Tag: National Guard

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Recruiting the Next Generation of National Guard Soldiers

Every organization wants the best talent. But how to get it? This has been the conversation within the U.S. military at large for some years now, as the economic outlook for potential recruits has gotten brighter. It is a topic that is especially dear to the Reserve Component (National Guard and Reserves) these days, as …

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5 Time-Saving Tips for National Guard Company Commanders

Taking command is a big deal. For most officers, we spend all our lieutenant time with that as the goal. But taking command as a National Guard officer versus Active duty is a pretty different beast. Look, we all want to pretend it's one team, one fight, right? And - once the bullets start singing …

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Eight Times the National Guard Saved the Day

The Siege of Louisbourg by Domenick d’Andrea and Rick Reeves (National Guard Heritage Series) There's this thing in the Army where the Active Component is always looking down its nose at the Reserve Component, specifically the National Guard. Why? Because the National Guard is part-time, of course, "weekend warriors" and all that. But also because …

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National Guard Bureau Reveals that “Guard 4.0” was Result of Drunken Night

WASHINGTON, DC. New reports have come to light that throws the much-publicized “Army National Guard 4.0” into near chaos. An unnamed officer inside of the National Guard Bureau, the head agency for the National Guard, revealed how Guard 4.0 was brought into existence.

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A Murky Heritage: the U.S. Army, the Civil War, and Memory

"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. …

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The Ghost of Black Jack Pershing: the US Army and the Centennial of WWI

It’s the 100th anniversary of the U.S. participation in World War I, as many of you know. The Department of Defense has tapped the Army to lead the way for the whole organization when it comes to centennial activities and planning, because - let’s face it - it was an Army run show. Yes, the …

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A Short History of the Militia in the United States

The idea of a militia - that is, groups of armed citizens that enter military service in time of need - has a long and contentious history in the United States. The idea of what constitutes the militia under the Constitution is has stirred up a lot of debate these past few years, and was …

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What is Readiness and How Do We Get There?

Let’s have a little chat about readiness. To be more specific, let’s talk Army National Guard readiness. First of all, what does readiness even mean? The word is being tossed around like a football these days (that’s American football to you other folks who refuse to acknowledge our arbitrary break with the rest of the …

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The Fighting First Sergeant: Walter Pottle and World War II

Napoleon Bonaparte is credited with the saying, "Soldiers generally win battles; generals get credit for them." This would generally seem to be the case, as while many may have heard of General Walter Krueger, commander of U.S. Sixth Army in the Pacific, very few have ever heard of Walter E. Pottle, the first sergeant for …

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