Red Line,
You're correct in your statement that, to put it very bluntly, funding is dependent on political expediency and the desire to either be a 'force for good' or the desire to reduce the number of body bags coming home. Once we have achieved the former, the latter will be the inevitable corollary.
However, the desire for politicians to appear statesman-like will never diminish, and so the military will be deployed at every opportunity to support that aim. Buy with that responsibility must come resources. If there is little to no appetite to resource the military - all arms and services - so that it is capable of being that contingency force, then you need to add a third option to your list: do less.
Ever since the politicians have tried to run the military like a business, they have focused on the numbers and the bottom line. I accept that we, like all Depts should live within our means if we are to be a sustainable force, but maybe those means need to consider factors in addition to numbers on a spreadsheet such as the human element. You can have all the exquisite capabilities you want, but they will be ineffective unless they are appropriately manned.
Our bottom line is not found on a spreadsheet, it is our ability to generate operational capability and most importantly, to ensure that the same numbers of people and aircraft/ships/tanks come home as deploy. Only when that happens do the books balance in my eyes.
To hold a military as a contingent force, with large parts of it being held at readiness with an expectation that they can deploy and execute political direction at the drop of a hat is expensive. It requires a significant investment in training, logistics and human capital if you are not to burn through your people in one or 2 turns of the handle i.e. for it to be a sustainable capability. Those advocating a purely spreadsheet driven approach would do well to remember this in these uncertain times. After all, if you ask your household insurance company for a policy that covers a limited range of risks for a short period, you will then no doubt be surprised when the premium sky rockets when you change the policy to cover all risks and eventualities 24/7.
The politicians need to decide what policy they want and as well as being directed by public opinion must also inform it so that the masses actually understand the repercussions of their wishes. With regard to Defence, I'm sad to say they are not doing that very well at all, probably because there are now no votes in it and those body bags are thankfully getting fewer in number.
Last edited by Melchett01; 21st Mar 2014 at 14:03.