......Page 99 7 A Dangerous Disregard for Law......Page 118 8 Recruiting for a Constitutionally Fragile Military......Page 134 9 It Never Was About the Mission......Page 153 10 How Long Can You Still Call It an Experiment?......Page 172 11 A Cautionary Tale about Military Voting......Page 188 12 A Part of America, Not Apart from America......Page 197 Notes......Page 208 C......Page 232 E......Page 233 I......Page 234 N......Page 235 R......Page 236 S......Page 237 U......Page 238 Y......Page 239 Since the 1970s, there has been a growing divide between civilians and the United States military, and the size of the gap is now wide enough that many observers are legitimately alarmed. Diane Mazur, a former Air Force officer, is one of America's leading authorities on this subject, and in A More Perfect Military she locates the roots of this gulf and how it has widened.