[November 29, 2017] A year and a half ago I wrote that most Western countries had taken their “eyes” off Iraq and their fight against the ISIS terror group.1 Today, the Iraqi military is about to crush the remaining strongholds of ISIS yet not much has changed in either the news coverage (very little) or in how governments… Read More »
[November 28, 2017] The Greek philosopher Antisthenes once said: “The most useful piece of learning … is to unlearn what is untrue.” As a new trend, many educators have jumped on the unlearning bandwagon and also began simultaneously misleading us regarding what it is and the merits on which it is based. “Unlearning is the process of letting… Read More »
[November 26, 2017] My grandmother was fond of telling all of us grandkids to never fear when standing up to bullies. And so it is always my pleasure to highlight a person who has done just that. The “blogosphere” was alive recently with news1 about the Australian musician Nick Cave who played in Israel and in doing so… Read More »
[November 24, 2017] I regularly get calls from young military veterans who have a new job in the civilian world and want some simple advice on how to be successful. My recommendation is straightforward; have a positive attitude, treat everyone with respect, and maintain your humility. “Virtually nothing is impossible in this world if you just put your… Read More »
[November 23, 2017] In the early days of my military career, I thought it important to copy the behavior and speech of those known to be the very best leaders. It came naturally, it seemed to me at the time, to find out what those leaders did when they were not “working” – for example, what they were… Read More »
[November 22, 2017] It was many years ago that the group of 200 young Lieutenants were standing rigidly at the position of attention. In front of them was a battle-hardened senior officer giving them advice on how to succeed at all U.S. Army schools. The first piece of advice was that any feelings, desires, and wants they have… Read More »
[November 21, 2017] As an army Platoon Leader, I had a lazy commander who did almost nothing to train or motivate his unit’s soldiers (mentioned many times here). But the untold story was when his replacement came in to “take names, clean house, and kick people to the curb.” Or so he said. This new commander was overreacting… Read More »
[November 19, 2017] Scandal is Hollywood is not new; everyone knew about the sexual harassment and exploitation that occurred there. It was no secret. Now we find out from pianist James Rhodes, through a twitter post, that actress Maureen O’Hara called out this Hollywood sexism 72 years ago (see newspaper article).1 The Internet is alive with her railing… Read More »
[November 17, 2017] Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Ia Drang (Vietnam) which pitted elements of the U.S. 1st Cavalry Division against regular North Vietnam troops in a bloody battle. The unit’s commander, Hal Moore, and the only journalist at the battle, Joe Galloway, wrote the book We Were Soldiers Once … and Young (2002) that… Read More »
[November 16, 2017] A couple of months ago I started a new blog thread because I simply could not write about all the topics of leadership I wanted. This clearing the spindle1 post today focuses on morality and our failures to live up to rudimentary social values. U.S. military personnel and veterans across the world were dismayed recently… Read More »