Last updated on April 8, 2021
Even though the members of the United States armed forces do exceptional work promoting the national interest and safeguarding the country against global threats, the military as an institution nonetheless suffers an occasional black eye for reported shortcomings in various spheres.
Sexual assault has been one prominent area of concern, for example, with critics — including a number of national legislators — pointing to sex crimes within the military as a persistent problem of troubling scope. Another concern has centered on the laxity of quality health care provided the nation’s vets. Still another has focused on incomes that materially challenge the ability of some military families to make ends meet.
Notwithstanding the negative press in some areas, there are also a number of areas where the military shines.
One of those might surprise some readers, namely, the military’s delivery of high quality child care to the sons and daughters of its servicemembers.
Former President Clinton has praised that care, and the military has been widely noted by other commentators as being a top-notch care provider. In fact, one recent media profile noted the “state-of-the-art daily care” rendered by hundreds of child development centers to more than 200,000 children. It calls such centers “the national standard bearers for quality of care.”
That shouldn’t be surprising, given that military parents — whether single, married or divorced — must routinely be in a state of readiness to perform duties on behalf of the country. Knowing that their children are well cared for while they are so engaged not only promotes their best interests, but those of all civilians as well.
