I worry about the state of our fighting forces today. In particular, I’m troubled about my Army, the service I love to this day. I can’t recall a time in my childhood where I didn’t aspire to be a soldier. When I entered the Army in May of 1973, it was recovering from Read more
I got caught in a rain storm the other day and by the time I was home, I was drenched. Fortunately, it was a somewhat humid day and the rain was a bit refreshing, even as I waded through puddles of water that covered the tops of my running shoes. It was, Read more
I am busy! This week I am pressing to finish the edits of the final draft of my next book, one that will focus on U.S. participation in United Nations peacekeeping in the Middle East in the early 1980’s. I was assigned to the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) in 1981-82 Read more
I grew up with a genuine respect for President Harry S. Truman, a Democrat and the man left to fill the shoes of President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the end of World War II. As a young officer, I learned that Truman, like me, was also an artilleryman. He commanded D Battery, Read more
I received a call from a good friend and former Army colleague to talk about 9-11. He was one of my junior officers in the 1st Infantry Division and a very fine man. He is greatly disappointed these days. He loves his country. He’s ready to fight and die for it even now. He almost did Read more
It’s hard to imagine peace in Afghanistan these days. Particularly now that the country has been abandoned to Taliban thugs and their roving assassination squads culling out former supporters of the U.S. to murder them in cold blood. There is no peace today. There was a modicum of peace before May of Read more
The events of the last week in Afghanistan have given all of us pause. As a former soldier and combat veteran I have found myself oscillating from bewilderment to anger. I’m bewildered because I know that the U.S. has the wherewithal and leadership to conduct an orderly withdrawal from Afghanistan, Read more
This week, Shelley and I have spent the week with kids and grandkids at Rosemary Beach, Florida near Panama Beach City. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time with our loved ones. Watching our grandchildren grow up—those with us this week and those in Kansas City who aren’t with us on Read more
This week, Shelley and I are doing something we rarely do. Taking a vacation. Since we spend so much time at our place on the Potomac River, we feel like that is all the vacation we normally need. But who can resist a trip to Florida with kids and grandkids? After all, grandkids are the dessert of life, so Read more
During his Administration, former President Donald Trump made a significant commitment in his budget to increase expenditures to refurbish the American military that had been—quite frankly—depleted during the two decades of counter insurgency (COIN) warfare in Afghanistan and Iraq. COIN also—while sharpening American skills in door-to-door combat—dulled the skills of synchronization Read more