Thread: A French Infantryman's View of American Soldiers

We are a well-conditioned force-in every aspect. There's stress to the system and soldiers from sustained combat but attention to detail appears meticulous and our troops have not yet lost an edge that's been, to date, decisive big and small.

Our education system, IMHO, is the difference. We've an incredibly adaptive military these days and the inculcation of a "learning culture" has never been more evident.

They call COIN a "PhD." level of combat. Judging by the intellectual engagement I've seen from our mid-career officers-many of whom have now faced COUNTLESS overseas tours-we've never had a more curious professional soldier taking advantage of a superb institutional education base AND contributing back to it. Consider for a moment that a soldier or officer could have just retired with twenty years and seen combat and security tours in Panama, Desert Storm, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, or elsewhere during that tour. That doesn't include an always-interesting DMZ in S. Korea.

Money helps but our officers and N.C.O.s have never so taken advantage of the available resources nor in such creative ways. It's a very bright military that generally doesn't exhibit signs among it's mid management that money is being wasted.

My thoughts.

Originally Posted by S-2

We are a well-conditioned force-in every aspect. There's stress to the system and soldiers from sustained combat but attention to detail appears meticulous and our troops have not yet lost an edge that's been, to date, decisive big and small.

Our education system, IMHO, is the difference. We've an incredibly adaptive military these days and the inculcation of a "learning culture" has never been more evident.

They call COIN a "PhD." level of combat. Judging by the intellectual engagement I've seen from our mid-career officers-many of whom have now faced COUNTLESS overseas tours-we've never had a more curious professional soldier taking advantage of a superb institutional education base AND contributing back to it. Consider for a moment that a soldier or officer could have just retired with twenty years and seen combat and security tours in Panama, Desert Storm, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, or elsewhere during that tour. That doesn't include an always-interesting DMZ in S. Korea.

Money helps but our officers and N.C.O.s have never so taken advantage of the available resources nor in such creative ways. It's a very bright military that generally doesn't exhibit signs among it's mid management that money is being wasted.

My thoughts.

Good post Dude.

S-2,

curse those OPRs for not allowing you guys to sleep on the job, eh?

Originally Posted by sunnyamy

4. Thus far, I have dealt with the physical, the mental, the system and the attitude. Are there any other dimensions necessary to build a superior army?

Mental goes way past such a simple word. There has to be beleif. More than just the beleif in his training and personal weapons. An American can take risks other can't or won't because he has been educated to believe. Believe in his body armor or vehicle, believe in his buddies, believe that the medevac is enroute as soon as a bullet is headed down range just in case. He believes in his NCO's, believes there is an A-10 or a battery of 155mm just a radio call away and he believes he won't be left behind by his buddies, but that if he is his nation will consider him a hero as a POW, not as a scoundrel. He believes that even if death picks him, his family will be taken care of with his SLGI check, and he believes in America. Not the America of the constitution or Declaration of Independence, but the America he grew up with, his family and friends, his home town and favorite college team.

Most of all he believes- we're #1. He has the will to battle because as #1 no one else can possibly stand against him in a fair fight. Not once since the ACW has any enemy made an entire American army flee the field of battle.