Today I learned that the Army would prefer that I read Cosmo magazine that a book on counterinsurgency or the culture in Afghanistan.
On my lunch break I ambled over to the COL Sink (think Band of Brothers) Memorial Library to see what they had to offer. I searched the library catalog for a couple specific books, to include "The Accidental Guerrilla." Nothing. After multiple unsuccessful searches for books that are not obscure and are featured on many a commanders reading list, I gave up. I decided to search using the keyword "Afghanistan," assuming I would just have to sort through all the returns.
Apparently the Fort Campbell Library has 2 books on Afghanistan, both published before I was born.
I then searched for "counterinsurgency." 5 results, none related to the insurgencies a Soldier at Fort Campbell will encounter.
Frustrated, I wondered over to the periodicals shelves, where I discovered a variety of magazines essential to every squared-away infantryman: Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Oprah, Marie Claire ... the list could go on.
Take away message: the Army will spend money on frivolous magazines, but not books that will better Soldiers, help them understand the conflict and the culture in which they will be fighting. The proclivity to undervalue the intellectual side of war will undermine the Army as it forges its way ahead and faces increasingly complex - and intellectual - challenges.
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2 comments:
Sadly, I'm not surprised. The anti-intellectual bent of Army culture is indeed frustrating, disturbing, and downright depressing.
I think it's more important for our female soldiers to look good while fighting than know about COIN...before I get an EO complaint that was a joke.
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