Military Review English Edition November-December 2014 | Page 118

lesson plans.42 To remedy this incongruence, considFox Conner interacted. Of course, not every soldier
eration should be given to injecting the operational
will become an Eisenhower, but every Army leader can
COG into CGSOC as an overall theme. Practice of its
strive to be a Gen. Conner.
application is needed, as well as undertaking as many
At this juncture it is helpful to bolster the persona of
historical case studies as possible to study instances
Conner with a person from fiction. In Michael Shaara’s
when the operational COG was attacked to good effect, The Killer Angels, Sgt. Buster Kilrain, the tough old
or even those cases where it was not.
Irishman so loyal to Col. Joshua Chamberlain, makes
It is the cognitive process that will tease out and
a very profound assessment of the good colonel. In the
yield the operational COG. No checklist can do this
hours before the fateful engagement on Little Round
alone. Plus, the operational COG concept is not someTop, the sergeant passes on this wonderful compliment:
thing learned once. It is a complex element of design,
“You are damned good at everything I’ve seen you do.
and like anything complex, it must be reviewed and exA lovely soldier, and honest man and you got a good
ercised regularly. Thus, another challenge arises: within heart on you too which is rare in clever men.”45
Army units, it is incumbent upon leadership to keep
the operational COG lesson alive. If the Army earUsing Campfires to Fire the Mind
nestly emphasizes the importance of a topic, soldiers’
Conner, apparently embodying all that is “rare in
interests are actively sparked.
clever men,” noted something in Eisenhower.46 In his
Passively, reading lists serve as an inducement. After biography, Ike: An American Hero, historian Michael
all, it is incumbent upon soldiers to show initiative
Korda describes an evening at Fort Meade shortly after
and undertake a study of the concept on their own.
Connor and Eisenhower become acquainted. Again,
The CSA’s reading list, in particular, offers a superb
in a very relaxed setting, the general asks a number of
selection.43 For instance, a wonderful book
questions to both Eisenhower and George
is included: Michael Fischer’s Pulitzer Prize
Patton regarding tanks. Most of the questions
winning Washington’s Crossing. The list also
Conner directs to Eisenhower as “the brains”
gives an apt description of this book’s conbehind tank warfare (perhaps to the dismay
tents. However, in the overall context of deof George Patton).47 Also, it is these meetings
sign, why not mention Washington’s aim to
that lead Conner to invite Eisenhower to
defeat an operational COG, of the Hessians
serve with him in Panama.48
at Trenton, by exploiting their critical vulThis ability to recognize the need for
nerability—hubris (a superb point Fischer’s
Brevet Col. George Patton
nurture is an important skill, especially as
text brings out)?44 Going a step further, is
old adages and platitudes about armies begin
it too much of a reach to dedicate a reading list solely
to resurface. First, an army is a collection of men and
to classic cases of operational COG identification and
women, and yes, the Army is only as good as its leaders.
defeat?
However, to borrow from the joint world, those who
Actively, outside of formal education and aside from become the best do so through skill, knowledge, and
personal professional reading, the challenge of leadexperience.49
ers and mentors is to expose young officers to design
Concerning knowledge, it again helps to reinforce
mechanics as much as possible; thus, the emphasis on
the real-world Conner with fictional Sgt. Kilrain. In
the readily accessible campfire concept. Of course,
Sharra’s story, the old sergeant makes another erudite,
balance is needed. First, young officers must learn their
pointed comment to the colonel: he taps his head while
weapons systems and the skill sets that will serve them
uttering, “there is only one aristocracy.”50 Cognition,
at the tactical level. Even so, the leader’s challenge is to
the “aristocracy,” is perhaps the Army’s best weapon. As
explain, even at that early stage, how the soldiers’ skills
part of the cognitive domain, creativity is also getting
contribute to the overall mission and how they help
emphasis.
attack an operational COG. It should be noted this
Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis, while commander
dynamic was in play at the campfire in Eisenhower’s
of the now-defunct Joint Forces Command, lamented
story. He was a rather young subordinate when he and
that the “current doctrinal approach to creativity is
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November-December 2014  MILITARY REVIEW