[December 12, 2020] It has been said that a hero is somebody who voluntarily walks into the unknown. That, my friends, describes Chuck Yeager, flying combat ace, and test pilot – a real American hero. “You don’t concentrate on risks. You concentrate on results. No risk is too great to prevent the necessary job from getting done.” –… Read More »
[December 7, 2020] December 7, 1941, at 7:53 a.m., Japanese warplanes attacked the U.S. Naval fleet at Pearl Harbor.1 Much has been written in America about the attack – the lessons learned from it and how a weaker yet innovative enemy can blindside a large and powerful nation. In a famous speech, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt declared the… Read More »
[December 5, 2020] Over the past several decades, there has been a decline of veteran identity. This is reflected in falling membership across all organizations like the VFW, increased suicide rates, and unemployment. This is a problem that has national-level and societal implications, none of which are good. The Decline of Veteran identity. This unfortunate decline of identity… Read More »
[December 4, 2020] The U.S. has experienced an anti-military ideology since the 1960s. This kind of thinking has become a key component of Progressive dogma. In the city of San Francisco, this line of Progressive thinking is strong. Recently, community leaders in San Francisco saved their JROTC program from school board members’ intent on removing the program. Those… Read More »
[December 1, 2020] Sixty-five years ago, the moral courage of Rosa Parks, a visionary for Civil Rights, helped write racial equality into the mind of all Americans. On this date in 1955, coming home from work, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white person. For that reason, she was arrested for… Read More »
[November 29, 2020] He came over to shake my hand. My new neighbor next door, Mr. Jed Neidigh, had a big smile, a head full of white hair, and a firm grip. Howdy! He said as he welcomed my wife and me into the neighborhood. “I see you’re an Army man, like me.” Mr. Neidigh was the doughboy… Read More »
[November 28, 2020] The hero’s journey is a common template of stories that involve a hero who goes on an adventure, is victorious in a decisive crisis, and comes home changed or transformed.1 Hugh O’Flaherty, a Roman Catholic monsignor, fits that mold. Monsignor O’Flaherty is a hero for saving the lives of thousands of Allied POWs and Jews… Read More »
[November 20, 2020] Several years ago, I wrote about core American values to set a baseline for my leadership blog (see links here, here, and here). Core values say a lot about who we are and where we are going. This is why I spend so much of my time today with our military veterans; they understand what… Read More »
[November 19, 2020] I remember being called a lunatic by several of my commanders. I was an Infantry Company Commander when it first happened. My boss at the time, a Lieutenant Colonel, said that I was a “crazy man and lunatic” when it came to battle tactics. I ran across a poem by Vietnam War correspondent Joe Galloway… Read More »
[November 11, 2020] Veterans Day, 11 NOVEMBER 2020: The guns of the First World War eerily fell silent over a century ago on this date in 1918. Today is the day when Americans all across this great Nation gather in large and small groups and pause to remember those Veterans who served in our Armed Forces. We have… Read More »