1.

THE CORPORATE PENTAGON
By Jim Hightower

Jim Hightower -- America’s #1 Populist!
April 10, 2006

http://www.jimhightower.com/node/5772

Thanks to a vigilant reader, I've come across the website of America's largest, oldest, busiest, and most successful corporation. At least, that's how this outfit defines itself.

It is not Wal-Mart, Exxon Mobil, or GM -- it's the Pentagon. Go to www.defenselink.mil and you'll find "DoD 101: An introductory overview of the Department of Defense." This official site presents the U.S. military not as a government agency, but as a corporation.

The Pentagon puffs itself up like a corporation running an image ad. It brags that the DoD is "the nation's largest employer" with more than two million employees, and that it has the highest level of annual revenues of any company in the country. The site points out that DoD Inc. far outdistances such competitors as Wal-Mart, the number two employer and revenue generator.

In a section titled "Who we work for," the Pentagon goes completely corporate: "Our chief executive officer is the President of the United States," it declares. "Congress . . . acts as our board of directors." And -- get this one -- "our stockholders are the American people."

Excuse me, but in our democratic society government is not a business, it's a government. It has very broad and deep democratic responsibilities that no corporation can achieve. By their very nature, corporations are top-down, hierarchical operations that exist not to serve the public good, but to profit the few. They are anti-democratic, excluding the vast majority of people (including shareholders) from decision-making. They operate in a closed culture of secrecy and are aggressive expansionists, relying on PR, lawyers, and lobbyists to cover up their waste, fraud, corruption, environmental contamination, and abuse of people.

This is Jim Hightower saying . . . The corporate model is anathema to a free, just, democratic society -- and it's both telling and damning that the Bushites view the Pentagon as a corporate entity.

--Sources: "Pentagon defines itself through corporate analogy on its website," www.defenselink.mil, January 5, 2006.

2.

DoD 101: AN INTRODUCTORY OVERVIEW OF THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

[N.d.; the earliest indication of the web address is dated Feb. 19, 2003 on the Internet Archive]

http://www.defenselink.mil/pubs/dod101/dod101_for_2002.html

WELCOME TO THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

WE ARE AMERICA’S

--Oldest company
--Largest company
--Busiest company
--Most successful company

With our military units tracing their roots to pre-Revolutionary times, you might say that we are America’s oldest company.

And if you look at us in business terms, many would say we are not only America’s largest company, but its busiest and most successful.

HOW WE EVOLVED

The Army, Navy, and Marine Corps were established in 1775, in concurrence with the American Revolution. The War Department was established in 1789, and was the precursor to what is now the Department of Defense.

The Department of the Navy, and the U.S. Coast Guard, were founded in 1798.

Congress, in 1947, established a civilian, Cabinet-level Secretary of Defense to oversee an also newly created National Military Establishment.

The U.S. Air Force was also created, along with a new Department of the Air Force. The War Department was converted to the Department of the Army.

Finally, the three services, Army, Navy, and Air Force, were placed under the direct control of the new Secretary of Defense.

In 1949, an amendment to the Act consolidated further the national defense structure, creating what we now know as the Department of Defense, and withdrawing cabinet-level status for the three Service secretaries.

5.3 MILLION STRONG

With approximately one-point-four million men and women on active duty, and about six hundred fifty-four thousand civilian personnel, we are the nation's largest employer. Another one-point-two million serve in the National Guard and Reserve forces.About two million military retirees and military family members receive benefits.

This is based on April 2002 data.

OUR GLOBAL INFRASTRUCTURE

This nation’s security depends on our defense installations and facilities being available at the right place and at the right time and very capable (with the right qualities and capacities) of protecting our national resources. Those resources have never been more important than in today’s environment where America must fight terrorists who would plan and carry out attacks on our facilities and our people.

The Defense Department manages a comprehensive inventory of installations and facilities to ensure our nation has all the assets necessary to keep Americans safe. The Department’s physical plant is huge by any standard, consisting of more than 600,000 individual buildings and structures located at more than 6,000 different locations or sites. When all sites are added together, the Department utilizes over 30 million acres of land.

These sites range from those very small in size such as unoccupied sites supporting a single navigational aid that sit on less than one-half acre, to the Army’s vast White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico with over 3.6 million acres, or the Navy’s large complex of installations at Norfolk, Virginia with over 71,000 employees.

This is based on data from August 2002.

WORLDWIDE PRESENCE

Today we have employees located in more than 146 countries; some 473,881 troops and civilians are overseas both afloat and ashore. We operate in every time zone and in every climate.

Numbers are from April 2002

IN COMPARISON . . .

In terms of people and operations, we’re busier than just about all of the nation’s largest private sector companies.

The Department of Defense has a budget of three hundred seventy-one billion dollars and more than two million employees; Wal-Mart has a budget of about two hundred twenty-seven billion dollars and employs about one-point-three million people; Exxon-Mobil has a budget of two hundred billion dollars and employs almost ninety-eight thousand; the GM company budget equals one hundred eighty-one billion dollars, it has a workforce of three-hundred sixty-five thousand people; and Ford has a budget of one-hundred sixty billion dollars, and employs three-hundred fifty-four thousand, four hundred people.

This information is based on 2002 data from the Department of Defense and company reports.

WE HIRE THE BEST

The Department of Defense mission is accomplished seeking out our nation’s best and brightest. Ninety-five percent of our employees have high school diplomas versus seventy-nine percent of the national work force; five-point-six percent of our troops have masters degrees versus four-point-nine percent of the national work force.

This information is based on March 2000 data; more detailed information is available at the U.S. Census Bureau website.

Work Force data is based on the total population fifteen years of age and older.

WE INSTILL VALUES

Even with top notch recruits we would not be successful if we didn’t provide leadership, professional development, and technical training throughout their careers; we constantly build and reinforce core values that everyone wearing a uniform must live by: duty, integrity, ethics, honor, courage, and loyalty. Our core values are leadership, professionalism, and technical know-how.

WHO WE WORK FOR

THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER:

Our chief executive officer is the President of the United States. Along with the Secretary of Defense and the National Security Council, the President determines the security needs of the nation, and then take courses of action to ensure that they are met. The President, in the constitutional role as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, is the senior military authority in the nation and as such is ultimately responsible for the protection of the United States from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

As part of the Constitution’s system of checks and balances, our budget must be approved by the U.S. Congress, which acts as our board of directors. We accomplish this by working with various committees of both houses, primarily those dealing with funding, military operations, and intelligence. Their decisions affect our well being and range from setting civilian pay raises to funding major troop deployments.

THE STOCKHOLDERS:

If the President is our CEO, and the Congress is our Board of Directors, then our stockholders are the American people.

Our stockholders know us pretty well. Almost everyone has had a family member or friend who either works for us now, or used to.

We exist to protect these citizen stockholders, for without their support we would be out of business.

HOW WE’RE ORGANIZED

Directions for military operations emanate from the National Command Authority, a term used to collectively describe the President and the Secretary of Defense. The President, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, is the ultimate authority. The Office of the Secretary of Defense carries out the Secretary’s policies by tasking the military departments, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the unified commands.

The military departments train and equip the military forces.

The Chairman plans and coordinates military deployments and operations.

The unified commands conduct the military operations.

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

The Office of the Secretary of Defense helps the Secretary plan, advise, and carry out the nation’s security policies as directed by both the Secretary of Defense and the President.

Four key advisers work with the Secretary of Defense in critical areas of policy, finance, force readiness, and purchasing.

Basically, they manage ideas, money, people, and material.

POLICY

Our coordinator for ideas, formulates national security and defense policy and integrates policies and plans to achieve security objectives.

FINANCE

Our chief financial officer, oversees our budgetary and fiscal matters, conducts program analysis and evaluation, and oversees programs to improve general management.

FORCE READINESS

Our force readiness director, or “people” person, oversees personnel management; the National Guard and Reserve; health affairs; training; and personnel requirements and management, to include equal opportunity, morale, welfare, and quality of life issues.

PURCHASING

The Purchasing Director oversees all matters relating to buying, researching, testing, producing, and moving material goods, advises on the use of new technology, protects the environment, and controls the Department’s use of atomic energy.

SERVICES TRAIN AND EQUIP

We train and equip the armed forces through our three military departments: the Army, Navy and Air Force. The Marine Corps, mainly an amphibious force, is part of the Department of the Navy. The primary job of the military departments is to train and equip their personnel to perform warfighting, peacekeeping and humanitarian/disaster assistance tasks.

ARMY

The Army defends the land mass of the United States, its territories, commonwealths, and possessions; it operates in more than 50 countries.

NAVY

The Navy maintains, trains, and equips combat-ready maritime forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression, and maintaining freedom of the seas.

The U.S. Navy is America’s forward deployed force and is a major deterrent to aggression around the world. Our aircraft carriers, stationed in hotspots that include the Far East, the Persian Gulf, and the Mediterranean Sea, provide a quick response to crises worldwide.

MARINE CORPS

The U.S. Marine Corps maintains ready expeditionary forces, sea-based and integrated air-ground units for contingency and combat operations, and the means to stabilize or contain international disturbance.

AIR FORCE

The Air Force provides a rapid, flexible, and when necessary, a lethal air and space capability that can deliver forces anywhere in the world in less than forty-eight hours; it routinely participates in peacekeeping, humanitarian, and aeromedical evacuation missions, and actively patrols the skies above Iraq Bosnia. Air Force crews annually fly missions into all but five nations of the world.

COAST GUARD

The U.S. Coast Guard provides law and maritime safety enforcement, marine and environmental protection, and military naval support.

The Coast Guard is part of the Department of Transportation during peacetime, but becomes part of the Navy's force in times of war. It provides unique, critical maritime support, patrolling our shores, performing emergency rescue operations, containing and cleaning up oil spills, and keeping billions of dollars worth of illegal drugs from flooding American communities.

GUARD & RESERVE

The National Guard and Reserve forces provide wartime military support. They are essential to humanitarian and peacekeeping operations, and are integral to the Homeland Security mission.

Our National Guard and Reserve forces are taking on new and more important roles, at home and abroad, as we transform our national military strategy. Their personal ties to local communities are the perfect fit for these emerging missions.

OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN, JCS

An all-service, or “joint” service office supports the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in his capacity as the principal military advisor to the President, the National Security Council, and the Secretary of Defense.

Its “board of directors” consists of the Chairman, his deputy, the Vice Chairman, and the four-star heads of the four military services.

The Chairman plans and coordinates military operations involving U.S. forces and as such is responsible for the operation of the National Military Command Center, commonly referred to as the “war room,” from where all U.S. military operations are directed. He meets regularly with the four Service chiefs to resolve issues and coordinate joint service activities.

UNIFIED COMMANDS

The unified commands are the direct link from the military forces to the President and the Secretary of Defense.

Five commands have geographical responsibilities.

Four commands have worldwide responsibilities.

The Secretary of Defense exercises his authority over how the military is trained and equipped through the Service secretaries; but uses a totally different method to exercise his authority to deploy troops and exercise military power. This latter authority is directed, with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to the nine unified commands.

The Unified Command Plan to be established October 1, 2002, will ready the U.S. force for the domestic and international contingencies of the 21st century.

EUROPEAN COMMAND

European Command covers more than 13 million square miles and includes 93 countries and territories, to include Iceland, Greenland, the Azores, more than half of the Atlantic ocean, the Caspian sea, and Russia.

This territory extends from the North Cape of Norway, through the waters of the Baltic and Mediterranean seas, most of Europe, and parts of the Middle East to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.

For detailed information about U.S. European Command please visit http://www.eucom.mil

NORTHERN COMMAND

Northern Command oversees the defense of the continental United States, coordinates security and military relationships with Canada and Mexico, and direct military assistance to U.S. civil authorities.

For detailed information about U.S. Northern Command please visit http://www.northcom.mil

CENTRAL COMMAND

Central Command oversees the balance of the Mid-East, parts of Africa and west Asia, and part of the Indian Ocean.

For detailed information about U.S. Central Command please visit http://www.centcom.mil

SOUTHERN COMMAND

Southern Command guards U.S. interests in the southern hemisphere, including Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

For detailed information about U.S. Southern Command please visit http://www.southcom.mil

PACIFIC COMMAND

Pacific Command covers 50 percent of the Earth's surface including Southwest Asia, Australia and shares with U.S. Northern Command responsibility for Alaska.

For detailed information about U.S. Pacific Command please visit http://www.pacom.mil

JOINT FORCES COMMAND

Joint Forces Command is the “transformation laboratory” for the U.S. military, in this capacity it searches for promising alternative solutions for future operations through joint concept development and experimentation; defines enhancements to joint warfighting requirements; develops joint warfighting capabilities through joint training and solutions; and delivers joint forces and capabilities to warfighting commanders.

For detailed information about U.S. Joint Forces Command please visit http://www.jfcom.mil

STRATEGIC COMMAND

Strategic Command is responsible for controlling space; deterring attacks on the United States and its allies, launching and operating the satellites systems that support our forces worldwide and should deterrence fail, directing the use of our strategic forces.

The Unified Command Plan for 2002 merged the former Space Command with Strategic Command.

For detailed information about U.S. Strategic Command please visit http://www.stratcom.mil

SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND

responsible for special military support. [sic]

For detailed information about U.S. Special Operations Command please visit http://www.socom.mil

TRANSPORTATION COMMAND

Transportation Command moves materials and people around the world.

For detailed information about U.S. Transportation Command please visit http://www.transcom.mil

SEPTEMBER 11, 2001: DAY OF TERROR

“Today, our fellow citizens, our way of life, our very freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts. The victims were in airplanes, or in their offices; secretaries, businessmen and women, military and federal workers; moms and dads, friends and neighbors. Thousands of lives were suddenly ended by evil, despicable acts of terror,” President George W. Bush said in his address to the nation on September 11th, 2001.

On September 11th, 2001, terrorists attacked the United States of America and the civilized world.

OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM

“As the men and women of America's armed forces, you are the sharp sword of freedom. You fight without pause and complaint on foreign seas and in dangerous skies,” Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld said in a message to Department of Defense Personnel on October 9th, 2001.

Secretary Rumsfeld and his team advise the President, who is Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, in directing the war on international terrorism.

Our goals in Operation Enduring Freedom are to communicate that supporting terrorism carries a steep price; acquire intelligence; develop friendly relationships; eliminate terror operations; deny enemy access to offensive systems; and provide humanitarian relief.

On October 7, 2001, less than one month after America was attacked, the Armed Forces of the United States engaged international terrorism.

This data is from a DOD News Release dated October 7th, 2001.

WAR ON TERROR: THE COALITION

Citizens from more than 80 nations were killed on Sept. 11, 2001.

The coalition of coalitions in the war against terrorism has grown from 50 to 70 nations; the forces of 24 nations operate inside Afghanistan; and about seventy-one thousand U.S. and coalition troops operate within the Central Command’s area of responsibility.

Up to seventy nations are fighting terrorism worldwide.

Though there has been significant progress, the war on terror continues.

This information is from an American Forces Press Service article, dated July 31st , 2001, titled "Rumsfeld, Franks Update Congress on Terror War Progress."

PROGRESS IN AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban regime is out of power and the al-Qaeda senior terrorist leadership is in disarray.

Forty-nine schools are rebuilt, and thirty-thousand boys and girls back in school.

The children of Afghanistan have held their first Little League baseball game.

Five-hundred-thousand metric tons of food delivered, enough to feed almost seven million Afghans.

The United States and its coalition allies have removed the dictatorship of terror from Afghanistan, where children are now free and eager to get back to school.

This information is from an American Forces Press Service article, dated July 31st, 2001, titled "Rumsfeld, Franks Update Congress on Terror War Progress."

AFGHANISTAN: MOVING FORWARD

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) aids in developing Afghanistan's new security structures and assists with the reconstruction effort. It also helps to train the new Afghanistan National Army.

The war on terrorism in Afghanistan and across the globe continues.

Members of the Coalition are helping the leadership in Afghanistan to assemble the ability to defend itself from terrorism and other threats to the national security.

HOMELAND SECURITY

The DoD Homeland Security mission encompasses traditional military missions, such as combat air patrols and maritime defense operations; helping to coordinate emergency response to the aftermath of attacks and natural disasters; and provides special event security support.

The Armed Forces are ready to play their role in Homeland Security.

This information is from testimony by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, July 11th, 2002.

THE PHOENIX PROJECT

The Phoenix Project is the name for the Pentagon's restoration and reconstruction effort.

On September 11th, 2001, Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon at 9:38 a.m., damaging the C, D, and E Rings of Corridors four and five; approximately four hundred thousand square feet.

On November 19th, 2001, with the demolition of the remaining damaged structure completed more than four weeks ahead of schedule, reconstruction was underway.

On February 25th, 2002, the first new slab of limestone was placed on the face of the Pentagon.

On April 15th, 2002, more than one-point-four million man hours were clocked for the Phoenix Project.

The Phoenix Project will restore the area of the Pentagon damaged in the terrorist attacks on the United States.

On June 11th, 2002, a discolored limestone block, one of the original pieces from the Pentagon's west wall impact site was set to cover a dedication capsule inside the new wall.

On September 11th, 2002, the E-ring offices at the point of contact will be fully reoccupied.

In Spring 2003, the areas damaged in attack will be fully restored.

“Let’s Roll!” these are the words Mr. Todd Beamer said prior to the successful effort by him, and other heroic passengers of Flight 93, to stop it from becoming the fourth civilian airliner used as a weapon that day. Mr. Beamer and his fellow passengers reportedly overpowered the terrorists, forcing them to crash the hijacked plane in a Pennsylvania field before it could reach its target.

WHAT WE DO

--Warfighting
--Humanitarian
--Peacekeeping
--Evacuation
--Homeland Security

We are warfighters first and as such have no peers.

And with the same dedication and patriotism we are proud to be performing a variety of other very important missions for the American people and our allies around the world.

Whether it’s saving lives, protecting property or keeping the peace, the U.S. military stands at the ready to keep America strong and free.

OUR MOST IMPORTANT RESOURCE

It’s not tanks, planes or ships, it’s... People

We will never compromise on the quality of our most important resource: the people who have chosen to serve you and serve the nation.

They are your sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives. People of whom we are very proud.

These are the best of America.

OUT BOTTOM LINE

To provide the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the security of the United States.

Everything we do supports that primary mission.

Nothing less is acceptable to us, or to the American people.

THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Thank you for spending time with us. Are there any questions?