Comments on: Leadership Lessons from Dwight D. Eisenhower #1: How to Build and Sustain Morale

By: Rob

Rob — Sun, 28 Oct 2012 19:53:16 +0000

I was stationed on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower as my first ship. I hated it at the time. We called it the Iketraz, or cell block 69. (CVN-69). Reading this, I’ve come to realize what a remarkable man and leader he was. I see now that its been a privledge to serve on the ship that bears his name. No longer will I call it the Iketraz. In fact I feel rather small for being so stupid.

By: R Bolvin

R Bolvin — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 23:50:52 +0000

Great story, too bad it’s untrue. Eisenhower was berated for being out of touch throughout the North Africa campaign, keeping to Gibraltar instead of finding out what was going on at the front. He could have found MGen Lloyd Fredendall’s bunker 60 miles behind the lines, out of touch with his troops, and the Kasserine Pass debacle might have been prevented. Only George Marshall kept Ike from loosing his command. He was in Algiers when he could have been on the spot during the Sicilan campaign. FDR wanting Marshall in Washington made Eisenhower the Overlord commander by default. He wasn’t prepared for fighting through the Normandy bocage . Patton would have planned for the bocage, but he was left out of Overlord planning, and didn’t arrive to command troops until the army fought through the hedgerows to open ground. Lack of preparation lengthened the fight there. Failing to close the Falaise Gap allowed thousand of Germans to fight again. The fighting through the Hurtgen Forest shows his detachment. If he had been there, he never would have insisted to fight the Germans there. Even he would have recognized the terrible terrain his army would have to fight through. He was more a corporate commander than a leader of troops, seldom actually seeing any front lines.

By: mah-10

mah-10 — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 19:47:23 +0000

It is interesting the Eisenhower is so revered as a great leader, which he undoubtedly was. However, if you look over his career, he was never assigned a leadership position in a line unit. I know the whole blessed army was a combat unit but he was always in an administrative position of some sort as he progressed through his career. He stated that was one of his great regrets. He was certainly a great polictician and decision maker which helped him with the huge tasks and responsibilities he had in WWII and as President.

By: Chapman

Chapman — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 04:32:59 +0000

I am a cadet at Texas A&M University and will be commissioned as a 2nd Lietenant in the Army in about a year, so these articles about DE have been invaluable! I’m learning as much as I can about leadership in order to be a good officer, so keep’em coming.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 14:31:13 +0000

Great article! I’m not in the military, but am a manager for a local non-profit. I will definitely be taking notes from this series! Thank you!

By: Georgiaboy61

Georgiaboy61 — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 07:43:31 +0000

Dwight Eisenhower – unlike his contemporaries such as Patton and MacArthur – did not see combat in WWI, and regretted this lack deeply. However, he turned his misfortunate to an advantage by becoming a different kind of officer during the war – a coalition builder and leader of leaders.
No less than Winston Churchill said that if it hadn’t been for Ike’s leadership, the Anglo-American coalition to defeat Hitler might not have survived the difficulties it faced. As CIC, Ike made mistakes – his complete trust in the CIA proved disastrous at times – but his leadership in the 1950s marked a decade many people now remember fondly. He was a much more effective and wise leader than he is today given credit for. We could his like again.

By: Pat Ryan

Pat Ryan — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:26:19 +0000

Eisenhower was a great leader. It would be interesting to see where his moral compass would point him in this day and age where the ideals and aims of the military he knew and helped shape have been degraded and corrupted. His leadership would probably manifest itself in a very different way today.

By: Lacy de la Garza

Lacy de la Garza — Sun, 27 May 2012 20:24:54 +0000

Wow. Wow. Wow.

I am floored not only by his conviction, but by his inability to do anything but act on it.

What a rare quality these days, in anyone. May God grant rest to his soul.

By: Justin

Justin — Sat, 26 May 2012 05:49:52 +0000

Loved this article. The print button at the bottom of the article goes to a 404 page, but the one on the side of the page works.

By: jsallison

jsallison — Sat, 26 May 2012 04:21:54 +0000

Okay, Pete. It appears that you’ve been exposed to what R Lee Ermey would describe as Jackwagons. Do not take counsel of your fears. Do not expect your current leadership to live up to the past. Hell, when I was in 2AD Patton’s son was the CG, so what. In my 20 years in the Cavalry (okay 18+ years out of 20, so there) the further away from my span of control my leadership was, the more pessimistic I was about their consideration of my current situation, with good reason.

You are a resource to be expended at need. The question is, do you trust them to make that call? In general, except for the Carter years I trusted my chain of command to make that call. Although BillyJeff, the absolutely dumbass arkansas cracker is damn lucky nothing blew up in his face…

If you don’t have that trust, get out, now, today. As soon as you legally can.

Being in the American military it is *all* about trust. Which certain parties in this country are working overtime to destroy both in the military and civilian spheres.