Controversy & Clarity

In this episode, we discuss -The US Army’s individual replacement system in Vietnam -McDonough’s experience serving as the aide to the commanding general of the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam -McDonough’s thoughts on how technology has extended senior leaders’ ability to overexert influence or command on small units -How McDonough’s Vietnam experiences shaped his approach to command -Some of th...

Note : This is part one of a two-part discussion. The conclusion will be released shortly. In this episode, we discuss -The Strategic Hamlet Program (SHP) in Vietnam and the role of the 173rd Airborne Brigade in that effort -How US platoon positions used in the SHP made enticing targets for the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army -The layout of McDonough’s platoon position and the terrain surround...

In this episode, we discuss -What drew Sebastian to the Marine Corps and the infantry in particular -The persistent public view of the Marine Corps as an all-infantry force -The future of the ‘Every Marine a Rifleman’ ethos -The wearing away of front lines and rear areas in modern-day warfare -What Sebastian’s Marine Corps boot camp experience was like -Sebastian’s thoughts on changing bootcamp -H...

(This is the conclusion to our interview with Colonel Barrick.) In this episode, we discuss -The work Barrick is doing with wargaming and force design at the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab -The differences between wargaming for education, wargaming for analysis, and wargaming for training - Assassin’s Mace , an operational wargame designed, developed, and used by the Warfighting Lab -How Assassin’s...

Note: This is part one of a two-part interview with Col Barrick. The conclusion will be released shortly. In this episode, we discuss -Barrick’s early military training and educational experiences at the US Naval Academy, The Basic School, and the Army’s Armor Officer Basic Course -Barrick’s thoughts on the reaction course at Officer Candidate School -The sandtable tests that Barrick underwent at...

 In this episode, we discuss: -What first attracted Chuck to military history -How he came to study Scharnhorst and the Prussian military reforms -Some of Chuck’s work at the United States Army Infantry School and the 21st Theater Army Area Command in Germany -What led Chuck to joining the Army -Chuck’s interactions with Major Richard “Dick” Winters of Band of Brothers fame -What Chuck’s expe...

In this episode, we discuss: *Furness’ experience at The Basic School (TBS) as a student in 1987 *The degree to which the philosophy of maneuver warfare was present at TBS by that point *What the Infantry Officer Course (IOC) was like as a student *Furness’ experience as a TBS instructor, including learning how to teach maneuver warfare *Why teaching at TBS and IOC saw the greatest professional de...

(This is the second half of a longer podcast. Also, we experienced sound quality problems while recording this episode, so we apologize in advance!) In this episode, we discuss: *How Nick found his way to DFCs *Nick’s experience of watching a DFC taught about his own combat experiences * Green-eyed Ghosts, the first DFC that Nick designed, developed, and facilitated *Nick’s first time teaching Gre...

(Note: This is the first half of a longer podcast. Also, we experienced sound quality troubles recording this episode, so we apologize in advance!) In this episode, we discuss: *What’s changed and what’s stayed the same in the Marine Corps since Nick enlisted in 1999 *The enduring phenomenon of “Old Corps” vs “New Corps” *The role that social media plays in perpetuating this dichotomy *Social medi...

In this episode, we discuss: *What the Marine Corps was like when Dathan enlisted in 1998 *Dathan’s journey to decision-making, critical thinking, and emotional intelligence *A sense of what the Marine Corps infantry experience was like before 9/11 *The focus on uniformity, structure, and discipline that Dathan observed during his early years as a Marine *The dangers of compartmentalizing training...

In this episode, we discuss: --Alford’s experiences as a platoon commander in Operation Just Cause --His experiences in Desert Storm, including seeing the effects of Allied airpower and artillery on Iraqi forces --The organization of Task Force Tarawa in Operation Iraqi Freedom I --The virtues of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force --Alford’s experiences with commanding a light armored infantry plato...

In this episode, we discuss: *Adam’s experiences with Marine expeditionary units (MEUs), including his thoughts on how to keep Marines engaged and developing as warfighters throughout a MEU deployment *What it was like joining a unit of combat veterans as a new Marine *Adam’s first combat deployment: Ramadi, Iraq *What it was like being attached to the Army during the deployment *The disconnect in...

In this episode, we discuss: -How Neil views training and education -How the Marine Corps seems to focus more on training enlisted Marines over educating them -What professional military education (PME) was like when Neil joined the Marine Corps -The lack of PME he experienced as a young Marine in the fleet -Where Neil’s interest in PME began -The influence that the Infantry Small Unit Leader...

In this episode, we discuss: -How Vanya found her way to reading, writing, and teaching military history -The importance of reading any text in the context of its writing and publication -The fascinating story of how Vanya came to write about Marie and Karl von Clausewitz -The process of researching and writing her book on Marie -The backgrounds of Marie and Karl and their relationship -How Karl w...

In this episode, we discuss: -Woods’ definition of professional military education (PME) -The need for all leaders in a unit to emphasize PME -The purpose of PME -How PME in the Marine Corps changed from the early 1970s to the early 1980s -What good PME programs look like -The lack of emphasis of PME in the Marine Corps in the immediate years following Vietnam -Woods’ exposure to maneuver warfare...

In this episode, we discuss: -How Stuart got into studying Russia -Stuart’s childhood interest in military history and the books that have influenced him most -What led Stuart to translating books on the Eastern Front -The prolific work of Colonel David Glantz, US Army (ret), and how he helped get Stuart his “big break” -What are the key roles and responsibilities of a translator and editor of Rus...

In this episode, we discuss: -How Zinni defines professional military education (PME) and the purpose behind it -Why we tend to focus more on formal PME over informal PME -The need for commanders to provide PME to their units -Zinni’s experience facilitating PME as a unit commander -Zinni’s use of decision games as teaching tools -How decision games might feel threatening to some commanders -Creat...

In this episode, we discuss: -Wargames and the different ways to define them -The trouble with the term “games” -How Eric got into wargaming -How wargaming led Eric to study all kinds of military history -Eric’s thoughts on wargames as teaching tools for grade schoolers -The many benefits of wargaming -How wargames and reading helped Eric understand “the why” of doctrine, enemy tactics and organiz...

In this episode, we discuss: -Wyly’s thought on professional military education (PME) -What a profession is -The obligation for professionals to study their profession -Can a private be a professional? -The value of the Socratic method -How Wyly got into PME, maneuver warfare, and military reform -The benefits of reading -The value of PME as a means to get into the mind of past commanders -The rol...

The topics we discussed in this episode include: -Smith’s thoughts on professional military education (PME) and training -What good PME and training look like -The best PME experience Smith ever had -Major General O.K. Steele’s approach to training and PME -The effect that bootcamp had on Smith’s development as a person -How to get young Marines interested in learning -The value of getting to know...

The topics we discussed in this episode include: -Hammes’ thoughts on professional military education (PME) -Anti-intellectualism in the Marine Corps -Some parallels between Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan -What good PME looks like -The Marine Corps personnel system and its negative effect on education and maneuver warfare -The case for 360 fitness reports -What formal schools provide in the PME pr...

The topics we discuss in this episode include: -Brendan’s journey to studying combat decision-making -The difference between what you learn in the classroom and how things really are in the fleet -Brendan's “sabbatical” in 29 Palms -Preparing young officers to lead platoons -The challenge of maintaining a fighting edge with your unit while deployed -The dangers of over-formalizing and over-standar...

Welcome to season one of Controversy and Clarity, the official podcast of the Warfighting Society. Enjoy!