I caught it, and thought it went well. His "be prepared to kill" remark wasn't well received (or I think properly interpreted) by the audience. Otherwise good interview, especially the 7.3% remark.
I caught it, and thought it went well. His "be prepared to kill" remark wasn't well received (or I think properly interpreted) by the audience. Otherwise good interview, especially the 7.3% remark.
Last edited by Cavguy; 08-24-2007 at 04:33 PM.
The phrase, "Pilgrim in an unholy land comes to mind."
SFC W
I understand that the new COIN doctrine is a major tactical change but if civilians in New York don't see much difference between, "Kill the bad guys," and "Be polite, be professional, be prepared to kill." I wonder if civilians in Baghdad will notice much difference.Originally Posted by Cavguy
The smart ones will, dummies won't.
10 characters...
Stewart had a much harder time...Colonel, well done !
What I enjoyed most was how LTC Nagl maintained control over the show, never letting his guard down.
John Stewart is almost never that nice to anybody he doesn't personally respect. I thought it was pretty apparent that John Stewart had also actually read the book and that is pretty darn rare.
Sam Liles
Selil Blog
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The scholarship of teaching and learning results in equal hatred from latte leftists and cappuccino conservatives.
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Whoda thunkit?
Needless to say, the situation was tenuous at best. Stewart invited Nagl to discuss an extremely unfunny book on a comedy show. There is nothing inherently funny about COIN, killing, etc. John did a superb job of walking that fine line of keeping Stewart and the audience focused and interested without seeming either glib or boring. Then -- the 7.3% comment nailed it.
Be prepared to kill didn't need to resonate, it just needed to inject reality into the discussion of this very serious business of ours.
John Robb on the Interview
At his Global Guerrillas web log:
... He does a great job. It was also effective in that it drove sales of the Counterinsurgency Field Manual to the top 100 on Amazon.
NOTE: Wow, the Petraeus information operations media machine is amazing (and this is a great example). Nod of respect, without the attachment of a value judgement, to the masterful way in which Petraeus has been able to influence the public's perception of this war.
SWJ Blog Link...
SWJ Blog entry with additional links to others who blogged the interview. Also embeds the Comedy Central video vice the YouTube version.
Saw the show, too - I guess the audience wasn't listening to the other two bottom line rules of the new approach: "Be polite" and "Be professional"
Still, well presented, accessible language, and didn't look like a cardboardy spokesperson. Well done!
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