Overview

Surveys show that the all-volunteer military is our most respected and trusted institution, but over the last thirty-five years it has grown estranged from civilian society. Without a draft, imperfect as it was, the military is no longer as representative of civilian society. Fewer people accept the obligation for military service, and a larger number lack the knowledge to be engaged participants in civilian control of the military.The end of the draft, however, is not the most important reason we have a significant civil-military gap today. A More Perfect Military explains how the Supreme Court used the cultural division of the Vietnam era to change the nature of our civil-military relations. The Supreme Court describes itself as a strong supporter of the military and its distinctive culture, but in the all-volunteer era, its decisions have consistently undermined the military's traditional relationship to law and the Constitution. Most people would never suspect there was anything wrong, but our civil-military relations are now as constitutionally fragile as they have ever been.A More Perfect Military is a bracingly candid assessment of the military's constitutional health. It crosses ideological and political boundaries and is challenging-even unsettling-to both liberal and conservative views. It is written for those who believe the military may be slipping away from our common national experience. This book is the blueprint for a new national conversation about military service.

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9780195394481

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Reviews

Should be recognized for encouraging thought about the military's relationship with society. --Proceedings A More Perfect Military is a fascinating look at the growing, subtle divide in civil-military relations. Professor Mazur is an ideal author for such a work-former active duty air force officer as well as tenured law professor-one of only two women in the nation with such a distinction. This timely work is a must read for policy makers, academics, and journalists seeking to better understand the unique role of the military and military leaders' roles, within our 21st century republic. --Captain Glenn Sulmasy, Professor of Law, United States Coast Guard Academy, and author of The National Security Court System In A More Perfect Military, one of our nation's most brilliant and relevant legal scholars deftly chronicles the emergence of a dangerous imbalance between the military and civil society. Mazur reminds us that blind faith in military judgment is not the same as genuine support for a strong military, much less a healthy civil-military relationship. She doesn't just assert her case; she proves it by showing how the Rehnquist Court invented a history that never existed, and spun out of whole cloth the doctrine of judicial deference to the military. Reversing the shopworn tale of liberal judicial activism, this book is a badly-needed cautionary tale of judicial abdication, and its real-life consequences. --Nathaniel Frank, Senior Research Fellow, Palm Center, University of California-Santa Barbara, and author of Unfriendly Fire In this brilliant and persuasive book, veteran military officer and law professor Diane Mazur advances an unpleasant but incontestable truth: that the courts (the Supreme Court in particular) have abandoned their duty to exercise judicial authority over the armed services as required by the Constitution of the United States. Judges and justices, political and military leaders, and above all the American people ignore the warnings in this towering work of scholarship-the most important book on civil-military relations in a decade-at their peril. --Richard H. Kohn, Professor of History and Peace, War, and Defense, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and former Chief of Air Force History for the USAF, 1981-1991 Finally! Someone has started the national conversation that will ultimately lead to a more effective U.S. Armed Force and a more secure nation. In A More Perfect Military, Diane Mazur asks the important questions that we as a nation have been afraid to ask. Bulldozing through politically correct barricades, this book addresses the issues that limit, rather than enhance, our nation's strength. You may not agree with every word, but you will be a better informed American for having read it. --John D. Hutson, Dean & President, Franklin Pierce Law Center Should be recognized for encouraging thought about the military's relationship with society. --Proceedings A More Perfect Military is a fascinating look at the growing, subtle divide in civil-military relations. Professor Mazur is an ideal author for such a work-former active duty air force officer as well as tenured law professor-one of only two women in the nation with such a distinction. This timely work is a must read for policy makers, academics, and journalists seeking to better understand the unique role of the military and military leaders' roles, within our 21st century republic. --Captain Glenn Sulmasy, Professor of Law, United States Coast Guard Academy, and author of The National Security Court System In A More Perfect Military, one of our nation's most brilliant and relevant legal scholars deftly chronicles the emergence of a dangerous imbalance between the military and civil society. Mazur reminds us that blind faith in military judgment is not the same as genuine support for a strong military, much less a healthy civil-military relationship. She doesn't just assert her case; she proves it by showing how the Rehnquist Court invented a history that never existed, and spun out of whole cloth the doctrine of judicial deference to the military. Reversing the shopworn tale of liberal judicial activism, this book is a badly-needed cautionary tale of judicial abdication, and its real-life consequences. --Nathaniel Frank, Senior Research Fellow, Palm Center, University of California-Santa Barbara, and author of Unfriendly Fire In this brilliant and persuasive book, veteran military officer and law professor Diane Mazur advances an unpleasant but incontestable truth: that the courts (the Supreme Court in particular) have abandoned their duty to exercise judicial authority over the armed services as required by the Constitution of the United States. Judges and justices, political and military leaders, and above all the American people ignore the warnings in this towering work of scholarship-the most important book on civil-military relations in a decade-at their peril. --Richard H. Kohn, Professor of History and Peace, War, and Defense, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and former Chief of Air Force History for the USAF, 1981-1991 Finally! Someone has started the national conversation that will ultimately lead to a more effective U.S. Armed Force and a more secure nation. In A More Perfect Military, Diane Mazur asks the important questions that we as a nation have been afraid to ask. Bulldozing through politically correct barricades, this book addresses the issues that limit, rather than enhance, our nation's strength. You may not agree with every word, but you will be a better informed American for having read it. --John D. Hutson, Dean & President, Franklin Pierce Law Center A More Perfect Military is a fascinating look at the growing, subtle divide in civil-military relations. Professor Mazur is an ideal author for such a work-former active duty air force officer as well as tenured law professor-one of only two women in the nation with such a distinction. This timely work is a must read for policy makers, academics, and journalists seeking to better understand the unique role of the military and military leaders' roles, within our 21st century republic. --Captain Glenn Sulmasy, author of The National Security Court System: A Natural Evolution of Justice in an Age of Terror In A More Perfect Military, one of our nation's most brilliant and relevant legal scholars deftly chronicles the emergence of a dangerous imbalance between the military and civil society. Mazur reminds us that blind faith in military judgment is not the same as genuine support for a strong military, much less a healthy civil-military relationship. She doesn't just assert h

<br> A More Perfect Military is a fascinating look at the growing, subtle divide in civil-military relations. Professor Mazur is an ideal author for such a work-former active duty air force officer as well as tenured law professor-one of only two women in the nation with such a distinction. This timely work is a must read for policy makers, academics, and journalists seeking to better understand the unique role of the military and military leaders' roles, within our 21st century republic. --Captain Glenn Sulmasy, author of The National Security Court System: A Natural Evolution of Justice in an Age of Terror <br> In A More Perfect Military, one of our nation's most brilliant and relevant legal scholars deftly chronicles the emergence of a dangerous imbalance between the military and civil society. Mazur reminds us that blind faith in military judgment is not the same as genuine support for a strong military, much less a healthy civil-military relationship. She doesn't just assert h

Should be recognized for encouraging thought about the military's relationship with society. --Proceedings A More Perfect Military is a fascinating look at the growing, subtle divide in civil-military relations. Professor Mazur is an ideal author for such a work-former active duty air force officer as well as tenured law professor-one of only two women in the nation with such a distinction. This timely work is a must read for policy makers, academics, and journalists seeking to better understand the unique role of the military and military leaders' roles, within our 21st century republic. --Captain Glenn Sulmasy, Professor of Law, United States Coast Guard Academy, and author of The National Security Court System In A More Perfect Military, one of our nation's most brilliant and relevant legal scholars deftly chronicles the emergence of a dangerous imbalance between the military and civil society. Mazur reminds us that blind faith in military judgment is not the same as genuine support for a strong military, much less a healthy civil-military relationship. She doesn't just assert her case; she proves it by showing how the Rehnquist Court invented a history that never existed, and spun out of whole cloth the doctrine of judicial deference to the military. Reversing the shopworn tale of liberal judicial activism, this book is a badly-needed cautionary tale of judicial abdication, and its real-life consequences. --Nathaniel Frank, Senior Research Fellow, Palm Center, University of California-Santa Barbara, and author of Unfriendly Fire In this brilliant and persuasive book, veteran military officer and law professor Diane Mazur advances an unpleasant but incontestable truth: that the courts (the Supreme Court in particular) have abandoned their duty to exercise judicial authority over the armed services as required by the Constitution of the United States. Judges and justices, political and military leaders, and above all the American people ignore the warnings in this towering work of scholarship-the most important book on civil-military relations in a decade-at their peril. --Richard H. Kohn, Professor of History and Peace, War, and Defense, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and former Chief of Air Force History for the USAF, 1981-1991 Finally! Someone has started the national conversation that will ultimately lead to a more effective U.S. Armed Force and a more secure nation. In A More Perfect Military, Diane Mazur asks the important questions that we as a nation have been afraid to ask. Bulldozing through politically correct barricades, this book addresses the issues that limit, rather than enhance, our nation's strength. You may not agree with every word, but you will be a better informed American for having read it. --John D. Hutson, Dean & President, Franklin Pierce Law Center

Author Information

Diane H. Mazur is a Professor of Law at the University of Florida and a former Air Force officer. She teaches courses in constitutional law, civil-military relations, evidence, and professional responsibility, and her research focuses on the constitutional, legal, and cultural relationship of the military to civilian society. She is an advisor to the National Institute of Military Justice, a senior editor of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy, and legal co-director of the Palm Center, a research organization studying military issues at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

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