Of history, warfare, leadership, and alcohol
At two o’clock in the afternoon on September 11, 2001, I heard a knock at my door. There stood a young sailor who handed me a flyer and said, “Thank you for your assistance.” To my shock, my husband was getting called up for a spontaneous deployment. The flyer had a list of items I …
Continue reading "Channeling Anger into Action"
For anyone who watched television in the early 2000s (oh, woe be upon us before the era of on-demand, streamable drama), Battlestar Galactica was a staple of the weekly line up. For anyone who was not an avid fan, the show featured an ensemble cast and their struggle against the Cylons, a race of …
Continue reading "The Case Against Starbuck: Why Talent is Not Enough"
The Lord Intelligencer was first on the schedule. After the Crown Prince sat down and nodded to him, he rose and walked to the map on the wall. He smoothed his blue robes and cleared his throat. ‘Highness, my Lords and Ladies, colleagues. As you all are aware, our long term planning has been organized …
Continue reading "A Fantastical Council of War"
Guest post by LTC Scotty M. Autin Let’s do a test. Close your eyes and tell me what you think about when you hear the words “dreams”, “creativity”, “fantasy”, “smiles”, “magic”, and “generation”. Odds are, you probably thought about some variation of Disney. If so, then you’re a product of Disney’s brilliant brand language strategy. …
Continue reading "Want to build a combat focused culture in your unit? Start with your language"
On Veterans Day, at my son’s request, I sat in a crowded elementary assembly as part of a Veterans Day ceremony. I listened uncomfortably to fifth and sixth graders repeat what they had been taught in their classrooms about veterans and about military service: that veterans represent the best our country has to offer, that …
Continue reading "Fixing Veterans Day"
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..L to R: Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) and T'Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) .Ph: Film Frame..©Marvel Studios 2018 By Matthew Ader In 2016, there was a coup d’état in Wakanda. Using a combination of foreign training and racialist rhetoric, Erik Stevens overthrew the T’Challa administration. Although his regime was destroyed a few …
Continue reading "The Wakandan Civil War: A Profile in State Reconstruction"
Guest post by XO of XOs Knowledge diffusion and leader development in the Army is at best, a slapdash effort. You finish the appropriate schooling level--maybe rotating through a leadership position, or not--and then get dropped into your newest assignment. Primary Staff, Command, on occasion the officer in charge of the officer (I had one …
Continue reading "Mentorship: Cross-Component Leader Development"
By Cory Hollon Rebellions are built on hope. - Cassian Andor, 1 BBY Hope is not a plan. - Every decent commander, ever In 4 ABY, the Alliance to Restore the Republic gained critical intel about the construction of a new Death Star. Clearly learning from the lengthy process of creating the first planet-killing battle …
Continue reading "“Are the Shields Up?:” Decision Making in “Return of the Jedi”"
By Eamon Hamilton Finally, the influence of the Angry Staff Officer Blog within the Star Wars community has been acknowledged - an anonymous source from Lucasfilm has sent this exclusive breakdown of some of the new characters we’ll see in future Star Wars films. We wont say how many Bothan Spies died to bring us …
Continue reading "An Angry Staff Officer Exclusive – a sneak peak at new Star Wars characters!"
By Jay Kirell One of the biggest misconceptions about the Army is that everyone in it is a hardened warrior. In reality most soldiers are more lapdog than sheepdog. They like their time off, relaxing, watching movies, playing games, finding forms of entertainment to escape into whatever fantasy world they find a connection with. For …
Continue reading "“What About Second Breakfast?” How “The Lord of the Rings” Mirrors Army Culture"
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