By Col Grant Newsham, USMC ret
A war is being waged against American society. The goal? To disrupt it, break it down and remake it in a completely different way.
This sort of assault falls under the category of “political warfare” – meaning the use of all weapons of power, short of a shooting war, to achieve goals.
DEI as a weapon
One of the most successful political warfare weapons used against American society is DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). Those who wield it know their goal.
As Democrat Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley said: “the truth is that America needs DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] to disrupt systems of oppression that are active in every facet of society.”
Sound a little like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)? Not surprisingly, for decades China-linked entities have used real societal issues as cover to support organizations that exacerbate American societal divisions to advance CCP interests.
In 1971, during China’s murderous Cultural Revolution, Huey Newton, founder of the Black Panthers, traveled to China where he met a supportive Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Back in the U.S., the Panthers sold copies of Mao’s Little Red Book to raise money, including for weapons.
Beijing doesn’t care about discrimination in America, it wants to pit American against American and weaken the country from the inside in order to make it easier to “win without fighting.”
DEI is an effective political warfare weapon to achieve that goal.
Once inside organizations, DEI programs function like IEDs (improvised explosive device) in a battle zone. They lie hidden. Then, one wrong move and bang – your career, self-worth, ability to provide for your family, can be over. And no one looks at you the same way again.
(This analogy in no way minimizes the horror of the physical damage caused by real world IEDs. It’s just a way to understand the seriousness of the institutional and personal damage done by DEI.)
One aspect of IEDs is those who place them, and/or remotely detonate them, stay safely out of the blast zone. Similarly, those using DEI/IEDs to attack know there is rarely any punishment, even for false accusations.
One result, as Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth put it – from privates to commanders – people are constantly “walking on eggshells.” It spreads fear, distrust and stress.
The U.S. military still functions (and often very well), but the DEI/IED tension is ever present – affecting recruitment, morale, training, effectiveness and ultimately lethality.
Extracting DEI is national defense
There are dedicated and effective efforts to ‘demine’ society by people like Manhattan Institute senior fellow Chris Rufo and Conservative activist Robby Starbuck.
But in the military, no similar efforts by senior officers come to mind.
Using DEI to distract and degrade the military
Indeed, when the DEI/IEDs were being laid in the military, leadership helped.
Testifying before Congress in 2021, then-Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, General Mark Milley, indicated “White rage” in the military was his priority – even though at the time intelligence about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s possible invasion of Ukraine was presumably on his desk.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin launched an “extremists” hunt. He found fewer “extremists” in the ranks than you’ll find in any Ivy League faculty lounge.
In 2022, the current Chief of the Joint Staff, General Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. wrote a memo that implicitly called for racial quotas in the Air Force officer ranks – at least.
The DEI/IEDs did their damage. Meanwhile, the services struggle to find recruits, U.S. arsenals are depleted, and we still aren’t focused on fighting China.
Beijing ought to be delighted.
Past DEI military disasters
We’ve seen the results of DEI/IED in the military before.
In the late-‘60s, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara’s “Project 100,000” pushed in recruits from mental and physical categories who otherwise would have been rejected. Race wasn’t involved – it was about changing standards to meet quotas. Indeed, in the late 1940s when Black Americans were finally allowed to compete (to the same standards) as other Americans, the American military – and American society – greatly benefited.
But Project 100,000 was equity and inclusion on overdrive. The harm was immediate, including those soldiers being three times more likely to be killed in action, not to mention getting others around them killed.
Moreover, Project 100,000 contributed to the collapse of discipline throughout the U.S. military services, to include racial violence, drugs and gangs that lasted well into the 1970s.
Nobody much remembers those days, unfortunately. Don’t think they couldn’t return.
It’s not superficial diversity that is our strength; it is our unity of purpose.
An efficient, effective and deadly military depends on high standards that are unfailingly maintained – along with fair treatment, equal opportunity and advancement on merit. Remove any one of these and you’re asking for trouble. DEI/IED removes all of them. No wonder China has been such a supporter.
If DEI is allowed anywhere near the US military (or anywhere else) it should be good DEI: Discipline, Effort and Integrity. All things the individual has control over. The content of the character.
The sooner the DEI/IED mine-clearing teams do their work, the safer we will all be.
Grant Newsham is a retired U.S. Marine officer and former U.S. diplomat. He is the author of the book “When China Attacks: A Warning To America.” Newsham is a Senior Fellow with the Center for Security Policy. He also is a Research Fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies focusing on Asia/Pacific defense, political and economic matters. Newsham was the first US Marine Liaison Officer to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. He also served as reserve head of intelligence for Marine Forces Pacific, and was the U.S. Marine Attaché, US Embassy Tokyo on two occasions.
What People Are Saying
Comments from the comments section
“Spent 30 years in the Army Infantry, (finally) leaving active service in 2022. Four generations on my side of contiguous service, a few skips here and there all the way through the Civil War to the Revolution. Her side is three generations back to WWII, including Korea, Vietnam, and a goodly chunk of the Cold War. I will not support my kids going into any branch of the military after what I witnessed and was forced to participate in the last 12 years of progressive democrat “leadership.” “Hope and Change”, my eye teeth. Praise God I was only a Joe and Jr. NCO during the majority of the Clinton years…I did what Sergeant said, and had no perspective higher than my 1SG. Earning a commission robbed me of that innocence.”
“DEI is the polar opposite of the merit system. Only someone looking to intentionally weaken or subvert any institution would want a system where they can install useless political allies instead of competent leaders.”
“DEI is the least of the threat. I’m amazed at the changes I’ve seen at my local base. Men in uniform with facial hair, women with hair below the collar and often in sneakers and not combat boots, unzipped coats, a man in uniform with long hair although he may have been foreign service. DEI isn’t necessarily a lack of discipline and standards but those two qualities seem to have taken a hit.”
“I served 18 months in Vietnam in an infantry unit, ’70-’71. In the field we were all army green. Once we returned to the states everything changed. Racial walls immediately went up. The troops lacked discipline and purpose. It was disgraceful.”
“Retired in 22 after 27 years in the Army. How? Non-select PZ and AZ. 2 tries and although having more to give with a stellar record of service…yea. Do I actually believe I was in the bottom 17% of those officers considered? Ridiculous. Promotion system favors non-white male officers eligible for consideration. The DoD has had this horrible system for years. How do I know about this promotion system? I was stationed at Ft. Knox, elbow rubbing with other Sr. Officers quartered on 5th Ave. DEI has been long practiced in our military which by the way is against the Constitution.”
“We cannot expect the Americans to jump from capitalism to communism. But we can assist their elected leaders in giving Americans small doses of socialism until they suddenly awake to find they have communism.” — Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, 1959
“I served from 1972-1999 in Marine Corps aviation. Back in the 70s we had to go through Human Relations seminars where we sat in sessions with all ranks and had to talk about our backgrounds and prejudices, ad nauseum. In the 80s it was resurrected as “Leadership Training”; same crap, different name. None of it, absolutely none, contributed to warfighting skills.”
“I served our country for 21 years and I am a combat veteran. I never really got involved in people’s personal lives nor was wokeism alive enough for anyone to notice back then. now, I have a son that is 27 and on his 8th year and he has the morals and hard-working principles that our family was brought up with and the values that go along with that. he says that any one that is outspoken about the way they feel or their beliefs against DEI are basically targeted by the progressives that are in the military. he says he will stand his ground and I believe him because he’s from Texas. he will not be pushed around and he will do whatever he has to do to make sure that his unit and others like it are prepared for what we know is coming to America in the world because of this administration.”
“I entered the active duty Army in 1982. Many of my leaders were Vietnam veterans. The “hollow” Army of the 70’s was full of 0 defect morons who falsely reported everything was good to go, 100% readiness across the boards. Through institutionalized training and the development of Officer and NCO professional development curriculum and better accountability through the 80’s we eradicated much of that mindset. Although I still recall a few draftee SGMs who had GT scores of 85 or so (morons) causing problems. (Project 100,000 recipients). I retired in 2004 knowing full well the Army was starting down a slippery slope as a result of social scientists meddling with the force. I stayed connected to SOCOM as a contractor for 20 more years, watching big Army go to hell and hoping the SOF bubba’s could avoid the madness. Jury is still out on that, but I’ve hung up my spurs for good. I wish Pete Hegseth and all those in harms way Godspeed. But I fear the Biden years and social scientists have laid the groundwork for another “hollow” Army. It may take generations to undo this insanity.”
“The mid level (CPT -MAJ) are the ones who are punching out and cutting sling early. If we can’t keep them we have issues later. It’s a multi faceted issue that will take some creativity to correct. Further exacerbated by the newly minted butter bars who’ve been indoctrinated at Hudson High and various institutions around the country via ROTC and the leftist / Marxist professors found therein.”
“Navy nuke who entered the Navy in 78. First day of nuke school the Chief said, “Gentlemen look to your left, now look to your right. Odds are one of them won’t make it through this program.” and he was right. 50% attrition rate was the norm. You can’t sacrifice the standards without hurting the program. It really is that simple.”
“The damage from DIE indoctrination runs deep. You can’t just wave a finger and tell them to go away. Woke Point cadets must comply or they are removed from the ranks. There are no exceptions and there is no defense. Once you are stamped as a racist, your career is over and there is no defense or support to fight the DIE cult. DIE has damaged the brain cells required to return these young Americans to normal. — Class of 81 grad”
“I joined the US Navy in 1978. When I joined, it was my intent to go at least 20 years. At the end of my first 4 year enlistment, I declined to re-enlist. Why? Because they had begun to put women into combat units. Before you start calling me ‘sexist’; understand that it wasn’t because I thought that women couldn’t do most of the jobs found in such units (except special forces units), it was because I understood how much of a detriment their presence would be to the military as a whole and how they would be treated differently than men. I was right. Women in today’s military are held to a different standard than male counterparts and they comprise a disproportionately greater number of complaints as a ratio of the percentage of their numbers.”
“Suggest you look at the Marine Corp Times article “Mixed Gender teams come up short in Marine’s infantry experiment” Sept. 10, 2015 Hope Hodge Seck. It spells it out very clearly that we endanger everyone by forcing woman into combat rolls by lowering standards. Every metric the all male unit outperformed the mixed gender unit and suffered fewer casualties in doing so. But damn the science, Obama wanted equity and now our military is paying a heavy price for such absurdity.”
“DEI is like a woke IED” Incorrect. An IED blows up once, where as DEI is more akin to cancer. Just like cancer, DEI can be cured. DJT has the treatment for the patient to survive, and like chemo, it will affect the body, but have faith, and America can, and will be cancer free.”
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