Active Army and the Reserve Components: A Not So Silent War

摘要

The history of the relationship between the active Army, National Guard and theArmy Reserve has been a long series of disagreements, misunderstandings and distrust. Numerous rifts have occurred during this history that have sometimes made it difficult for these organizations to work together as equal partners in defense of the United States. Historically, these rifts have revolved around the roles that each of the components play in war and peace. The angst of each component keeps the rifts alive under the surface and allows them to break out with the least provocation based on perceived inequities. In 1990, a rift between the Army and the reserve components opened that has not been healed to this day. This rift unlike the previous rifts has escalated for seven years and has damaged the relationship between the forces perhaps beyond repair. This paper examines the history of past rifts and the evolution of the current rift. In order to determine if the components will be able to return to a reasonable accommodation that will allow them to become the Total Force that will be necessary during this time of budget cuts and down-sizing that appears to be the future of our armed forces.