Quote Originally Posted by pakphile View Post
The lesson in the failure of Gen McKiernan to adapt to the new COIN doctrine in Afghanistan is less a failing of an old soldier who couldn't learn than a recognition of the time it takes for social incentive structures to change in any organization so that doctrine can be consistently translated into strategy and tactics (human behavior).
So is that a failure to adapt to doctrine or a failure of those concerned to develop effective and useful doctrine? Teaching that works is rarely, if ever, rejected if it is seen to work. I fully agree that the community has got to gain the required level of confidence, but that is never going to happen if the evidence does not appear or remains elusive. Writing a COIN manual does not a COIN doctrine make.