Why troops need political context in the field

Does political education make troops more loyal, or does it mostly waste their time?

Its value here is informed judgment: properly briefed troops can respond faster when the situation does not match a prepared rule.

Political education is assessed here by whether it helps soldiers understand the situation into which they are being sent. The preparation includes the force's wider political aims and strategy. When an unfamiliar problem has no ready answer in the rules of engagement, that context supports an informed judgment call. Fewer routine requests for permission allow a quicker response and reduce opportunities for an opponent to get inside the force's operational control loop.