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Old 05-16-2004, 05:21 AM
thedrifter thedrifter is offline
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Cool It?s All About Leadership

05-14-2004

It?s All About Leadership, Stupid!







By Ralf W. Zimmermann



The Defense Department and the Bush administration truly want you to believe that all is well in Iraq. Schools are being built, Iraqi kids are waving at our troops instead giving ?GI number one signs,? and older Iraqis can?t wait for the first Wal-Mart to open.



Below the superficial rhetoric and homecoming parades hides a different reality.



Our troops are still battling insurgents, the death count is rising, and the homecoming parades could actually turn into redeployment send-offs. Yes, there is a war on and it?s in full swing!



The discovery of prisoner abuses by ill-trained, immature and pathetically-led American soldiers was an eye-opener for our nation. The prison disaster told much about absentee leadership and supports countless reports from the front lines. Good troops complain that their leaders aren?t pulling their weight. Many soldiers insist that you can count on leadership presence only for photo ops and celebrations ? count them out when it gets hot!



It doesn?t surprise me.



Things haven?t changed much when it comes to the lack of quality combat training, discipline and leadership by example. Too many modern leaders prefer leading by e-mail and hiding behind paper when they should personally check reality up front.



The reports on leadership deficiencies made me pull out the retirement letter I handed to my commanding general four years ago. It had damned me to join the military?s dissident colony.



Here are some points I made in the letter:



?I confess that during the last five years, the idea of serving beyond the 20-year mark had become questionable for me. The main reason for my personal doubt is the constantly changing culture in the Army. It is more focused on producing a superficial image of accomplishment, guided by false caring than tackling readiness issues with up-front leadership and firm solutions.



?The Army has become a sad ?social experiment,? geared towards promoting diversity and celebrating individual successes vs. instilling the sense of unity behind the values of our Constitution, the flag, camaraderie, and our distinguished unit colors. The result is clearly diminished combat readiness and a lower willingness by our brightest young people to serve a higher cause.



?Overemphasized programs that actually undermine combat readiness and other organizational failures include:



* Sex training



* Consideration for Others Training



* Superficial inspection items, such as chinstrap drills, memory cards etc.



* Too much emphasis on simulation to save money in the wrong areas.



* Overemphasis on Army Community Services, Army Family Team Building drills etc. Most of the social services create an environment that doesn?t emphasize soldier self-discipline, self-help, and maturity but??dependency?.



* Overemphasis on force protection induces fear of the enemy.



* Units, crews, squads are not stabilized long enough to exploit their combat capabilities. We aren?t building tight interpersonal trust relationships between leaders and soldiers because people are moved too rapidly to punch promotion tickets.



* The quality of our soldiers and junior leaders is dropping but no one admits to it.



* To fix a severe shortage of junior leaders, we are told to create our own. The result is more micromanagement ? officers do noncommissioned officer jobs.



* Promotion boards don?t certify junior NCOs in their specific specialties and fail to emphasize weapons proficiency, ability to lead, and tactics. Instead, boards concentrate on social programs, financial issues, and equal opportunity programs ? all in the guise of ?taking care of soldiers.?



These were just a few observations four years ago. I?ve talked to many troops since then. Most reassured me that nothing has changed, despite an ongoing war. The paper killers rule the Army and they are failing us!



Despite recent obsessions with military suicides, the impact of Lariam on the soldier psyche, post-traumatic stress disorder, and ill-conceived cowardice trials, military leaders must remain focused ? on keeping the troops alive! The best way to do that is to teach them how to fight, kill and survive. Success requires up-front and caring leadership that isn?t afraid to tell the truth.



What Congress ought to demand is not Rumsfeld?s head over the prisoner abuse case but a drastic reform of the entire Defense Department. Rumsfeld, although arrogant, isn?t a stupid man. His ideas are forward thinking and reform oriented. But he is a CEO-type who blindly trusted his subordinate leaders.



Sadly, many of them can spin anything into the positive without being able to lead from the front. Rummy?s biggest mistake was probably not to fire at least a third of the military?s senior leaders before embarking on the high-risk Iraq mission.



DefenseWatch Senior Military Correspondent Lt. Col. Ralf W. Zimmermann, USA (Ret.) is a decorated Desert Storm veteran and former tank battalion commander. His recent novel, ?Brotherhood of Iron,? deals with the German soldier in World War II. It is directly available from www.iUniverse.com and through most major book dealers. Zimm can be reached at r6zimm@earthlink.net or via his website at www.home.earthlink.net/~r6zimm. ? 2004 LandserUSA. Please send Feedback responses to dwfeedback@yahoo.com.

http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/...6.1732658401153

Ellie
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IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY HUSBAND
SSgt. Roger A.
One Proud Marine
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Once A Marine............Always A Marine.............

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