When did we become an Army of 'Compliance'?

CW4 Michael Little — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 18:00:11 -0400

When I was a Soldier and young NCO, leaders were groomed to be strong-willed, free thinking, independent and caring for the mission and their subordinates. What happened?? Today's generation of leaders (around the SFC/1SG for NCOs and from CPT/MAJ down for officers) seem to have been groomed to simply comply with orders from higher, as if that has become the one and only true measure of success. Is this the type of leader that will seek out and engage the enemy on the battlefield, or is this the type to wait until ordered to do so? More likely of a scenario, this is the leader that will blindly follow the directive of "the boss", without giving him/her the whole picture, thereby failing them the opportunity to make an informed decision...or the type of leader that will only focus their efforts on the priorities of the next higher Commander, with no other emphasis put on what they should know to be right.

I see this every day... I see it in staff NCOs that throw data on slides with no regard to the accuracy of the reporting. I see it in staff officers that will blast FRAGOs and taskings out to subordinate units with no regard given to the capabilities of the unit being tasked. I see it in our young Commanders and even in some younger Field Grade Officers that will jump on every statement made by the higher command as if it's pure gospel apparently without any additional thought given.

Am I jaded, or do any of you see this path our organization is headed down?

Response by SFC Stephen P. made Apr 11 at 2014 6:06 PM

SFC Stephen P. — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 18:06:04 -0400

http://www.breachbangclear.com/site/10-blog/500-electrocuting-the-dog-learned-helplessness-in-the-military-part-1.html

Electrocuting the dog: Learned Helplessness in the military (Part 1)

Today we bring you another op-ed from Chris Hernandez. In true Breach-Bang-Chris fashion he articulates and then excoriates one of the worst things in the military mindset: learned helplessness. On...

Response by CSM Michael J. Uhlig made Apr 11 at 2014 10:35 PM

CSM Michael J. Uhlig — Fri, 11 Apr 2014 22:35:14 -0400

You're seeing the result of growing our Army at a very rapid pace and the product of our training environment from that time period.

Others saw this as well and in an attempt to "right the ship" there was a shift to the creative thinker within the schoolhouse (beginning in Basic Combat Training thru our leadership courses as well.)

With the rapid force reduction/reshaping slapping us upside the head right now, chances are you'll see this happening a lot more.