[June 1, 2023] Did you ever see the face of a troop in a combat zone who sees, for the first time, a young beautiful Red Cross Donut Dolly? That troop is magically transformed from a mentally hardened, physically grubby and weary Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airman or Coastie into a smiling, joking, happy, jolly, friendly person you… Read More »
[May 31, 2023] By discussing U.S. Army values, selecting an organization that clearly articulates its values is easy. The U.S. Army has seven values that follow the acronym LDRSHIP. They are Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Integrity, and Personal Courage. There is the expectation that every Soldier, regardless of rank, memorizes and lives by those values. The… Read More »
[May 29, 2023] Memorial Day is a time of recognizing those military men and women who have given their lives for our nation. It is also a time of parades, speeches, cookouts, and the unofficial beginning of summer. Below is the Memorial Day speech that I gave nine years ago, at my retirement from 40 years in the… Read More »
[May 28, 2023] If you don’t have the answer, don’t pretend you do. Yes, I know; the most hated words someone can say is, “I don’t know.” But the shortest way to lose credibility is to claim you do know. Nothing is more frustrating for someone pretending they know something when they do not. No one is expecting… Read More »
[May 27, 2023] I originally wrote this blog post with the title “Disrespect to Leaders” but realized that I was leaving out a big part of the picture by not including “anger.” What brought me to this conclusion was an article entitled “America’s Anger Epidemic: Why?” by Dan Bowens. It’s really about workplace dysfunction. To buy into the… Read More »
[May 14, 2023] As we walked out of a U.S. Marine Major General’s office, a good friend told me, “There are too many army Generals in this world.” This General was a real SOB, but he got the job done, which was a valuable skill. Generals? Eventually, they retire. One recently asked for a helping hand, as he… Read More »
[May 8, 2023] A Bug’s Life is a 1998 Disney/Pixar movie about one little ant as he searches for a brave band of warriors to help battle the bullying grasshoppers who threaten his home. Today, there is a budding campaign in America to eat bugs to replace meat in our diets, more precisely, in your diet. Radical leftists… Read More »
[May 3, 2023] The more experience I gained in the military, the more I learned to appreciate creative people. This way of thinking is not what you typically find in our military services. Early this morning, I ran across a young lady, Abby Cox, a “dress historian, sewist, and elder millennial.” How’s that for an introduction? Especially compared… Read More »
[May 2, 2023] There are very few truly creative people in the U.S. Army or any military service. There is an axiom in the military, “Follow orders.” Now that may seem overly simplistic, but those who can follow orders, focus on the work assigned to them, and ignore outside distractions are the ones who best succeed in the… Read More »
[April 24, 2023] The privilege to serve in the military is an opportunity to work with America’s best citizens. They come from all walks of society, backgrounds, education levels, and subcultures, a very diverse mix of upbringing, intellectual capability, and maturity. I saw that Soldiers who grew up without fathers stood out from rest and that this phenomenon… Read More »