Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Commentary”
Not long ago, I received a private message from a high-ranking officer (O-6). See my “Stupid People” article. While I’ve received variations of this question before, his direct inquiry provided the perfect opportunity to address a recurring issue. The image above was generated for me by Gemini. It’s supposed to be of a disappointed senior leader. Notice the fringe on …
You’ve heard the message: Dismissiveness hurts. When you bring a real problem or an idea to an adult leader and their response is a dismissive comment—or worse, “I don’t care”—it’s frustrating, unfair, and makes you question why you should even try. First, know this: You are heard, and your concerns are valid. Your initiative is vital to our program. You …
Over the years, adult volunteers have done their best to provide information to Sea and League Cadets regarding US Navy honors and ceremonies. In this article, I will attempt to convey to you why this course is important for every Sea and League Cadet.
“A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon.”Napoleon Bonapart Napoleon’s observation remains relevant because it identifies a fundamental truth of military culture: recognition matters. Ribbons, medals, badges, cords, and other uniform distinctions are not superficial. They are visible acknowledgments of effort, competence, and commitment. They communicate, without explanation, that an individual or group has earned …
The first three installments established the analytical imperative (Cipolla), the ethical guardrails (Scripture/Stoicism), and the strategic mandate (Negentropy). This final article completes the foundation, demonstrating that the need to guard standards and warn against irrationality is not new—it is a central, continuous theme across military, philosophical, and wisdom traditions spanning millennia.
I asked AI and we created a further explanation in this series. I posited the question, “Does entropy have a role in Cipolla’s model?” The answer was: While there is no recognized physical or statistical quantity called “social entropy,” the concept of entropy provides a near-perfect metaphor for the destructive, corrosive force that Carlo M. Cipolla assigned to “stupid people.” …
The first installment established that the greatest threat to success is the stupid action—behavior that causes pure, uncompensated net loss to a system. It also laid the analytical groundwork (Cipolla’s Laws) and the ethical foundation (Scripture’s warning against contempt). This second installment is the call to action. We now translate theory into practice, detailing how to deploy a unified, three-part …
Every functioning system—from a military unit to a multinational corporation—is ultimately challenged by actions that defy logic: actions taken by stupid people causing loss with no rational benefit to anyone. This article lays the groundwork for understanding this challenge by synthesizing two powerful pieces of information. First, we look at economic historian Carlo M. Cipolla’s explanation of his five laws …
This article is not just directed toward JROTC instructors alone, but also adults over all other cadet programs. The text of a recent critique for the above photo (with additions here): Colors, you have X the wrong staffs (AFI 90-1201 tells us what to use, the light ash wood guidon staff), X wrong finials (same AFI for the flat, silver …
This investigation is grounded in a review of five critical articles from prominent news sources—including Stars and Stripes, NBC News, Washington Post, the American Legion, and NPR—which collectively detail a pattern of failures that constitute a betrayal of trust by Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations (AFMAO). This historical record highlights instances of mishandled veteran human remains and failed accountability, unequivocally …