Steven Pressfield's Blog, page 150

Lessons From Ramadi: A Guest Post from Captain Thomas Daly

I'd like to thank Captain Thomas Daly for writing this guest post. He lived the experiences that so many of us have read about. 

 

Captain Daily joined the Marine Corps in 2004. During his military career, he has held a multitude of billets ranging from Forward Observer to Intelligence Cell Leader. His unique perception of the battlefield has been shaped while operating with units of the United States Army, Navy SEALs, ANGLICO (Air, Naval Gunfire Liaison Company), Iraqi Army and Police Units, and

Tribes in Afghanistan: A Guest Post from Michael Yon

The following is a guest post from Michael Yon, which we're really privileged to get and which I'm delighted to share. As I type this, Michael is reporting from Sangin, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Check out  Michael Yon Online Magazine to read his reports. Michael is a former Green Beret, who has reported from Iraq and Afghanistan since December 2004. No other reporter has spent as much time with combat troops in these two wars. It is also important to note that Michael is an independent comba

"Writing Wednesdays" #3: The Nature of Epiphanies

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[This is "Writing Wednesdays," #3. Our winner--of a signed copy of The War of Art--is David Cutshall. Here's the fave quote he sent in: "Our job in this lifetime is not to shape ourselves into some idea of what we imagine we ought to be, but to find out who we already are and become it." Thanks, David! The following takes off from there.]

How do people change? How do they turn their lives around? An aspiring artist, for example, or a wannabe entrepreneur. What propels someone from sitting on the

The Nature of Epiphanies

<!--StartFragment-->

[This is "Writing Wednesdays," #3. Our winner--of a signed copy of The War of Art--is David Cutshall. Here's the fave quote he sent in: "Our job in this lifetime is not to shape ourselves into some idea of what we imagine we ought to be, but to find out who we already are and become it." Thanks, David! The following takes off from there.]

How do people change? How do they turn their lives around? An aspiring artist, for example, or a wannabe entrepreneur. What propels someone from sitting on the

The Bizarro World of COIN in a Tribal Setting

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Remember the Bizarro World, from Seinfeld and Superman comics? Everything is its opposite in the Bizarro World. Up is down, black is white, in is out.

Students of Counterinsurgency (COIN) and Tribal Engagement tell us it's the same in their field. Who would have thought, for example, that killing bad guys would be a no-no? Or that a good old-fashioned grease-the-palm payoff would prove as effective as "winning hearts and minds?"

Here then, in no particular order, are a few other cherished maxims o

Weekend Mashup, July 31 to August 2

This week's Mashup features jumps back and forth, between the past and present.

 

I did an online search for "the last days of the Taliban," after running across this cover for Time magazine's Dec. 17, 2001 edition. Hard to believe the cover ran in 2001. Here are a few other interesting reads from the past:

 

The Taliban and Afghanistan, Tony Karon, Time, 2001

 

 Taliban retreats from Afghan Capital, NewsHour "Extra" with Jim Lehrer, 2001

 

With Taliban as they prepare for the last stand, Jonathan Stee

"Writing Wednesdays" #2: The Most Important Writing Lesson I Ever Learned

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My first real job was in advertising.  I worked as a copywriter for an agency called Benton & Bowles in New York City.  An artist or entrepreneur's first job inevitably bends the twig.  It shapes who you'll become.  If your freshman outing is in journalism, your brain gets tattooed (in a good way) with who-what-where-when-why, fact-check-everything, never-bury-the-lead.  If you start out as a photographer's assistant, you learn other stuff.  If you plunge into business on your own, the education

"Writing Wednesdays" #2: The Most Important Writing Lession I Ever Learned

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My first real job was in advertising.  I worked as a copywriter for an agency called Benton & Bowles in New York City.  An artist or entrepreneur's first job inevitably bends the twig.  It shapes who you'll become.  If your freshman outing is in journalism, your brain gets tattooed (in a good way) with who-what-where-when-why, fact-check-everything, never-bury-the-lead.  If you start out as a photographer's assistant, you learn other stuff.  If you plunge into business on your own, the education

How Tribes Measure Their Own Strength

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Near Camp Joyce, Konar province. Photo by Andrew Lubin.

In the videos (and posts) on this site, we've talked about the characteristics of tribes and the tribal mindset. Among these are respect for elders, hostility to outsiders, the obligation of revenge, a code of honor rather than a system of laws, hospitality, capacity to endure hardship and the suppression of women. These qualities appear to be universal, or nearly so, across all continents during all periods of history. They seem to hold t

Weekend Mashup July 24 to 26

Announced this morning: Sgt. 1st Class Jared Monti will be awarded the Medal of Honor.

 

From Gina Cavallaro's Army Times' article titled "White House Confirms Medal of Honor":

 

Sgt. 1st Class Jared Monti, a fire support specialist who was killed June 21, 2006, in Afghanistan, will receive the Medal of Honor for his actions in combat.

 

The announcement was made by the White House in a news release Friday morning. The award will be presented to Monti's parents in a Sept. 17 ceremony at the White Hou