The military does not train leaders; it develops them. It takes significant personal effort to become a true leader. A commander can have men following his orders, yet not following him. Thus, he is not a leader. But this is a rarity.

It sounds like you did not serve, so please don’t talk about time in the brig “or worse”, whatever that means. Insubordination is only an issue with dirt-bag troops; most disgruntled folks do what they’re told because IT’S THEIR JOB. Just like you wouldn’t tell your boss to shove it if you didn’t want to file that TPS report.

Regarding the UCMJ and the Bill of Rights, there are some limitations, but by no means are our rights denied. We made a choice to serve our country as citizen-soldiers. We are not mindless drones. We made an oath to protect and defend the constitution. So enjoy your right to spew nonsensical garbage regarding how the military operates.

You’re welcome.

I have known military men who have successfully made the transition to civilian life, They are huge success in many cases. I also know others who have not. The latter are too often inflexible, self-righteous prigs that normal people don’t want to deal with.

I look especially askance at men who talk about how they “led” others, but never consider for a moment that insubordination would have meant time in the brig, or worse.

Seriously, the military does a lot of good for a lot of people, but it is a culture that is apart from democratic society, one that relies on the Military Code of Justice and literally denies its members access to the Bill of Rights.. We need to see it for its great strengths and — at times — frightening flaws. A democratic society strongly supports its warriors, but can never /fully/ embrace its armed forces for anything beyond their assigned task, which is to serve, defend, and remain subordinate to civilian authority.

The president, in my humble opinion, must be the first to reassure the people of America in hard times. This does not mean, oh, we are working on the issues. We are working to get them resolved. I have a policy to help us out. Great. That is what you are supposed to do. Also, it shouldn’t be about political bickering that one side is not helping America. I am reminded of FDR’s speech during the Great Depression. He didn’t blame other people for the mess, or that one political party or president wrecked the economy. What did he do. First, he addressed the people as a leader. “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Then he stated, later when talking about what will be done, “Through this program of action we address ourselves to putting our own national house in order and making income balance outgo.” Key, everyone working to out the national house in order. I haven’t heard that at all.

Another leader comes to mind when people want the government or someone else to come save them. That person is JFK, when he said “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” People need to participate and lead to better themselves and this country. We are all leaders if we are to believe as another great leader, Lincoln, said we are a “government of the people, by the people, for the people….” This could mean looking at whether we, as leaders in our household, should get into a mortgage we don’t understand and importantly can’t afford. As a leader of our community to work towards bettering it by taking part in the local government or civic activities.

Finally, I guess key to all of this is the sense of duty. Leadership starts with duty. The “leaders” of this country have said that they are working to get the economy working basically so we can get rich or have money to buy things. What happened to duty. Save the economy or just do your jobs because it is your duty. As Robert E. Lee said, “Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less.”

Leadership is less about demeanor and more about managing expectations. I would replace Quiet Resolution with Managing Expectations.

This trait extends to all areas of leadership from handling individuals, and groups to handling the self.