Of history, warfare, leadership, and alcohol
Take heart, all you who grow unsettled at the time of year where the narrative of friendly Pilgrims and American Indians is spread around to make us feel good about a brief moment in American history before everyone started killing each other. Thanksgiving as a national holiday is actually about another time when everyone was …
Perhaps no period characterized chaos about the future of the Republic than the years 1866-1868. And perhaps no one individual did so much to save it in those years as the man who had labored so hard to preserve it from 1861-1865: Ulysses S. Grant. Pres. Andrew Johnson (LoC) One would think that having put …
Continue reading "The General Who Defied a President"
Weird, just the other day it was July and I was thinking that my book review post wouldn't be colossally late again. Yet, here we are, unaccountably in September and I'm still writing about June. Time is a construct and I am against it. Still, we press on. Maybe, unlike the US strike on Iran …
Continue reading "A Badly Belated June Reading List"
The other day I went and stood in front of the new section of the World War I memorial in Washington, DC and looked at it. Memorials are meant to make you feel something. I felt nothing. I felt nothing when I looked at the figures. So I looked at the equipment. I looked at …
Continue reading "Thoughts While Visiting the U.S. National World War I Memorial"
I will not apologize for my horrendous title. You deserve it. When the world is a mess, you lean into your reading list. Hard. This month was a solid mix of military history and historical fiction, with author Naomi Novik once again dropping some bangers. She is rapidly turning into one of my favorite authors. …
Continue reading "April Showers Bring May Books"
(pro-government militias) While most regimes and governments rely on traditional bases of power - democratic legitimacy, hereditary monarchy, etc. - all rely to some extent on the potential for violence to keep their authority intact. Regimes employ a variety of military and police forces for external defense and internal order/repression. In some countries these various …
Continue reading "The Dynamics of Regime-Supporting Irregular Paramilitary Forces "
This past week at the Association of the United States Army annual meeting, Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Weimer announced the upcoming formal adoption of a mountaineering badge for U.S. Army personnel. This moment acknowledged a long-lobbied for recognition of the unique skills embodied in the Military Mountaineering community. While detailing the badge, however, …
Continue reading "Missed Opportunity: The Ram’s Head and Military Mountaineering"
As many of you know - and are no doubt really excited for - next years begins the semiquincentennial of the Revolutionary War here in the United States. Or, for those of us who have trouble with a jawbreaker like that, the 250th anniversary. Now, a bunch of you - not, not you of course, …
Continue reading "Understanding the Revolutionary Era: Recommended Reading List"
So there I was the other day, just minding my own business and falling down some social media algorithm-caused rabbit holes of a Saturday night, like ya do, when I came across this image: The Lion of Atlanta, image sourced here. Now, for those of you who are war monument nerds like myself, you may …
Continue reading "Copycats: The American Civil War Lions of Lucerne"
Ever wondered about the history of your Christmas carols? Well, sit tight because this is a wild ride! Famous Christmas carol "Jingle Bells" has a complex backstory involving Bostonian James Pierpont who, despite hailing from an abolitionist family, joined a Georgia militia unit during the Civil War. Similarly, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" was written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, moved by his son's near-death experiences in the Civil War. These carols echo stories of strife, despair, and unflagging hope amidst war.
The Angry Staff Officer 
You must be logged in to post a comment.