The Gap that Will Not Close: Civil-Military Relations and the All-Volunteer Force
Abstract
The historical basis of citizen-soldier in the United States is one of a call to duty during times of conflict with a quick and almost total demobilization afterwards. A distrust of a standing military, bearing origins in European history and solidified during the American Revolution shaped how the United States would balance egalitarianism and liberalism. This pattern held through World War Two, followed by the first break in tradition with the large standing Army of the Cold War Era. The Vietnam War saw the next break in the tradition with a conscription system that went beyond historical norms and ruined the egalitarian aspects of military service to the country. The coup-de-gras was the creation of the All-Volunteer Force and the distinct separation that resulted between the citizens and the soldiers; no longer one in the same. This separation, or gap, has seen concrete consequences manifest in civil-military relations and consequences that have yet to develop.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 04, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA513806
Entities
People
- Linn K. Desaulniers
Organizations
- Marine Corps University