Another Loopy Anthropologist

[Rob Thornton]

Having had only a brief few months and change up at Carlisle Barracks for BSAP (the Army 59s go there for their intro into the field of plans and policy) I was very impressed with the range and rigor of the place. While I attribute a great deal of its standard to its faculty (many of which came and talked to us as part of our program), what really make it superb is the quality of folks in attendance.

Going through Dr. McKenna's list, I think he'd be surprised with the diversity of thought and opinion on the topics he puts forward. The student body (as with most of those who serve) have probably seen the very best, and the very worst of human life in the last 7 years. The sort of things they've seen and endured, and watched others endure naturally lead you to ask the type of questions that have meaning beyond what any book or film can possibly capture.

In my brief time there we were fortunate enough to attend four quality speakers (one was on VTC) in the lecture series. The student body asked these guests some really hard, and thoughtful questions. While respectful, the questions were of a nature as to question some of the most basic and closely held beliefs we profess to. They certainly were of a caliber beyond what I've heard from any university lecture/speaker program, or from any media interview. These were the questions of men and women that had come face to face with their own mortality and those of whom they are given responsibility over. You don't get that many other places either.

Our learning institutions are better and more broad then they may have ever been I think. Although good by any standard during peace time, the wars have caused us to hold everything up to scrutiny. It has nothing to do with seeking out a job that might open its doors based on where a degree was stamped, it has everything to do with better understanding the challenges that we are charged to carry out.

I think the critical challenge in producing strategic leaders is getting them to understand the requirement for it. War has certainly shaped our understanding of that requirement, and from what I've seen our institutions and faculty are living up to their end.

Best, Rob