Alexander’s Leadership Failure

One of the most valuable things that can be applied to being a good officer is the knowledge on how to treat and take care of those beneath you. Alexander the Great was typically considered a good and strong leader, however, during the crossing of the Gedrosian Desert Alexander failed his men and put his own personal glory above his men’s safety and health. Alexander elected to cross the desert for the sole purpose of achievement.[1] He would be considered an even greater leader if he could effectively lead his troops across the desert because at the time it was considered suicide to attempt to cross such a vast and hard environment. Alexander’s men paid the price for his arrogance. The vast majority of his troops suffered from heat and dehydration and succumbed in the middle of the desert. When the food ran out “…they would club together and kill off most of their horses and mules and eat their flesh”.[2] Those that survived the hunger, heat, and thirst also were likely to fall asleep from pure exhaustion. Alexander’s soldiers were so exhausted that they would collapse and fall asleep in the middle of the desert, only to wake up alone and essentially be left for dead in the middle of nowhere.

As part of the process to become officers, we have been taught that our people should always come before ourselves. That means that before we eat, we should ensure our sailors have eaten. If our sailors are up all night working, then we should be as well. And we should also be able to recognize when something is not normal with them and they are suffering from hunger or sleep deprivation. While Alexander was considered a great military leader and had many victories underneath him, he put his own rewards and pride above those who served him. This could be a fatal flaw. After the march through the desert, many of Alexander’s men would have felt resentment towards him and would have been much less likely to serve effectively underneath him. The loyalty of subordinates is extremely important to any leaders but particularly important to leaders in the military. Personal pride should always be put aside, especially when it involves other people’s lives. While we have studied many conflicts and leaders throughout this course, I believe this failure of Alexander and his forces may be one of the most important lessons to be learned as a military leader.

Brett Eckert

Word Count: 436

[1] Alexander The Great, Demand, Google Drive, pg 326.

[2] Anabasis, Abbrian, Google Drive, pg. 326.

Mongols and Nazis

An expansive and feared regime led by one man whose charisma and leadership united a nation and created a world power known by all. This statement applies to several countries throughout history, but two in particular come to mind. First is the Mongol Empire which reigned throughout Asia for roughly 200 years from 1200-1400. The Mongolian empire was unified under the influence of Genghis Khan who radicalized the military and the technology that they used creating an environment which allowed for the rapid expansion of the empire. The brutality of the Mongolians was also well known. As described in The Perfect History by Ibn al-athir the Mongol hordes were more fearsome than the antichrist himself. Al-athir states that “…these spared none, slaying men and women and children, ripping open pregnant women and killing unborn babies”.[1] This description strikes fear and because it came from a direct victim of the attack, it is clear to see that the idea of the Mongol empire created a sense of psychological warfare, which only strengthened the fear of the Mongols and the therefore the success of Mongolian attacks. The Mongols were such a fear-inducing group of people that even al-athir claims that the events are “so horrible that I shrank from ever recording it”.[2] Unlike prior empires, the Mongols relied on fear as a primary means of expansion and control. This is similar to the fear that the Nazis in 1940s Germany used to control certain populations and peoples.

One of Adolf Hitler’s characteristics that helped him rise to power was his charm and ability to unite people. This is much like Genghis Khan who’s ability to unite an entire nation together was a powerful tool that led to the strength of the Mongols. Much like the Mongols, the Nazis believed that those who did not stand with them, were standing against them and must be eliminated. For the Nazis, the main opponent who they viewed as being against them was the Jewish. Hitler promoted the Jews as the cause of all of Germany’s problems which created a hostile environment for them to live in. Because of the atrocities committed by the Nazis, a similar environment of fear was created for many people other than Jews. People became fearful of speaking out against the Nazis because those that did disappeared. Much like the Mongols, Nazis used this fear as a means of expansion and because of that a small Nazi empire was created throughout Europe. Even to this day, many of the crimes that the Nazis partook in are not believed by some because it is difficult to believe something so terrible could occur. This is nearly identical to some of the statements made by al-athir about how he struggled to have the heart to write about what the Mongols did.

-Brett Eckert

Word Count: 482

[1] A Perfect History, Google Drive folder

[2] Ibid

Sun Tzu and the Naval Academy

When reading Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, several similarities become apparent between his teachings, and what the Naval Academy strives to teach midshipmen. Within the first several stanzas it is easy to see that Sun Tzu values discipline as one of the most crucial aspects of a military leaders. While the Naval Academy does not focus explicitly on this trait, it can be seen very often in the teaching and way of life at the Academy.

In chapter one of The Art of War, Sun Tzu describes his five fundamentals with discipline being listed as the last of the five. According to Sun Tzu, discipline is “Organization/Chain of Command/Control of expenditure” (Art of War 4). Discipline is taught as one of the core principles at the Naval Academy and the importance of discipline is constantly emphasized. This begins over Plebe Summer when plebes are forced to recite several rates discussing discipline and its importance. Discipline is further reinforced at the Academy by the importance of organization. Organization is one of the most underappreciated skills developed at the academy. With the level of work and time management necessary to succeed, organized must be learned, and those who do not develop good organizational habits are bound to fall behind.

The next aspect that Sun Tzu lists as being a part of discipline is Chain of Command. Undoubtedly, proper utilization of the Chain of Command is one of the most emphasized teachings from the Naval Academy. Before even arriving at the academy, students are expected to know a portion of the chain of command from the president down to the Commandant of Midshipmen. After arriving, the chain of command grows and now includes midshipmen in billets appointed over the plebe class. Every semester these billet holders change creating a change in the chain of command. Any official paperwork must be sent through the chain of command, only moving one person at a time, so it is crucial for all midshipmen to know the members of their chain of chain very well.

The final aspect of discipline discussed by Sun Tzu is control of expenditure which is something taught very well at the Naval Academy. Control of expenditure simply means knowing how to be smart with money. At the Naval Academy this is accomplished by making nearly no income during the first year at the school. With only 100 dollars of income every month it can be exceedingly difficult to manage a budget properly. After the first year, students begin making a small amount more, but controlling expenditures remains a valuable skill that is taught every year until graduation.

-Brett Eckert

Word Count: 447

Dreamers: Modern Metics

Should non-citizens be allowed to vote? Asking this question today in modern America is sure to get people on both sides of the political spectrum arguing why their decision is right. However, this is not a new issue. In Ancient Athens, asking the same question would get you the very same outcome. The key difference between ancient and modern times is what the non-citizens are referred to as. In ancient Athens they were known as metics, or resident aliens. Presently they are known mostly as dreamers: sons and daughters of illegal immigrants who were brought to America as young children.

Metics in Athens had interesting lives. They lived and worked in plain view of Athenian citizens, doing jobs that Athenians themselves could do as well, and they were treated similarly to if they themselves were citizens. However, metics were also required to pay additional taxes to be allowed to live in Athens, and they had no vote in the assembly, even in matters which strongly pertained to them. In Lysias 12, Lysias, an Athenian Metic who has lived in Athens for his entire life, begs the Athenian assembly to hear his plea that the one of the Thirty murdered his brother. Lysias asks that the assembly think for themselves when voting but unfortunately, Lysias himself is not allowed to vote, given his status as a metic. It is clear from his writing that Lysias is well educated, dedicated to Athens, and wants what is best for the city. Lysias also donated a large sum of his own money to the Athenian military during the Peloponnesian War, thereby furthering his dedication to Athens. Even with all of these factors, Lysias would not be allowed to vote, simply off the fact that is parents were not Athenian citizens, and therefore he could not be either.

In present day America, the argument regarding the rights of these now called Dreamers is still going strong. In 2012, President Obama signed the “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” commonly known as DACA. DACA protects the rights of these Dreamers and allows them to continue to live in America with a more legal status. More recently, the Trump administration, with its firm stance on immigration reform has said that they will be phasing out the DACA program which would return the Dreamers to the illegal status they had prior to the program (CNN). Under DACA, it is very easy to make the comparison between dreamers and metics. Both lived much, if not all, of their lives in the places that they weren’t considered citizens, both do not have the right to vote, both held jobs openly in society, and both fought for more equal status.

-Brett Eckert

Word Count: 455

Lysias 12 from class drive

https://www.cnn.com/2017/09/04/politics/daca-dreamers-immigration-program/index.html

Democracy against Democracy

In ancient times and up to the era in which the United States was founded, a representative democracy was a very powerful and effective tool. However, modern technology has created the ability to easily allow every citizens voice to be heard. When America was founded, a representative democracy was used because it would otherwise be too difficult to have people’s voices heard. The elected representative would travel to the voting location and essentially cast a vote for each person he represented. Unfortunately, in more recent times, these representatives cast the votes more in favor of their own ideals, not necessarily aligned with the beliefs of those they represent.

It has become common practice for officials to run their campaigns solely on what they believe their constituents want to hear and will therefore be more likely to get them voted into office. A prominent example of this is President Trump and his border wall. In 2017, 61% of the population was opposed to a border wall (Cato). Basic math would say that 39% is then in support of it. We would expect to see a similar percentage of support in Congress, given that they are supposed to represent the people. However, the same year, only 25% of Congress was in support of a border wall (USA Today). This simple statistic shows that the people are not truly being represented by those that they elected to do just that.

People may argue that the Athenian democracy was not a true democracy given that women and slaves were not allowed to vote on any of the issues. Using this same idea, it could be argued that the American democracy is not a democracy either due to the fact the not all people are being represented with what they would like. The only way to truly hear everyone’s voice and opinion is by giving everyone the opportunity to have their voice heard. It is very easy to see this when presidential elections occur. With the current Electoral College system used by America, the president that the people really want elected may not be the winner of the election. This can once again be seen with President Trump and his election. The current president lost the popular vote, the true democratic vote of the people, by over 2.8 million people (Independent). There have been five times throughout history in which the elected president lost the popular vote, but President Trump was defeated in the popular vote by the largest difference in American history. This may perhaps show that America is on a downward trend of the effectiveness of a representative democracy, and it may be time to try a different form of democracy.

-Brett Eckert

Word Count: 456

Citations

https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/americans-used-support-border-wall-what-changed-their-minds

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/09/20/trump-border-wall-survey-congress-republicans-billions/640196001/

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-elections/donald-trump-lost-popular-vote-hillary-clinton-us-election-president-history-a7470116.html

Modern Tyranny

Recently, on January eighth, Newsweek published an online article with the title “TRUMP WANTS TO MAKE HIMSELF ‘A KING AND A TYRANT’ BY USURPING CONGRESS” (Newsweek). Ironically, as we learned in class, it is not possible to be both a King and Tyrant, given that a tyrant is a ruler who is outside a monarchy, or kingship. However, in modern times tyrant has developed a far more sinister meaning, typically used to describe someone who has absolute power and control. This is again not an accurate description of the President because while he does have a great deal of power, it is not absolute and the government’s system of checks and balances ensures that the face of America is never someone who has gained too much control or power. Another trait of a historical tyrant is that they are often not elected officials, but rather someone who rises to power while seizing control. While you may not have voted for President Trump, he was elected and had power given to him by the American people rather than having to forcefully seize it. However, President Trump could be considered a tyrant when viewed through a historic lens.

One commonality between the tyrants of ancient times and those of modern times is that they typically see a common issue which they are able to use to get support of the public. In ancient Greece, one of the world’s first tyrants was created when Athens was in a stasis as the laborers and farmers had accrued large debts which they were not able to repay back to the wealthy. The wealthy, having expected to be repaid through goods and services where no longer willing to loan money, as they feared they would not receive repayment from the farmers. Solon implemented a plan called Seisactheia which greatly changed the culture through several policies such as: debt forgiveness, written laws, and political offices by election. While President Trump did not run on the exact same platform as Solon, he still gained support from the public in a similar manner, behind the idea that the America people desired drastic change. One of the President’s main campaigning points was the idea of “draining the swamp” or getting rid of those in offices they shouldn’t be in. Another draw to President Trump that the public saw was that he was not a politician by profession but rather a businessman and that in itself would be a change to the presidency which is what many Americans, like the Athenians of ancient Greece, were seeking in a new ruler. For Athenians, the confidence that they had in Solon helped him to secure leadership, just as the hope Americans found in Trump helped him secure a Presidency.

-Brett Eckert

Word count: 418