criticism: redundancy
Jay Willis wrote for GQ on 10 AUgust 2018: “Look, Space Force is dumb. The are good reasons why the military should have a presence in space, but the military already has a presence in space: The Air Force has operated a Space Command for over 35 years, and more than 30,000 people serve in it. There are better things on which this country could spend its money than a redundant military branch.“
reply
The idea is not to duplicate existing AIr Force assets. The idea is to separate out and enhance the Air Force assets and similar assets in other branches of the military.
The National Security Act of 1947 established the United States Department of the AIr Force, effective 18 September 1947. Prior to that the AIr Force had been part of the U.S. Army, first as the Air Service of the American Expeditionary Force and then the Army Air Service in World War I, followed by the Army Air Corps prior to World War II, and eventually the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II and the Korean War.
When the separate Air Force was created, it wasn’t simply a redundant duplication of the Army Air Forces. The air assets of the Army were transferred to the new Air Force.
While Jay WIllis may have really enjoyed calling President Trump “dumb”, the President was not calling for a redundant military service. This is an absurd straw man argument.
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- fans of space
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- response to criticism of Space Force
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