The United States Army Reserve is working hard with the U.S. Army to make the Base Realignment and Closure Commision (BRAC) recommendations fit.

Citizen Soldiers, by their very nature, live and work with their families all across homeland America.  Closing USAR Training Centers, the heart and soul of the USAR's organized hometown structure, is a work in progress to say the least.  At a time when the Acive Components and National Guard continue to maintain strong, fully operationsl state by state geographically positioned organizations, the USAR is rapidly eliminating and consolidating its previously geographically spead MACOM's, and as a consequence this has left many Reservists and their families even more remote from available support than before.  Many "work arounds" are being tried out, but the fact remains the Army is, in the considered opinion of most who have actually lived the Citizen Soldier experience, moving Reserve support farther from the very soldiers and their families who need and depend on "at hand" hometown support.  This is all happening now during a period of extended separations with the Army Reserves' Citizen Warrior repeatedly deploying more frequently, over a more protracted period, than in any previous war in our nations history. 



The Commission on the National Guard and Reserves' January 31, 2008 report to Congress recognizes the immense difficulties Rerservists face right now! 

    In part their reports cover letter states: ***
The Commission applauds Congress's timely and decisive action in implementing a number of these important provisions in the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act.
***
In conducting its work, the Commission has gathered information, analyzed evidence, identified significant problems facing the reserve components, and sought to offer the best possible recommendations to solve the problems identified.
***
At the core of these changes is the explicit recognition of the evolution of the reserve components from purely strategic forces, with lengthy mobilization times designed to meet Cold War threats from large nation-states, to an operational force.  This operational reserve must be readily available for emergencies at home and abroad, and more fully integrated with the active component.  Simultaneously, this force must retain required startegic elements and capabilities.
***
The Commission concludes that there is no reasonable alternative to the nation's continued increased reliance on reserve components as a part of its operational force for missions at home and abroad.  However, the Commission also concludes that this change from their Cold War posture necessitates fundamental reforms to reserve component's homeland roles and missions, personnel management systems, equipping and training policies, policies affecting families and employers, and the organizations and structures used to manage the reserves.
***
These reforms are essential to ensure that this operational reserve is feasible in the short term while sustainable over the long term.  In fact, the future of the all-volunteer force depends for its success on policymakers' undertaking needed reforms to ensure that the reserve components are ready, capable, and available for both operational and stretegic purposes.
***
In reviewing the past several decades of intense use of the reserve components, most notably as a integral part of operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the homeland, the Commission has found indisputable and overwhelming evidence of the need for policymakers and the military to break with outdated policies and processes and implement fundamental, thorough reforms in these areas.  The members of this Commission share tis view unanimously.
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There are some costs associated with these recommendations, but the problems are serious, the need to address them is urgent, and the benefits of the reforms we identify more than exceed the expense of imlementing them.
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These issues are extremely complex, and people of good character and conscience will disagree with some of the solutions we propose.  That is to be expected.

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Editors Note: More to follow on these critical, and life altering recommendations.