Quote Originally Posted by MikeGreene
Am I the only one who finds this book much more difficult to consume? I guess they can't all be like COL T.X. Hammes' "The Sling and the Stone."
Like the others I found his material on rule sets, the gap/core divide and the knowledge of dealing with military bureaucracy insightful. However, Barnett also totally lost me with tooting his own horn. So you're not the only one.

My own personal bias from reading his work and blog, and it is an ad hominem I guess, is I don't see the guy as a competent strategist at a personal level. Barnett is gaining a wide influence within government and within the community. Yet he gives an air of personal arrogance and does not take criticism very well, especially if it doesn't fit in with his PNM world view (see his 'reviewing the reviews'). I might add though, that his discussion with John Robb was a lot more civil than he usually is, so maybe he is capable of control. These two traits which he sometimes exhibits: Arrogance and Academic insecurity, leave me to believe that Barnett might be exploited by a cunning enemy in war time considering his influence. I guess that is my own view though. I've never met the guy. He may be totally different outside of being a strategic showman that I've seen portrayed in his books and blog. Does anyone else think different?