Author Archives: Douglas R. Satterfield
[February 10, 2016] A recent discovery of ancient bones, weapons, and other combat gear from the First Century B.C. has shed new light on Julius Caesar’s conquest of what today is northern Europe.1 Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman statesman, general, author, and dictator. His conquests on the battlefield and his subsequent political successes have made him famous… Read More »
[February 9, 2016] These pages could easily be filled with anecdotes of leaders who made a major decision without fully contemplating the requirements to do so. Those failures, and sometimes successes, can be spectacular much like General Armstrong Custer’s decisions and subsequent massacre at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The lesson for leaders is: ready, aim, fire.… Read More »
[February 8, 2016] Winning in professional sports, like most other activities, means having a great team, a well-developed plan, and in-synch leadership. The Denver Broncos won Super Bowl 50 last night where it all came together for them and defense played a dominate role in the outcome. But it also showed the difference in quarterback leadership styles; one… Read More »
[February 8, 2016] If we look back to the time when the American Indian was strong in what is now the United States, they can be found devoting much of daily lives turning their young children into good men and women. Turning boys into men was a particularly important affair since they would become the protectors of the… Read More »
[February 7, 2016] It is rare that anyone of us today would find ourselves in such a situation that physical courage was necessary. We normally think of it in the context of soldiers in wartime or of police and firefighters containing a dangerous situation. And yet, having to willingly decide between death, injury, danger, and pain, many people… Read More »
[February 6, 2016] Teenagers are good at picking up on life’s little lessons. Many of us do this through odd jobs while growing up and some of us were lucky enough to have a job that reinforces positive behaviors. One of my jobs while living in northeast Louisiana was pig pen cleaning on my neighbor’s farm.1 My classmates… Read More »
[February 5, 2016] In the military one of the most stressful of times for soldiers is when a unit gains a new commander. It’s not because the new commander is unknown, although that is part of it, but because not everybody is ready to a leader at the commander level. Studies have shown that leaders make their most… Read More »
[February 4, 2016] Growing up most of my friends and I didn’t see many films because we simply couldn’t get our dads to drive us to the theater (our town didn’t have a movie theater). After my first movie in a theater at age 9 watching the original King Kong (1933), we were not inclined for another similar… Read More »
[February 3, 2016] It comes as no surprise to me that Al Jazeera America television is shuttering its doors. According to reports, the Qatar-funded cable news network’s last broadcast will be April 30 this year. After watching a CNN advertisement on an airport monitor two years ago, I wrote that no one would watch it because of its… Read More »
[February 2, 2016] Continuing on the theme that strong leadership is the key to effective propaganda, a recent example of its employment will be discussed. Admittedly there are many types of propaganda but I will focus this discussion of it at the national level for the purpose of understanding its wide-ranging affects. “Why is propaganda so much more… Read More »