Of history, warfare, leadership, and alcohol
It’s Veterans Day. Which means a proliferation of “thank you for your service” posts across social media from civilians which will be matched by the “I’m so special that you can’t understand my service,” posts from some – not all – veterans. This is what experts would say is indicative of the civilian-military divide that has …
Continue reading "What can Fallout 4 Teach us About Veterans Day?"
Fezzik: "Why do you wear a mask? Were you burned by acid or something?" Westley: "Oh no. It's just they're terribly comfortable. I think everyone will be wearing them in the future.” -The Princess Bride Ever since I started writing under the guise of Angry Staff Officer, I've had a lot of people ask me, …
Continue reading "What’s in a Name? Blogging under a Pseudonym"
Shakespeare apparently once said that, “Clothes make the man.” Well, in the Army, we all have to wear pretty much the same thing: colorful pajamas. And there’s not much you can do to accessorize - barring our hair, but that’s another story entirely. Which leaves us only a few ways to express the individuality that …
Continue reading "The Army Stance: What it Says About You"
If the Global War on Terrorism ever became sentient, chugged a RipIt, donned a reflective PT belt, lit up a Marlboro Red, and rose up in human form, it would turn fifteen today. And it would be an ornery little punk. Fifteen years ago - on September 20, 2001 - President George W. Bush breathed …
Continue reading "Dealing with a Teenage Global War on Terrorism"
Like many junior officers, I hear a lot about “professional development.” We hear about it from senior leaders, it is almost always on our officer evaluations, we are told to develop our subordinates, and we assume that leader development exists...somewhere. Some of us have even been developed professionally, apparently. Most often, however, it seems …
Continue reading "Full Spectrum Professional Development"
Battles are planned by generals and won by sergeants, so the saying goes. The saying didn't include anything about who runs things in the meantime. That's because the people who run things were very keen on ensuring that their names are left out of popular sayings. Those people are the specialists of the U.S. Army. …
Continue reading "The Real Army Mob: The E-4 Mafia"
This is a guest post from Peter Lucier. Peter Lucier is a Marine veteran (2008-2013) and student at Montana State University. He writes as a member of the Council of Former Enlisted for The Best Defense blog, and is the editor of the soon to be launched Return to Base (rtbmag.com) You can follow him …
This post first appeared on the blog Point of Decision and has been reposted in its entirety with permission. So, you’ve pinned (or rather, hook-and-loop fastened) your black bar to your chest. Gone are the days of people calling you “Butterbar” and ignoring what you have to say. It’s a new era, right? Wrong. You’re …
Guest post by Combat Cav Scout. His opinions as written here do not represent or reflect those of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Army. Title photo courtesy Politico. I don’t, as a general rule, give much mind to the opinions of war criminals. So imagine my astonishment as I sit here with a …
Continue reading "A Veteran’s Response to Allen West"
Today’s guest post comes from Barefoot Boomer. Boomer is a career Army officer and strategist. He is also a historian with an emphasis in American and German military history. The content and opinions of this article are the author’s only and do not reflect the opinions of the United States Army or the Department of Defense. …
Continue reading "Winning the Civil War, Finally"
The Angry Staff Officer 
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