Who is General Charles “CQ” Brown? He’s the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. So what? What does that have to do with anything? He’s also arguably more woke and dangerous to America’s national security than thankfully retired General “White Rage” Milley.  

Brown disgraced himself and his uniform during, and in support of, the Black Lives Matter race riots by releasing a video in which he ‘seemed to barely contain his rage’ while ranting ‘that the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution ‘that I’ve sworn my adult life to support and defend’ have not always delivered ‘liberty and equality’ to all.’

Graphic: MSNBC Screenshot

Serving military members, particularly general officers, aren’t supposed to support rioters or engage in politics. A white servicemember doing that—Brown is black—would have been dishonorably discharged. Brown was promoted. Under Democrats/socialist/communists (D/s/cs), useful functionaries fail upwards.

Brown is one of the foremost proponents of DEI, which he has imposed on the USAF with a vengeance. His policies are paying dividends beyond diversity, equity and inclusion, like running the Air Force short of thousands of pilots. That’s only a part of the serious recruiting problems our military is experiencing.

Our civilian and military “leaders” blame the recruiting crisis on any and everything but their DEI lunacy. That’s necessary for officers seeking promotion.

Traditionally, our military academies and ROTC programs seek the finest scholar-athletes they can find. Particularly for pilots, candidates highly proficient in STEM disciplines are highly sought after. DEI ensures the USAF won’t get those kinds of candidates.

The Center To Advance Security in America filed a FOIA request with the Air Force in 2023, seeking documents to prove Brown’s DEI focus, but as one might imagine, was stonewalled until recently.  

And no wonder. Brown is forcing the Air Force to directly discriminate against white officer candidates:

Graphic: AF Screenshot, public domain

One of the slides in question, labeled “AFROTC White,” depicts a graph that shows the percentage of white male ROTC officer applicants declining from approximately 60% in fiscal year 2019 to a projected 50% in fiscal year 2023. The graph further details how the Air Force’s goal is to reduce that percentage down to approximately 43% by fiscal year 2029, denoted by a star with the label “achieve(d) goal.”

And of course, the Air Force is also determined to get rid of as many men as possible:

Graphic: AF Screenshot, public domain

For example, with the African American population, the slideshow suggests the Air Force “target [the] male population through ongoing programs and marketing” and notes it has already met its “female goal” for ROTC officer applicants. For the American Indian, Asian, and Hispanic applicants, the slideshow says the Air Force is “on track to grow diversity.”

But so what? Aren’t there more than enough non-white, non-male Americans qualified and clamoring to become Air Force officers? Isn’t that true of every branch of our military?  Not so much:

Only approximately 57% of servicemembers or military families polled by the Military Family Advisory Network in 2023 said they’d recommend joining the service, compared to 74% in 2019. Among some of the reasons the respondents wouldn’t recommend service were the politically charged nature of the military, differences and divisions, and low pay, among others.

Traditionally, at all levels of rank, most Americans who have volunteered, fought, been wounded and died for their country have been southern and midwestern white males. This is not to in any way denigrate the contributions of others, but is merely a reflection of human nature and reality.

Shouldn’t America want as many non-white, non-male people in our military as possible? Only if they’re qualified, and federal law makes discrimination on the basis of gender and race unlawful. The military is currently arguing they must have an exception to the law for reasons of national security. Apparently, an insufficient number of drag queens, trans, and physically and intellectually unfit service members of any race or indeterminate gender is a danger to America. Where DEI holds sway, merit is out the window, which is why blatantly illegal and discriminatory race and gender mandates are the current order of battle.

It's a dangerous, misguided and un-American trend:  

In November, the annual defense survey by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute found that only a slim majority (51%) of Americans would recommend that family and friends join the military, while 33% would discourage military service.

The 51% figure was a significant decline from the results of the 2018 Reagan Foundation survey, when 70% said they would recommend joining the military. About half of the respondents to the foundation's survey attributed the decline to "so-called 'woke' practices undermining military effectiveness" and unit cohesion.

Most of those discouraging military service are military families. One wonders if that’s exactly what General Brown wants. If so, he’s getting it.

Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.