History and were doomed to repeat it

[Anomalocaris]

Actually, a good example of why one should restrict one's military in peacetime in order to force it to focus its mind on how to plan and forge doctrine that look ahead, maximize the quality of its personnel, and relies on  efficiency and effectiveness rather than mass and gold plating, is the interwar German army that was forced to remain at a tiny fraction of the sizes of its potential adversaries.

Uh, crap. The government wanted the locals to form militias and respond to emergencies like they were trained professionals based on a few training sessions each year. The plan was idiotic and proven as such.

And the military didn't have any thinkers who could have organized, trained and strategize better.
As I said, mediocre military asks for more money first.  Excellent military improves its effectiveness within the given budget first.