[January 1, 2025] Perhaps it is fitting that my first article of the New Year is about President Jimmy Carter. My Mom advised me never to speak ill of the dead, so I will minimize my violation of her proper values. Jimmy Carter was a good man but a terrible president, as he proved repeatedly. Over the next… Read More »
[December 31, 2024] The war between Russia and Ukraine is important because it gives us a glimpse into the future, not just of warfare tactics and strategy, but of Russian President Putin’s ultimate goal. And within the past few days, Putin now claims that “We won’t negotiate! We’ll fight all of Europe!” In a TASS news article, Russian… Read More »
[December 29, 2024] Anyone who has spent any time in the military understands that every meal is a high point of the day (and mail call). A meal in the field during a military exercise, typically C-rations, is even better because it tastes extra good – so it seems. “C-rats” were a distraction from the dangerous and hard… Read More »
[December 29, 2024] We’re in the limbo period between Christmas and New Year’s Day and hoping we can get a good discount on “stuff.” This season of cheer should be about family, friends, and our religious beliefs, not things (yeah, guys do like things a lot). Here are my Sunday morning pictures just for your viewing pleasure: … Read More »
[December 28, 2024] Like any military Company Commander, I had to put up with some strange, unexpected problems. When dealing with people, the only rule is that there are few rules. My Soldiers called this field exercise The “Crab” Exercise. As we approach the end of this year, I thought a light-hearted article would be welcomed. One summer,… Read More »
[December 27, 2024] Learn how you learn. Not learning how to learn. In order to improve yourself in any way—efficiently and effectively—you must know how you learn and then work hard to improve that same method. This is necessary because we use our brains’ preferred method to understand and learn new concepts and information. I’ll use myself as… Read More »
[December 26, 2024] There were so many Generals between III Corps and MNF-Iraq that it was hard for me to know who worked for who and, more importantly, who had the authority to direct our Engineers to do specific tasks. Every senior officer, it seemed, wanted us to do something – all of which made sense – but… Read More »
[December 25, 2024] I think most Christians believe that when Christmas Day arrives, they should be both happy and relieved after all their work and anticipation. And too, as a kid, would agree that Christmas is here and a happy time. I love Christmas because it reminds me of so many good times. Also, the purpose of Christ’s… Read More »
[December 24, 2024] She was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. Well, that’s an exaggeration. By this time, I’d been in combat for six months, and a woman in the red dress would turn the head of any man. It was Christmas Eve, 2006, when I arrived at the Army Corps of Engineers headquarters’ for a special… Read More »
[December 23, 2024] An old-timer in the Army once said to me, “If you come back dry, they hate you.” I was a new Infantry Second Lieutenant and fresh out of the Officer Basic Course. The unit I was in had just returned from a three-week brigade-sized Field Exercise. My platoon was washing their Armored Personnel Carriers on… Read More »