The Secretary of Defense recently stated that the military services need to reduce the number of general officers and admirals now serving. He thinks, as apparently others do as well, that there are too many of these positions, as well as a corresponding number of higher headquarters where these individuals are assigned. I wish the SecDef well in this effort, but I won't hold my breath until something happens.
Personally, I agree with his assessment. I've always wondered why the Army needed so many generals, when lower ranking individuals have always been fully capable of performing the oversight these "generalists" are designed to perform. I've seen it first hand many times when colonels, for example, stepped into a BG billet and did quite well—sometimes for years. But, as the military has continued to "transform"itself over the past ten years or so, it seems to me there has been a creeping trend to create more higher level executive positions, and associated headquarters elements—with their excessive Powerpoint presentations to keep those at the very top informed. "Powerpoint"...now there's another story to comment on sometime.
Like I mentioned earlier, this is going to be a thorny issue for the SecDef to deal with. Lots of resistance just waiting to pop out. Again, I wish him well.
