This guy is definitely no Amos. He has the moral courage to say out loud what everyone already knows. Did he get promoted for it? No. He got fired. Read the whole thing here but the operative sentences are below.
For headquarters staff, war consists largely of the endless tinkering with PowerPoint slides to conform with the idiosyncrasies of cognitively challenged generals in order to spoon-feed them information. Even one tiny flaw in a slide can halt a general's thought processes as abruptly as a computer system's blue screen of death.Quite honestly, if the current leadership served during WW2, half of them (yes...especially Amos) would have been fired by now. The other half demoted and they would be replaced by some tough as nails Colonels.
The ability to brief well is, therefore, a critical skill. It is important to note that skill in briefing resides in how you say it. It doesn't matter so much what you say or even if you are speaking Klingon.
Random motion, ad hoc processes and an in-depth knowledge of Army minutia and acronyms are also key characteristics of a successful staff officer. Harried movement together with furrowed brows and appropriate expressions of concern a la Clint Eastwood will please the generals. Progress in the war is optional.
If they couldn't hack it, then we'd go down the line until we found someone who could get the job done.
But that isn't the world we live in today, so people like Colonel Sellin are fired.
Truth-tellers are seldom, if ever, welcome within an institution. FTA
ReplyDeleteThe whole defense establish needs an enema. if they are more worried about platforms like F-35 or LCS, then they need be shown the door.
reduce the number of flag-officer billets by 80%, lay off the rest and replace the generals with colonels who won't have to worry about kissing the asses in the entrenched good ol' boy network.
well you touched on something that finally dawned on me. why would anyone expect the current group to have a clue about anything? from armored vehicles to aircraft to the proper way to conduct a war....why would you trust any of them.
Deletefire 80 percent? i say fire them all, bring back some of the old war horses and make colonel the highest position possible with even one star being reserved for the truly exceptional.
i recognized your writing patterns from another comment. you're done here too DC. you thought you could come into my house and talk shit? nope. let me repeat myself. this is a blog. my blog. i have control and you can say whatever as long as you don't try to talk shit to me in my house. so fuck you, find another spot on the net.
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ReplyDeleteI didn't say Colonols aren't political, but without overhead cover from their 'mentors' and class-mates from the service academies, there won't be anyone to grease the rails for them.
DeleteThe point of it is to disrupt the corrupt network and allow a new network to be created based more on merit, innovation and ideas, not one based on not rocking the boat or kissing ass.
Plow under the old crops, let the field go fallow, then plant new seeds in the soil and cultivate a new harvest. there's no guarantee there won't be some weeds, but the soil needs a break from the same old, unproductive crops being replanted with the same waning yields.
This story is from 2010. I'm more interesting in what is going to happen to the guy who wrote, "How to Fix the Army: Sack All the Generals," a few days ago.
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