Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.
Issue link: https://militarypolice.epubxp.com/i/383260
2 MILITARY POLICE . 19-14-2 Brigadier General Mark S. Spindler Chief, Military Police Corps Regiment, and Commandant, U.S. Army Military Police School Priority Two: Force Design and Construct—Opportunity is Knocking "Given the fundamental premise that people are the center of all national engagements, it is equally self-evident that war, or more broadly, confict, is also an inherently human endeavor." —"Strategic Landpower: Winning the Clash of Wills" 1 T he top three priorities for the Military Police Corps Regiment are: leader development, force design and construct, and the military police profession. In the Spring 2014 issue of Military Police, I discussed priority one, leader development. 2 In this issue, I am addressing priority two, force design and construct. Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a conference where the Chief of Staff of the Army discussed a number of issues that will impact the Army of tomorrow. Of particular note were his thoughts on future organizational design in a time of diminishing resources and pending force reduction. The discussion highlighted many of the new technological developments and creative organizational constructs that are currently under consideration and the discriminate strike capability that will be imperative in minimizing counterproductive adversarial responses and winning the clash of wills. The Chief of Staff of the Army stated, "It is the Soldier that is the most discriminate weapon on the battlefeld," emphasizing that neither developing technology nor new organizational design can mitigate or replace what the Soldier brings to the battlefeld—namely, an instinctive understanding of the operating conditions and intuition about human behavior. We can no longer engage in confict without ". . . fully considering the physical, cultural, and social environments that comprise what some have called the 'human domain.' " 3 In my biased opinion, military police professionals have more capability and capacity to attend to human complexities and behaviors than any other branch of Service within the ground forces. That's what we do! And we do it 24/7 at our posts, camps, and stations and throughout all contingency operations. As warrior police, we understand the importance and consequences of the discriminate use of power and force and the impact it has on human behavior. Our senior leaders will soon need to make diffcult decisions regarding the resizing and reshaping of the future force. Our Regiment will certainly need to be prepared to take our share of probable reductions to meet prescribed force levels— and we will be. Some say this is the inevitable consequence of considerable military police force structure growth over the last decade. Maybe. But rather than view this as a penalty of sorts, I suggest that we embrace it as an opportunity to help our senior leaders make informed decisions about the proper shape and design of the military police force needed for Army 2020 and beyond. As leaders, we must meet Army priorities frst—then attend to our regimental prerogatives. We need to be honest with ourselves in these assessments, and we must accurately advise senior leaders about where possible force reductions can be made to meet prescribed force levels. This will not be pleasant, but it is the right approach. Having said that, we must continue to demonstrate and advocate the irreplaceable capabilities and skills that military police bring to the operational environment—and I know that you are. Everywhere I go, senior leaders boast of the remarkable competence and professionalism of our troops, how well they are led, and how valuable they are to the mission and the team. Keep it up. Keep engaging your leaders and promoting the merits and capabilities of the Corps. Continue to train, mentor, and lead the most skilled and professional Military Police Corps our Army has ever known. And let's use this opportunity to build the force that the Army needs, a force that we want, and a force that will never falter in its mission to assist, protect, and defend! (continued on page 17) ". . . we must continue to demonstrate and advocate the irreplaceable capabilities and skills that military police bring to the operational environment . . ."