Strategic Factors Not Gone with the USSR – Can you spell C-H-I-N-A?

The ostensible reason for the closure of the bases in the current BRAC process, is that the expense of maintianing our basing levels is not militarily cost-effective in the post-Cold War environment. The reasoning for EAFB no doubt ran, why should we have TWO bases for B-1’s, with double infrastructure, etc. One of the former reasons, after all, for basing dispersal was to not have “all our eggs in one basket” in the event of a nuclear exchange with teh USSR. No USSR, no more dispersed basing needed now. Right?

The Chief has been pondering the emotional and local-economic factors vs. the military considerations in this BRAC cycle, and for a longer-term strategic reason, I do NOT think closing EAFB is the right military decision to make in the current world environment.

The free-traders have such a dominance at present, that most of the policy-making branches of our government have become extremely myopic with regards to what is happening with the Chicoms. WIth the marketing of US technology to the ChiComs under the Bubba administration, there is an expansion of all manner of missile and aerospace technology and weapons systems on the part of China.

The question of why then presents itself? Is China REALLY worried about buiilding up a deterrent force because they feel threatened by the immanent prospects of a US or Russian thermonuclear strike? Like the Chief used to hear (if not say!) in the Navy: “They might, but I f—in’ doubt it!”

Although it is NOT reported in the MSM, internal publications and discussions in the above-mentioned “Peoples’s Republic” openly and unblinkingly faces the prospect of a major war with the United States, and they are building their forces accordingly.

Meanwhile, (literally, with Crawford, TX these days) back at the ranch, Rumsfeld et al are merrily consolidating what foreces we have left. This could be even argued to increase security in the terror war – but that assumes that said terrorists are the only threat. They aren’t, but they sure have (justifiably) captured our attention, to the exclusion of worrying about China. I mean after all, teh ChiComs aren’t a threat – they just want to sell stuff to Wal-Mart, right? (If you believe THAT e-mail me about some GREAT surfing beach I’ll sell you along the slough in the back 40 of our farm.)

It’s the sad history of totalitarian regimes that they do not tend to build up arms, without the intention to use them. The ChiCom aerospace, nuclear, and naval/amphibious buildup is designed to give them hegemony at LEAST in the Pacific, and there is some evidence that they are fishing in troubled mid-Eastern waters also.

So, as long as we are at least officially maintaining a nuclear triad configuration (bombers, land based missiles, submarine missiles), maybe it isn’t too dumb to NOT put all our bombers at one spot. Hence the need for Ellsworth AFB.