[October 9, 2019] My boyhood friend Wilson (who lived next to me until we were 12 years old) and I were dragged out of bed early before daylight. It was the first day of the quail-hunting season and a dozen of my dad’s friends to teach us the finer points of successful bird hunting. I’d been dove hunting… Read More »
[October 8, 2019] It was sometime just after midnight when our base came under intense mortar fire from Shia militias pledged to fight for cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Our combat engineers had been on route clearance duty “outside the wire” looking for IEDs on the roadside.1 I approached one gruffy engineer Staff Sergeant who had been leading his men… Read More »
[October 7, 2019] My brother was about 10-years old and didn’t understand when our dad said that the “yard needed mowing” and he owned it. To him that meant belonged to him – literally – but of course that was not the case. Dad meant that my brother’s job was to mow the yard anytime the grass got… Read More »
[October 6, 2019] The U.S. military employs many civilians who act as institutional knowledge and possess a host of crucial skills our warriors need. Sometimes, however, like in any large organization, there are some folks in the military business that do not to adapt to our core values. One of my commanders told me about a senior civilian… Read More »
[October 5, 2019] Admit it- you strive to be respected, to have authority and unquestioned influence on other people. Each of us wants to be a leader, but only few people understand the way to achieve this. How to become a leader in life? It is not easy, but quite possible. We will have a closer look at… Read More »
[October 4, 2019] Over the past few months, I’ve been speaking with veterans, college students, and community leaders about their thoughts on the value of higher education. What I found out had little to do with education but on something deeper. What I discovered was, more than anything else, that there is an overwhelming need for them to… Read More »
[October 3, 2019] Summer is on the wane and my family is gearing up as we look forward to the autumn season; changing of the leaves, cooler weather, and great ways to travel this great country. Change is what the world is about, and that is one of the threads running through the book by Jim Mattis and… Read More »
[October 2, 2019] I’m a baseball fan. Like many who watch ball games, either casually or not, you have likely heard of the Black Sox Scandal. Today is the 100th anniversary of the start of the 1919 World Series where eight (or was it seven) threw the Series so crooked gamblers could cash in on an upset win.… Read More »
[October 1, 2019] Years ago, as a Captain, I was asked to take command of an Army unit that had suffered many problems. I would never turn down such an opportunity to help, so I agreed to command a Combat Heavy Engineer company. By all measures, the unit was broken. The mission was simple; “fix it.” So I… Read More »
[September 30, 2019] Not well known is that the foreign aid provided by the United States covers a vast network around the world. But that foreign aid from the U.S. continues to be under great scrutiny and controversy by its own citizens. Juxtapose that with the Berlin Airlift. Today is the anniversary of the ending of the Berlin… Read More »