Military Ranks -- Losses At The Hand Of Man With No Military Service

My concern for our country is our now-downsized military. Although our victory was stunning during Operation Desert Storm, we need to put it into perspective.

With the combination of expert leadership from Defense Secretary Dick Cheney, Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Army Gen. Norman Schwartzkopf, the command was perfect.

The Iraqi soldiers cowered in bunkers and suffered continuous bombing. Unfortunately, Americans, with their shallow understanding of history, do not know that future conflicts will not be resolved as easily.

The U.S. today couldn't field a force comparable to the one that liberated Kuwait in 100 hours of ground combat.

One million troops; 2,232 combat planes; 13 ballistic submarines; 3,114 nuclear warheads; four aircraft carriers; 121 combat surface ships.

These numbers do not represent our military force or even the force of another foreign power. According to Janes, these numbers represent the military hardware that has vanished since 1993, when Bill Clinton took office.

Around the '60s and '70s, there was a man who was too cowardly to serve in Vietnam. He was an ambitious, power-obsessed man without a father in his life.

He avoided being drafted and later became the commander in chief of the armed forces of the United States of America. In fact, he still is. Scary.

In 2000, voters need to elect a president who has military experience.

Drew Stokesbary

Olympia