I think Sam is correct- but so are you
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Ski
...While I agree with the comments regarding greater liberal arts educations for all officers, I stand by my initial comment. We need more history majors in the officer corps. Small wars require an in-depth knowledge of a country's history in order to understand why the country operates the way it does.
So do large wars; one still deals with other nations. I agree that a broader knowledge of history within the officer corps is important and needed.
Quote:
...Steve Blair is correct - history is taught poorly in the US, from grade school through undergrad.
True. However,Sam is also right, History PhDs are in oversupply -- BUT a glaring lack of knowledge of even elementary history in most Americans is woefully obvious and needs to be rectified. Effort at the Middle and Secondary levels really needs emphasis...
Back when Sun Tzu's mom was wearing a paradigm shift
geography was the "it" discipline. The study of spatial relationships. Can't get any better than a field that let's you fill in the blank...as in "Gee, Dad, I really wanna study the Geography of Sunni tribes in north-central Iraq"
Back in the day, classically trained military officers were taught the finer art of sketching terrrain...(when they they weren't conversing in latin over tea and riding horses over wog infantry formations)
I resemble your ad nauseum remarque!
but will plead guilty. :D
Y'know, that's a good post -- and thanks for the links, BTW -- as it brings up a critical point I've often wondered about. How much better off would all the Anglophone Armed Forces be if all the golf courses on bases and posts were removed...
Seriously.