Memorial Day-Honoring the Warriors of the Past While Keeping an Eye on the Future (Budgets and Battleships)

We as a society have a lot of choices to make over things that range from domestic affairs to military budgets. Our soldiers and warriors of the past gave us an opportunity to make more choices today. They made sacrifices so that the rest of us could continue to have maximum options to create new opportunities. We should keep an eye on the future of our nation and how cyber warriors matched with advanced military tactics and equipment can blaze the trails need to give the next generation their chance to carry the nation's torch of freedom. 

Let us remember that freedom is not free! Its responsibility lay at all of our doorsteps and no one gets a skip over responsibility pass. There are some who recognize the work of freedom and there are others who desire to stifle it for their own self interest (Self-oriented behavior can get in the way of collective goals).  

The assumptions of the past no longer serves the realities of the future. We are in a transition stage where the work of freedom is complex and difficult to define. We must compete not only with our military but also with how we function as a society (Freedom is multifaceted. Without a free society based on equality we can't compete economically and scientifically to ensure military or economic readiness for our next stage.)

Every time we step up to meet the risks to our essential truths we become stronger as a society. When institutions and people don't step up to meet those challenges the wings of freedom are clipped. 

There are people all throughout our country who make the many thousands of small choices everyday to advance toward or away from freedom. Chances are they don't even know they are doing it but their choices add up to have big outcomes (Are you serving your country in small ways that range from volunteering to community building? Have you welcomed a new family in the community? It all ads up to create a national environment and culture for success.)

Most Americans are far removed from the horrors of war. It is all too easy to send people overseas without having to do the mental work at home first to ensure defined successes (The military needs clear purpose and sufficient support before tackling complex problems overseas). There is costs to war and should always use evidence based decision making before committing souls to our national causes (The bigger purpose should guide those decisions.).

We must keep an eye on the future and what we want this country to look like a few decades from now. This isn't up to our politicians, military, or "connected" but up to each of us to take those small positive steps to do what is right in honor of the past and in diligent effort toward a brighter future. When the dream of freedom is swallowed up by poor decisions and/or ineptitude the fault and consequences lies on all of us (We are a democracy.). 

There are a couple of positive articles our national leadership should consider before jumping to quick conclusions and costly mistakes. The very nature of our military and its leadership abilities are changing before our eyes. It is up to them to think strategically about creating maximum options and opportunities for the military in an emerging era before voting along political lines (i.e. not thinking for themselves).

A Commander and Chief at West Point stated, "We need your Honor — that inner compass that guides you, not when the path is easy and obvious, but when it's hard and uncertain; that tells you the difference between that which is right and that which is wrong." Honor has shifted toward the idea of an inner compass that allows one to draw from their own strengths and value systems even when there is no social kudos for one’s actions (See Changing Military Honor).

You may also consider how advanced leadership can be used in our civilian world to create beneficial change that helps generations succeed. That often requires our current political structure and institutions to be willing to adjust and adapt to develop a stronger more competitive society and military. Sometimes we have to partner industries and cross breed competencies to maximize efficiency and alignment (See Civilian-Military Leadership). 

"All Americans Are Free" by Geoff Livingston 

While I'm a Muslim-Catholic and to many people who sacked our capital don't believe people like me (or anything different than themselves) have a place in our society I don't recall seeing them in the trenches; or even their ability to discover and see those trenches. (See FBI Capital Riots Insurrectionist Search) I would like to continue serving my country in small ways in the second half of my life through generating new opportunities (We can't expect the spotlight and sound bite/byte seeking politicians to know all the answers. We must hedge all of our societal knowledge to come out on top of the challenges coming our way.). 

Freedom doesn't come from crushing a beer can on your forehead and waving a flag....it comes from people trying to help their country and doing meaningful things that lead to open doors and future opportunities. As we ponder the $715 Billion Budget the Pentagon (summary and official) we may want to ask, "What can you do to maximize the outcome of that budget through military-industry mutual development?" See Start-Up Firms for Space and Military.