GSORTS and CRS: Application for the Operational Commander

Abstract

In the 2000 United States Presidential Election, military readiness became an issue. One party addressed fears of our military becoming the "hollow force" of the 1970s, while the other side set out to prove them wrong. The argument from then Governor George Bush, at the Republican Convention was that if called on "today" two Army divisions "would have to report - "not ready for duty."" The Republican's backed their argument with an Army report from November 1999 stating two divisions, the 10% Mountain and 1 % Mechanized Infantry, reported a readiness rating of CA, the lowest possible.2 The ensuing debate in the press between the candidates became one of the focal points of the election.3 Some wfthin the military establishment took this as proof that the declining military budget, the fight for resources, and the radically increased operations tempo (OPTEMPO) put our military on the declining trend towards "hollowness".4 This issue brought the Global Status of Resources and Training System (GSORTS) and the Chairman's Readiness System (CR5), the systems that produced these ratings, into focus. Critics raised questions of the applicability of this readiness system in understanding its context m fighting "the next war."5 The critics of the system believed this next war to be something in the realm of military operations other than war (MOOTW). Elements of the 10% Mountain and l% Mechanized were participating in MOOTW operations in the Balkans. Using a rating produced by GSORTS or the CRS out of context, which happened in this case, is not a viable measure of the combat ability or capability of a unit. Not only does the case above show an alarming misunderstanding and misapplication of the system, it highlights its key deficiencies. The Joint Chiefs of Staff designed the system to report a "snapshot in time."

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 05, 2001
Accession Number
ADA391424

Entities

People

  • David B. Marquand

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Aircrafts
  • Coast Guard
  • Combat Readiness
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of Defense
  • Force Structure
  • Military Force Levels
  • Military Operations
  • Operational Readiness
  • Public Policy
  • Security
  • Training
  • United States
  • United States Special Operations Command
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Library and Information Science/ Studies, Southeast Asia Studies, Bibliography of Vietnam and Lao Studies.
  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.