http://www.realclearpolitics.com/art...cs_118702.html

Over the last seven decades, 115 veterans of World War II have served in the United States Senate. This week, the last of them, Frank Lautenberg [b. 1924] of New Jersey, died.

Two World War II veterans still serve in the House -- Ralph Hall [b. 1923] of Texas, who was a Navy pilot, and John Dingell [b. 1926], who joined the Army at 18 and was scheduled to take part in the planned invasion of Japan...

In the 68 years since World War II ended, veterans of the conflict have played an outsized role in American politics -- more than veterans of any other conflict since the Civil War...

World War II veterans made a big splash in politics starting shortly after the war ended. Dozens of young veterans were elected to Congress in 1946, including future Presidents John Kennedy and Richard Nixon.

The two had offices near each other and, as Christopher Matthews chronicled in his 1996 book "Kennedy and Nixon," were on friendly terms until they became political rivals...

From Kennedy's victory that year until George H.W. Bush's defeat in 1992, a period of 32 years, every president served in the military during World War II, although Lyndon Johnson's service was brief and Jimmy Carter did not graduate from the Naval Academy until after the war was over...

Three future senators -- Philip Hart of Michigan, Daniel Inouye of Hawaii and Bob Dole of Kansas -- first met in a rehabilitation center in Battle Creek, Mich., recovering from serious wounds...

From the day of Battle thread in Politics & Economics:

Originally Posted by The Grey Badger

And I note:

Marathon and Zama were 4T climaxes. Teutoberger Wald was - I think - 2T. Adrianopolis, Hastings, and Trafalgar were 4T - the latter for Britain. Saratoga was a 4T climax for the Colonies/the United States. The Marne, 3T, and Dien Bien Phu, 1T for the West. Not sure what it was for Vietnam.

Originally Posted by The Grey Badger

I note that my professor of history - Medieval Studies and Anglo-Saxon History…

That’s just what I’ve been working on over at the before 1435 thread where I just yesterday posted my turnings from Alfred the Great on. Take a look.
It’s going to be tough slogging to go back further as I will have to track four kingdoms and before that the heptarchy (and that doesn’t even count the Britons):

Last WWII vets gone from US Congress:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Hall
Ralph Moody Hall (born May 3, 1923) is a United States Representative from Texas's 4th congressional district...

...He is one of two World War II veterans serving in Congress, the other being Michigan Congressman John Dingell...

On March 6, 2014, Hall was challenged in the Republican primary by five other Republicans.^[3][4] Hall received 45.42% of the vote, which was under 50%, the amount required to avoid a runoff election.^[3][4] In the runoff, Hall faced former U.S. Attorney John Ratcliffe, who finished second in the primary with 28.77% of the vote.^[3][4] On May 27, 2014, Ratcliffe defeated Hall in the runoff election, 53% to 47%...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dingell

John David Dingell, Jr. (born July 8, 1926) is an American politician who has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since December 13, 1955...

...Dingell is one of two World War II veterans still serving in Congress; the other is Texas Congressman Ralph Hall...

Dingell announced on February 24, 2014 that he would not seek re-election to a 30th term in Congress...


Ralph Hall is also the last member of S&H's GI generation to leave.

Originally Posted by JDG 66

Last WWII vets gone from US Congress:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Hall
Ralph Moody Hall (born May 3, 1923) is a United States Representative from Texas's 4th congressional district...

...He is one of two World War II veterans serving in Congress, the other being Michigan Congressman John Dingell...

On March 6, 2014, Hall was challenged in the Republican primary by five other Republicans.^[3][4] Hall received 45.42% of the vote, which was under 50%, the amount required to avoid a runoff election.^[3][4] In the runoff, Hall faced former U.S. Attorney John Ratcliffe, who finished second in the primary with 28.77% of the vote.^[3][4] On May 27, 2014, Ratcliffe defeated Hall in the runoff election, 53% to 47%...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dingell

John David Dingell, Jr. (born July 8, 1926) is an American politician who has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since December 13, 1955...

...Dingell is one of two World War II veterans still serving in Congress; the other is Texas Congressman Ralph Hall...

Dingell announced on February 24, 2014 that he would not seek re-election to a 30th term in Congress...


Ralph Hall is also the last member of S&H's GI generation to leave.

The Silents will be gone a lot faster than the GIs. Boomers will cling on and on unless rudely unseated.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...2d4_story.html

A conflict looms between the Army’s wartime ethos of individual initiative and the bureaucratic malaise that peacetime brings...

While few in the service would prefer unending wartime deployments over some semblance of peace, the end of full-scale conflict brings unique challenges to those in uniform — especially to those millennials in active service who, since 2001, have experienced nothing but the adrenaline rush of an Army at war...

The Army’s senior leaders of the 1970s had endured the trials of Vietnam as mid-grade combat commanders, and they understood that the traits required for battlefield success — bold decision-making and individual leadership — would be quickly stamped out in a peacetime, rule-focused force. So they took action. In 1979, the Army chief of staff, Gen. Edward “Shy” Meyer, advanced the controversial idea of “selective disobedience” as a way to empower junior leaders in the face of stultifying Army bureaucracy. His comments sparked a furious debate in the force...

Mission Command dictates that senior leaders provide guidance and intent — the what and the why — and that subordinate leaders have maximum latitude to design the how. It embodies deep trust between senior and subordinate...

...to be honest, I had pretty much taken what the rest of the article describes for granted, except that the term I always heard was "Mission-Oriented" rather than "Mission Command." Sort of a rip-off of the German "Auftragstaktik." I knew that it grew out of the late 1970s - early 1980s Military Renaissance, and saw it as a mild evolution. This guy sees it as almost a revolution. Maybe he's exaggerating. I'll also point out that it's often honored by the word rather than the deed.

...But Mission Command is now on a collision course with the peacetime Army, which values bureaucratic process and compliance above all else...

...it took hold in the peacetime late Cold War Army. Why would now be different, other than the turning and the generations involved? Ah:

...It is not at all clear that today’s Army leadership even recognizes the problem — much less is doing anything about it...

...In many ways, the Army is in denial of this looming problem. Its senior officers need to take on this challenge directly. They must embrace and protect a leadership philosophy anchored in trust — one that imbues the Army’s peacetime operations with the wartime precepts of Mission Command... They must empower their young leaders to say no to the bureaucracy, or they risk creating a generation of compliant officers unprepared for the fast-moving, “think on your feet” nature of modern war.

In this case, the bad guy of the piece (the Brigadier General) would certainly be an Reactive/Nomad. Not the image that S&H drew of X'ers. The author's feared conclusion does sound like Civic/Heroes.

Oh. And Power Point has been a recognized plague on the military since the mid-1990s.

And yet, it lives...

No X'er 4-star generals or admirals yet, but some are cuspers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...-star_officers

Michelle Janine Howard (born April 30, 1960) is a United States Navyadmiral who currently serves as the 38th Vice Chief of Naval Operations...

John M. Richardson (born 1959 or 1960) is an Admiral in the United States Navy and the current Director of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program and assumed his current posting from Admiral Kirkland H. Donald on November 2, 2012 upon Donald's retirement...

Philip Scot Davidson (born 1960) is a four star admiral in the United States Navy who has served as Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command since December 19, 2014...

Darren W. McDew is a United States Air Forcegeneral who currently serves as the Commander of Air Mobility Command... Born September 29, 1960 (age 54)

...Four of the five Senior Enlisted Advisors are definitely X'ers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_A._Dailey

Daniel A. Dailey is the current Sergeant Major of the Army of the United States Army. He was sworn in as the 15th Sergeant Major of the Army on January 30, 2015. At 42 years old, he is the youngest soldier to serve in this position...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_D._Stevens

Michael D. "Mike" Stevens (born October 10, 1964) is a United States Navy sailor and the current Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON)...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_A._Cody

Chief Master Sergeant James A. Cody (born June 19, 1965) became the 17th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force on 24 January 2013...

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/stor...c-qa/22116361/

With 31 years of Marine Corps experience, Sgt. Maj. Ronald Green, 50, has spent more of his life inside the Corps than out...

...and the fifth probably is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_W._Cantrell

Steven W. Cantrell is a United States Coast Guard member currently serving as the 12th and current Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard... Since joining the Coast Guard in 1983...

...but I can't confirm it.

Some have interpreted this as a millenial thing:

http://www.duffelblog.com/2015/04/resigning-commission/

...but I think it's just more of the same. YOu saw this with X'ers.

An response from Duffelblog, which actually isn't very satiric, but is very good:

http://www.duffelblog.com/2015/04/jc...ure-resigning/

Originally Posted by XYMOX_4AD_84

The Silents will be gone a lot faster than the GIs. Boomers will cling on and on unless rudely unseated.

Undeniably. Except for the very early-wave Silent who served in WWII (and their time has run out), the Silent are unlikely to remain in high public office into their 90s. They lack the association with heroic, world-changing wars. Beside, there are far fewer late-wave Silent due to the Birth Dearth. The one thing going well for the Silent is that they have adopted the habits that GIs pioneered that allow people to remain competent later in life (remaining active and connected).

Originally Posted by XYMOX_4AD_84

The Silents will be gone a lot faster than the GIs. Boomers will cling on and on unless rudely unseated.

Look at who the leaders in congress are. It seems to me that the Silents have hung on quite a bit.

Hmmm...

http://www.armytimes.com/story/milit...ning/28927601/

You earn it, you keep it, you wear it. That's how many soldiers value their combat patches, badges and insignia that display who they are and what they've done.

But while in the field, the commander of Fort Carson's 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team wants soldiers' uniforms to be bare to the bone, only showing name, rank, American flag, U.S. Army tape and the unit's 4th Infantry Division insignia.

The purpose is to promote a unified Army culture, Col. David Hodne recently told the Colorado Springs Gazette.
Hodne also wants to boost morale by making newcomers feel welcome...

Common Commentary for Millenials:

http://thisainthell.us/blog/?p=60451

...It seems to me that colonel would feel perfectly at home handing out smiley-face stickers to his class of first-graders for their self-esteem...

Originally Posted by JDG 66

But while in the field, the commander of Fort Carson's 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team wants soldiers' uniforms to be bare to the bone, only showing name, rank, American flag, U.S. Army tape and the unit's 4th Infantry Division insignia.

Your field uniform had all the badges, patches, medals, etc.??

Originally Posted by TnT

Your field uniform had all the badges, patches, medals, etc.?? ...

-Not medals (which you'll note that the article doesn't mention-we're not the Germans or Russians), but badges and patches, yes, of course.

Hmmm... maybe should've explained?

I'll use COL Hodne's photo, here:

http://thisainthell.us/blog/?p=60451

On his left shoulder, you'll see the 4th ID patch (the diamond shaped one with 4 Ivy leaves- IV, get it?), the unit he currently belongs to. Under his rules, that stays. Above that, you see his Ranger tab for having completed Ranger School. That's now "Out."

Over his US ARMY tapes (which stay), he has (in order, above) Air Assault Wings, what looks like a Master Parachutist Badge, and the Combat Infantryman's Badge, all of which are now "out" in his brigade, because that might intimidate or encite envy in those who haven't earned those badges.

Bottom center, you can see his colonel's rank. That stays, so that you can still tell he's the boss.

To the right, you can see his name tape. That stays.

On his right shoulder, you see the full color Stars and Stripes (which for some reason stays on what's supposed to be a camoflaged combat uniform), and his combat patch from the 75th Ranger Regiment (probably for either Iraq or Afghanistan, or maybe both), which goes.

In most units, you would wear all of that in the field, with the exception of the US flag, because 1) you earned it and 2) it lets the rookies know who's who.

If you look at photos of soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan, you'll notice this.

Two right shoulders? What a funny looking guy!

Originally Posted by JordanGoodspeed

Two right shoulders? What a funny looking guy!

-Your other left!

I'll edit it, for those who can't figure it out from context.

Originally Posted by JDG 66

-Your other left!

I'll edit it, for those who can't figure it out from context.

No, YOUR other left. Unit path and tabs go on the left shoulder, combat patch and flag on the right. If you're doing it based on the POV of the observer, you should say on THE left and THE right.

Dooh! My ther left and right!

Again, anyone who read it should be able to figure it out form context.

But a good catch.

Happy to square you away, big sarge.

Ah, the glories of being a senior specialist. No responsibilities, but enough knowledge to snipe from the sidelines.

Originally Posted by JordanGoodspeed

Happy to square you away, big sarge.

Ah, the glories of being a senior specialist. No responsibilities, but enough knowledge to snipe from the sidelines.

...the knowledge of knowing the difference between left and right?

Originally Posted by JDG 66

...the knowledge of knowing the difference between left and right?

I don't think you're in a position to knock it right now.

Originally Posted by JordanGoodspeed

I don't think you're in a position to knock it right now.

Problem solved. I've moved on.

WAIT!!!

Just kidding, I'm good.