Letter to the Editor; Recent threat makes shrinking forces worrisome

To the Editor:

China is rapidly increasing the size and power of its military; we play softball with Iran, and Putin adds the Ukraine to his muscle. Meanwhile the shadow cast by the U.S. military is shrinking as is our credibility and deterrence that depends on it.

U.S. military spending on defense adjusted for inflation is higher than at the height of Reagan’s administration. It has been producing less than half of the forces and capabilities of those years. We had a 600-ship Navy then and now we have a 280-ship Navy. Reagan had a 20-division Army and now we have 10-division equivalents. Our...