L. TODD WOOD: Next president will have to change military culture

OPINION:

It has become patently obvious that the Obama administration has succeeded in turning the United States military into a politically correct, leftist petri dish for the progressive, multicultural and feminist agenda. This state of affairs almost ensures a defeat in a serious future conflict.

As they used to teach in the service academies, militaries are used to kill people and break things, not ensure advancement for females and those supporting the climate change fraud. Obama has succeeded in changing the military culture, so that it is now acceptable to make ROTC students walk around in high heels for a day and have classes on “white privilege.”

This sea change strikes at the heart of America — its security, its former culture of freedom, its history, and its warrior origins. Yes, the United States was born out of mortal conflict. We have felt the need to defend this freedom with our blood and treasure many times over the last few centuries. You can bet we will need to water the tree of liberty with patriot blood again in the future. Although the seal of the United States shows the eagle looking towards the vision of peace, its claws contain arrows, to defend freedom if need be.

Having a military comprised of social justice warriors won’t cut it in the next war. Our adversaries won’t be impressed with our diversity or gender neutrality. They will be impressed if the best war fighters and commanders are allowed to flourish and thrive, no matter their sex, race, or background.

Military commanders have enormous power that can be abused. I have seen it with my own eyes. I’ve seen commanders who don’t like a subordinate recommend psychiatric care or take out personal grudges against someone who reports to them. Obviously, we’ve seen this type of abuse with the ROTC high heel issue and white privilege classes. This cannot be allowed to continue.

The next president will have a big job on his hands to weed out these cultural warriors from the ranks of the officer corp. Upon inauguration, the next commander-in-chief needs to make the mandate crystal clear for any officer, commissioned or noncommissioned, that the role of the military is to fight wars and defend America, not climate change, feminism, or diversity. Those not agreeing to this directive should be relieved of command.

The United States military is truly the one organization where it is critical that the best man, or woman, wins. Obama has done tremendous damage. Our military needs to regain its warrior culture. Otherwise, our children may find themselves speaking another language for real in the future.