Of history, warfare, leadership, and alcohol
As some of you know, I don’t really do movie reviews on this site. But this spring I have had to break my own rule because of the animated film that combines two of my favorite things: dogs and the First World War. I am speaking of the movie “Sgt. Stubby: An American Hero.” For …
Continue reading "A Soldier and His Dog: Review of “Sgt Stubby: An American Hero”"
I don't remember much about the day we went to war with Iraq for the second time. A senior in high school, I recall feeling excited about the idea of war although I only knew of war from books. I was too young to remember much of the Persian Gulf War beyond some blurry images …
Continue reading "The Iraq War, 15 Years On"
It was Ben Franklin who wrote, "He who neglects his hair neglects his country." Well, all right, he never did say that but he would've had he thought of it, because Ben understood the importance of a well put together coiffe of hair. The military has undergone some variations on its way of thinking about …
Continue reading "Army Hair Throughout the Ages"
Over the past few months, I've been spending a lot of time reading over World War I rosters, both unit and casualty reports. As I was going over them, I began to wonder how someone like me in the future would read my name on some roster. And then this just sort of happened. Pages …
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By David Dixon I began my commitment to the service of the United States in 1999, when I showed up at West Point as a fresh-faced new cadet, deeply conservative, religious, and full of a desire to be a patriot and to serve my country. In the almost twenty years between then and now, much …
Continue reading "Guest Post: The Growing Emptiness of Service"
As an Army officer, I tend to spend a lot of time talking about, well, talking about officer things. And no, that does not mean discussing polo, the price of cufflinks, sipping brandy, and thinking of ways to make our NCOs lives harder, as some circles might believe. Although the brandy thing isn’t too far …
Continue reading "7 Characteristics of Highly Successful Non-Commissioned Officers"
"I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones; So let it be with Caesar." - Julius Caesar Memory is an odd thing. It affects not only people, but whole societies and cultures. Take the memory of the U.S. …
Continue reading "A Murky Heritage: the U.S. Army, the Civil War, and Memory"
You know, there’s nothing quite like a cold gin and tonic on a hot summer’s day - where you can see the condensation slowly build up on the exterior of the glass and smell the tang of lime garnish mixing with the scent of mown lawns and neighborhood barbecues. Or, if you’re like me, there’s …
Continue reading "Gin: the Military Spirit"
Why do we write? That’s a thorny question for many authors. We’d rather give a terse reply and chug some bourbon rather than give an honest answer. Because posing that query forces us to look inward and ask the hard questions. And we’d rather ask those questions about other people than ourselves, for fear of …
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Secret Base on [REDACTED] Dear Mom, Taking a moment to drop you a line. As you know, life here in the Rebel Alliance has been kind of crazy of late, what with the whole Death Star business and everything. You hear about Alderaan? I’m not even sure if I believe the news, sounds like …
Continue reading "Day in the life of a Rebel Alliance Tower Guard on Yavin 4"
The Angry Staff Officer 
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