We shall fight on seas of nonsense policies

WINSTON Churchill knew a bit about soldiering, government and the consequences of failing to prepare adequately for future war.

He was also critical of politicians and generals who talked the talk but failed to follow through, having learned that lesson himself the hard way.

He wrote after the war, “The temptation to tell a chief in a great position the things he most likes to hear is the commonest explanation of mistaken policy.”

From his own leadership experience Churchill knew what men wanted and needed to fight well - leadership, training but also more practically bread, beer, weaponry and equipment, personal comforts and R&R, plus all the other myriad issues that he endlessly directed the War Office to address in WWII.

He understood soldiers’ psychology better than any other prime minister of his generation, none with military experience.

Australia’s recent change of government has come with a concurrent change of politically compliant, not always competent advisors, some recycled, intent on telling government what they think it wants to hear, not what it needs to hear.

Thus political distractions like reconciliation and climate change become threat and force determinants because politicians think that’s fashionble.

Defence Minister Marles, with no military experience, is espousing such mantra as having to “think increasingly about our defence force in terms of being able to provide the country with impactful projection.” Please explain?

Marles said that was “the ability to hold an adversary at risk much further from our shores, across kind of the full spectrum of proportionate response.”

With long gestating, critical projects already way behind schedule through decades of incompetent neglect in Materiel Branch, terminal despair sets in.

Both political sides suffer irrelevance syndrome.

Former PM Tony Abbott, like Marles with no military experience, recently suffered a bout of “bring back national service” delusion.

It’s the sort of nonsensical brain fart one expects from the usual strident empty vessel politicians who couldn’t tell the difference between their posteriors and their elbows.

It takes no account of the material and personnel costs required to implement such a scheme, nor that defence is struggling to find enough personnel to perform its core roles, let alone satisfy government fantasies and political delusions.

Churchill learned to sack both politicians and generals who failed to grasp the reality of the challenges facing Britain or fell short in their implementation.

Australia could also do with some impactful senior career redirection.