The below essay appears in the current (fall 2013) issue of the Navy Helicopter Association’s quarterly magazine, Rotor Review. I was asked to prepare and submit this essay by its editor, one of my all-star former students at USD – Allison Fletcher, herself a helo-pilot. Though the topic won’t interest many of you, it may interest some of you. If you’re…
In anticipation of the release of the movie Lone Survivor next month, Dan Klaidman has just published an excellent article on Marcus Luttrell in The Daily Beast, under their banner “The Hero Project.” The article is entitled Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell Survived the Taliban, But His Struggle Was Just Starting, and can be read by clicking…
The text of this essay appears in the current edition of the NSW Ethos Magazine, an only slightly edited version of what appears below. For the link to the full issue of Ethos, go to NSW Ethos: —————————————— We see a lot of chatter in the media about the deterioration of ethics and character in…
This essay appears in the current edition of Naval Special Warfare’s Ethos magazine. The essay was inspired by discussions I’ve had with colleagues about the challenges SEALs now face, being in the spotlight as the new American heroes and media darlings. This can be pretty heady stuff with some new and unfamiliar challenges for young men who have been trained…
I was asked by NSW Ethos magazine to write an essay on “Quiet Professionalism,” after a spate of books, interviews, articles and the like by SEALS, mostly retired, have appeared in the wake of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. SEALs are appearing on O’Reilley, Imus, in a new movie (Act of Valor,) and on, and on. I am also a retired…
I submitted the below essay to Naval Special Warfare’s ‘Ethos’ magazine to be published this month. I wrote this as a member of the Naval Special Warfare community. In every generation, there are a few major events which divide our experience into “our lives before, and our lives after.” The attack on America on September 11, 2001, ten years…
I attended the McCain Conference held at the Naval Academy April 22 and 23. The theme for this year’s conference was New Warriors and New Weapons: The Ethical Ramifications of Emerging Military Technologies. This conference was a real eye opener – it should be no surprise that technology is not only transforming the business world,…
