Military Professionalism - United States Air Force Academy

FOREIGN MILITARIES
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Australia
Lyon, Rod. “Civil-Military Relations in an Age of Terror.” Paper prepared for the
Australian-American Fulbright Symposium held at the University of
Queensland, Brisbane, Jul. 5-7, 2004.
http://ics.leeds.ac.uk/papers/pmt/exhibits/2290/lyon.pdf
The age of terror poses a series of challenges to the orthodox model of Western civilmilitary
relations. This paper investigates three particular challenges: the changing
security environment, issues relating to the use of force, and issues relating to the role of
Western militaries in the reconstruction of weak and failed states. The changing security
environment is characterized by the semi-permanent focus on the current War on Terror,
a condition that is outside the current paradigm of threat environments. Issues relating to
the use of force are characterized by the practical and political difficulties in bringing
military power to bear against transnational terrorist structures. Counter-terrorism is
essentially a form of limited warfare, and as such will provide frequent opportunities for
civilians and militaries to rehearse their different perspectives on the utility of force.
Issues of reconstruction are characterized by Western militaries’ role expansion, inviting
new concerns about whether Western militaries are in fact being dragged in the direction
of “new professionalism.” The paper argues that in relation to each of these challenges an
increase in civil-military tensions in Western societies should be expected. It further
asserts that the cumulative impact of those heightened tensions across all three areas may
be of such a magnitude as to drive Western societies towards new models of military
organization and civil-military affairs.
Canada
Donovan, Gill. “Military Chaplains Consider Same-Sex Ceremonies.” National
Catholic Reporter 39.25 (Apr. 25, 2003): 11.
Military chaplains are considering offering same-sex marriage ceremonies as a gesture to
help homosexuals in the military feel more at ease in the Canadian Armed Forces.
English, John A.. Lament for an Army: The Decline of Canadian Military
Professionalism. Toronto, Canada: Irwin Publishing, 1998.
Professionalism involves superior knowledge, practical expertise, and a sense of
corporate responsibility. The officer corps should be made up of leaders who have been
educated and trained so that they are imbued with broad conceptual knowledge, handson-expertise,
and a deep-seated sense of obligation. Canadian military professionalism is
declining. During peace time, public support for funding a large military declines, and
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