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MOAA MEMBER SERVICE CENTER REPRESENTATIVES WANT TO CHAT Over the past few months, MOAA’s Member Ser- vice Center (MSC) has implemented a live chat pilot program to communicate in a new way with website visitors. Live chat is a popular feature popping up on more and more websites. A live chat function is more convenient for some
members and allows them to continue surfing the web or focus on other activities while still having a real-time conversation. It usually is faster and less formal than email but does not require the attention a phone call might. MOAA member service representatives (MSRs)
are available to chat live Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Eastern time. Members can chat with MSRs about military benefits, MOAA member- ship information, and more. For more information or to speak with an MSR via live chat, visit
moaa.org/chat.
MOAA WELCOMES FORMER NAUS MEMBERS MOAA recently welcomed more than 2,000 former members of the Nation- al Association for Uni- formed Services (NAUS) into its membership. The membership
agreement with MOAA was approved by MOAA’s leadership last fall, and NAUS’ cessa- tion of operations occurred Dec. 31, 2016. MOAA membership was granted at no cost to the
currently serving, retired, and former officers within NAUS’ membership. “MOAA has had the privilege of working closely
with NAUS, and we have gained a great understanding of NAUS’ mission and position on key issues, which have been closely aligned with MOAA’s,” says MOAA President and CEO Lt. Gen. Dana T. Atkins, USAF (Ret). The membership arrangement enables former NAUS
members to take full advantage of all MOAA benefits such as first-in-class advocacy for the military com- munity and access to all MOAA publications, member programs, and products and services.
18 MILITARY OFFICER FEBRUARY 2017 In Review
How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything: Tales from the Pentagon. By Rosa Brooks. Simon & Schuster, 2016. $29.95. ISBN 978-1- 47677-786-3.
Senior Pentagon advisor Rosa Brooks pres- ents the best explanation yet for the U.S. mili- tary’s ever-expanding and confusing roles in areas best handled by civilian agencies — roles that adversely aff ect the military’s ability to fi ght and win wars. Brooks cautions readers that politicians and civil- ian bureaucrats who know nothing about war or the military believe the U.S. can and should solve all inter- national political, social, and economic problems. The predictably dangerous result is the drain on per- sonnel and resources and further dilution of national defense focus. She calls this quagmire the “militariza- tion of U.S. foreign policy.” Best, however, is her analysis of how the chang- ing nature of confl ict today has made the law of war more complex and ambigu- ous, clouding the legality of military actions: “We lose our collective ability to
place meaningful restraints on power and violence.”
Margin of Victory: Five Battles that Changed the Face of Modern War. By Douglas Macgregor. Naval Institute Press, 2016. $34.95. ISBN 978-1-61251-996-8.
Declaring “wars are
decided de- cades befor
Macgregor presents
fi ve dramatic battle stud- ies to illustrate the narrow margins between defeat and victory in war. His analysis of chosen battles reveals much about the relation- ship between military and political culture in critical wars of decision.
He relates how the Brit- ish victory at the Battle of Mons, Belgium, in 1914 was the result of industrial age preparation. Shanghai in 1937 showed why the Japa- nese failed to learn anything from their victory. Battle 73 Easting in Iraq in 1991 high- lighted American tactical and technical superiority as well as political failure to pursue decisive victory.
Macgregor’s recomenda-
tions are radical, including creation of a national mili- tary staff because “wars of decision are wars the [U.S.] cannot aff ord to lose.” — William D. Bushnell
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
cades before they begin,” Douglas
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