Comments by "LancesArmorStriking" (@LancesArmorStriking) on "Can Europe Actually Spend 5% of GDP on Defence?" video.

@Lucas166silva I question your distinction. The US never had to face a peer adversary. Shock and awe might work against Iraq, but Russia? Or China? Tactics would have to change to accomodate the materiel requirements. Subduing an enormous landmass with hundreds of factories simply isn't possible with the "high quality" approach you're chirping about. Ironically, the US used a very Soviet-style tactic (overwhelming the enemy with sheer numbers) to defeat Japan— and THEIR lightning tactics only worked against a weakened China (comparable to Iraq in the earlier example). The only one I'd give credit to is Germany, but that's because it was the first of its kind and even then, it was eventually worn down by the Russian tactical style. War is shaped by the environment it's waged in, there is no "higher" or "lower" quality, just well-adapted or poorly-adapted for its circumstances.
1