Clavell & Almond.

This is coolbert:

As extracted from a comment to the previous blog entry regarding General Almond [thanks to Dan]:

"Briefly how to improve the US military officer corps and military":

"4) Objective tests of officers to determine what they know every 4 years."

"7) All pre-service academy candidates serve in combat (enlisted) companies for two years."

* From the foreword of James Clavell as found in the commissioned version of  "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu:

"I would like to make "The Art of War" obligatory study for all our serving officers and men, as well as for all politicians and all people in government and all high schools and universities in the free world. If I were a commander in chief or President or prime minister I would go further; I would have written into law that all officers, particularly all general, take a yearly oral and written examination on these thirteen chapters, the passing mark being 95 % - - any general failing to achieve a pass to be automatically and summarily dismissed without appeal; and all other officers to have automatic demotion."

* Within the German army during both World Wars there existed the rank of fahnrich? An ensign - - an enlisted man first serving as a lower ranking troop with the intention of promotion to the officer class dependent on able performance. Zeitzler the chief of staff [in the aftermath of the dismissal of Halder] for instance marched off to war in 1914 with the rank of fahnrich!

General Almond prior to June 1950 serving as Chief of Staff to Far Eastern Command [FEC] obviously coming to the favorable attention of Douglas MacArthur. MacArthur noted [?] for his favoring acolytes and persons best described as toadying. Almond does state that when pressing all of his subordinates to move north with rapidity toward the Yalu he was only obeying orders as issued from FEC!

Tenth Corps [X] successfully completing a reverse amphibious operation [that most difficult of all military maneuvers] from Hamhung in an admirable fashion, this in the aftermath of the disaster at Chosin reservoir.

Several persons of repute it should be noted either expressed an open admiration [Al Haig] for General Almond or reserving their opinions to themselves [W.E.B Griffin] not judgmental.

Al Haig [ADC to Almond in Korea] and Griffin fighting as a MP with X Corps during the Korean War!

Like I said, the jury is out, the historians debate, the legacy of Ed Almond controversial and perhaps always will be!

coolbert.