We have fewer horses today

This is a classic case of seeing what you want to see. Obama: “You mention the Navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in 1916. Well governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets. We have these things called aircraft carriers and planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines.” “It’s not a game of battleship where we’re counting ships, it’s ‘What are our capabilities?’” Actually, it is counting ships. Attrition determines who wins the big wars. Capabilities depend upon numbers to a large degree. Aircraft carriers need escorts. Aircraft carriers need to be rotated for service for prolonged periods of time. This requires additional numbers in order to maintain consistent capability. And this is without losses due to accidents and/or enemy action. I have seen and heard many people who believe that President Obama did well in this exchange. This shows me how limited President Obama’s thinking is concerning our military and its capabilities. In 1981, the US Navy had stated the idea that it was going to bring back the battleship. (Iowa class) I saw an “expert” declare that the battleship in 1981 is as obsolete as the horse was during World War II. President Obama’s comment above reminds me of this ‘expert’. What this ‘Expert’ did not know was that even at the end of the war, the German army was more than 60% horse driven. The German army was the toughest fighting force on earth. Have you seen pictures of the German army after a big defeat? Dead horses are everywhere. The supply units were almost all horse driven (Exception: the panzer supply units) How did the German 6th army hold out in Stalingrad for 2 and a half months in the middle of winter with the majority of the supply on the wrong side of the Don river? The men ate the horses. Horses may have been obsolete, but they were still VERY useful. The U.S. and England were the ONLY 100% mechanized armies in the entire world. President Obama does not understand this. The Soviet army inflicted far more losses on the German army than anyone else during World War II and they used horses extensively. President Obama’s comment may have worked on those who know little about horses, bayonets, aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines, but he does not know much at all about their capabilities or their practical use. God help us if a big war breaks out with this guy as our Commander-in-Chief.