In Depth Show Blog – Aug. 21, 2013

A military without an Air Force doesn’t necessarily mean a military without air power. That’s the argument Robert Farley, assistant professor at the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce at the University of Kentucky, makes in a forthcoming book and a recent op-ed that’s getting attention from Air Force boosters. He says having a separate branch of the military dedicated to aviation makes just as much sense as splitting off tanks or submarines into their own separate services. He says it’s time to abolish the Air Force.

The struggle to deliver growing benefit claims in a timely fashion at the Veterans Affairs Department is a tough hurdle to overcome. And senior VA officials are accustomed to taking heat on Capitol Hill for the pace at which they’ve modernized their systems and business practices and the time it’s taking to reduce the compensation claim backlog. But in a recent op-ed for the new online publication Defense One, Alexander Nicholson, legislative director at Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America, says it’s time to stop thinking about VA’s problems as isolated to that department and the veterans they serve today. He says VA’s issues are deeply interwoven into the future state of the military.

Earlier on today’s show, In Depth previously explored an idea to phase out the Air Force with Professor Robert Farley from the University of Kentucky. But not everyone agrees the Air Force is as redundant as he describes. Michael Auslin, resident scholar and director of Japan studies at the American Enterprise Institute, wrote a rebuttal to Professor Farley in Breaking Defense.

Summer is winding down and the school year’s getting started, and for military bases that means welcoming back students to schools all around the world. Adrian Talley, principal deputy director and associate director for education for the Department of Defense Education Activity, explains what the start of the school year means for DODEA schools. Alongside dealing with sequestration, the agency is working on some educational initiatives to bring science, technology engineering and math skills into the classroom.

The Defense Department is expanding the number and types of devices that are covered under its cybersecurity regulations. DoD’s chief information officer will release the new regs in October. Federal News Radio’s Jason Miller joins In Depth with a sneak peak at DoD’s new cyber directives.