What are the pros and cons of a militia?

Question

I need 3 pros and 3 cons about militias....

best answer = 10 points

Answer 1

Pros

I could break this into multiple points, but it all boils down to 1.  They're cheap

Cons

Poorly disciplined.

Poorly equipped.

Poorly trained.

You never know how many you're going to get to actually turn out.

Answer 2

Pros:

1.  Militia cost far less on a regular basis than professional, standing forces.

2.  Because of their large numbers and because they tend to be wherever there are populations, each town and county has its own on-site defense force.  Professional, conventional forces might take time to arrive on the scene of a threat, whereas militias tend to have much shorter local response times.

3.  Because they come from the area they operate in, they often have superior knowledge of the terrain, the roads and trails, the normal animal patterns, how to deal with the normal weather, and they very often have excellent sources of intelligence, because everybody knows somebody in each town or area.

Cons:

1.  Lack of frequent and arduous training means the militia forces are very often much less trained for battle.

2.  Because of their close ties to the communities, they may be less likely to act in a detached professional manner in certain cases, and may be drawn into traps.

3.  Discipline, like training is developed by frequent repetition, and is almost always lacking in militia forces, as compared to conventional forces.  This lack of discipline makes the militia often unreliable in terms of following orders or standing their ground.

4.  The best Pro for a militia is it's inexpensive nature.  However, as a result of that same lack of funds, militia equipment is usually outdated and may be of low quality.  The lack of training and discipline feed into this by causing what equipment militias are given to often be poorly maintained or inexpertly operated.