by Christine E. Black, Global Research:

Dying throes of U.S. militarism, with post-covid trauma and malaise, display themselves in Fayetteville, North Carolina this December as I travel there on a Friday for a Saturday meeting.

Fort Bragg is there, which is one of the largest military bases in the world.  My meeting is with a group I volunteer with that counsels military members and veterans, takes calls from those who need help, and directs them to services. 

In the past few years, the U.S. military has failed to meet its recruitment goals, according to U.S. news outlets. International outlets, like Al Jazeera, also report on the shortages. Young people’s poor mental and physical health, learning losses, and lack of confidence in the U.S. government and the military have all been blamed for lagging recruitment. The recent Covid period worsened all these problems.