Steve Wilson's Blog - Posts Tagged "target-patton"
General George S. Patton
Over the past few days I've watched (I should say 're-watched') 'Patton', the movie from the '70s starring George C. Scott. It's an excellent movie; inspiring, patriotic, and while the producers take a few liberties, the story is told fairly accurately--in the broad strokes.
We need a few generals like Patton these days; officers who are pure tacticians, that give no regard to politics, and recognize the real purpose of the military.
Now I could say a lot more about that, but I'm still in the military, and doing so would land me in a lot of hot water. My personal belief is that the armed forces of our nation should be tasked with killing the enemy and breaking things.
In that order.
Back to Patton. The man really was a genius. Single-minded in purpose, and committed to victory. And I agree with his position on the Russians. When George Patton looked into the eyes of Ivan, he didn't get a warm fuzzy feeling. He wanted to continue WWII by advancing the front lines all the way to Moscow. In hindsight, I believe there was wisdom in that philosophy.
I won't belabor the tenets of that belief. There's an excellent work, written by Robert K. Wilcox. It's title is 'Target: Patton - The Plot to Assassinate General George S. Patton'. And if you're thinking of gleaning insight from O'Reilly's book on the subject, don't. Wilcox does a much better job.
Granted, there's a fair amount of conjecture in 'Target: Patton'. But the author lays it all out methodically, and it's a truly fascinating read. You might walk away unconvinced, but I guarantee you that the book will get you thinking (personally, I'm leaning toward Wilcox' conclusion--and you'll just have to read it to know more).
George Patton didn't believe that diversity was the bedrock of victory in war. He believed in ordnance on target, in bullets making contact with the enemy, and in the indefatigable spirit of the American fighting man.
...and here's one more:
We need a few generals like Patton these days; officers who are pure tacticians, that give no regard to politics, and recognize the real purpose of the military.
Now I could say a lot more about that, but I'm still in the military, and doing so would land me in a lot of hot water. My personal belief is that the armed forces of our nation should be tasked with killing the enemy and breaking things.
In that order.
Back to Patton. The man really was a genius. Single-minded in purpose, and committed to victory. And I agree with his position on the Russians. When George Patton looked into the eyes of Ivan, he didn't get a warm fuzzy feeling. He wanted to continue WWII by advancing the front lines all the way to Moscow. In hindsight, I believe there was wisdom in that philosophy.
I won't belabor the tenets of that belief. There's an excellent work, written by Robert K. Wilcox. It's title is 'Target: Patton - The Plot to Assassinate General George S. Patton'. And if you're thinking of gleaning insight from O'Reilly's book on the subject, don't. Wilcox does a much better job.
Granted, there's a fair amount of conjecture in 'Target: Patton'. But the author lays it all out methodically, and it's a truly fascinating read. You might walk away unconvinced, but I guarantee you that the book will get you thinking (personally, I'm leaning toward Wilcox' conclusion--and you'll just have to read it to know more).
George Patton didn't believe that diversity was the bedrock of victory in war. He believed in ordnance on target, in bullets making contact with the enemy, and in the indefatigable spirit of the American fighting man.
...and here's one more:
