"...most highly decorated soldier in American military history..."

The ghost of Audie Murphy would like a word with you.

I am unfamiliar with the term pop-off. Urban Dictionary says : This term means essentially, get the hell out of my face.

Funny...

My military history teacher in high school was Mr Popoff.

It was an Ellis Island bastardization of Popov.

Sgt Otter: The ghost of Audie Murphy would like a word with you.

Yeah...I was expecting an article on Murphy. WTF?

Sgt Otter: "...most highly decorated soldier in American military history..."

The ghost of Audie Murphy would like a word with you.

So would the army: Hackworth (new window)

I popped off this morning

Shadow Blasko: Popoff.

You'd better pop off

"...most highly decorated soldier in American military history..."

Actually, they should have been referencing Joe Ronnie Hooper (new window)

Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

AntiNerd: Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

You won't find any right-wing farkers celebrating anyone's opinion of the current White House occupants, except their own.

Soldiers like this guy are a dying breed. And that's just the way top brass likes it.

And that, my friends, is an American hero.

Military might carries enormous responsibility.

hack was one of the best, god bless 'im.

deeproy: AntiNerd: Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

You won't find any right-wing farkers celebrating anyone's opinion of the current White House occupants, except their own.

What about people like me who can't stand either the Bush Family or the Clinton family? We also think McCain is too old and Obama is too left.

I feel that every single American should read that book. It contains what is so damn right about the Army but on the other hand it also contains what is wrong with the Army and the sort of problems he had with it still exist today.

Seriously, if you haven't read it, pick it up from your local library.

/ImageShack doesn't like occifers too
//ImageShack also hates pogues

AntiNerd: Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

Nor should they.
From Slate: "Newsweek's Major Embarrassment
He's called Col. Hackworth" (new window)

globalwarmingpraiser: Obama is too left.

Compared to what?

Obama is more Right-Wing then the Right-wing Canadian government. Keep a little perspective here.

Sgt Otter: Audie Murphy would like a word with you.

Came her to say that.

Medal of Honor
Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star (2)
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star (2)
Purple Heart (3)

French Legion of Honor
French Croix de Guerre
Belgian Croix de Guerre

Hack came up through the ranks, became an officer, and said his piece. He ruined his career, retired and became a talking head.

I enjoyed listening to him being interviewed on Imus and TV. But he chose to cash in, like most talking heads/politicians, he chose to step outside rather than keep fighting to correct what he saw as wrong, within the system.

And yes he promoted himself as a product, which was what he became and lost his ability to change what he saw wrong. In the end there were two Hackworths, both of them were good at what they did. No matter what the results, good or bad it did, in the end.

Bored Horde: globalwarmingpraiser: Obama is too left.

Compared to what?

Obama is more Right-Wing then the Right-wing Canadian government. Keep a little perspective here.

Here's more perspective.

The last sitting American President to advocate universal health care was Richard Nixon. By today's standards, in nearly any topic, the last 'leftist' to hold the office was Tricky Dick.

Oddly, Republicans love Nixon's crimes but hate his policies.

Obama isn't even as remotely 'left' as Nixon on Economic or Regulatory issues.

"Shaun Mullen was born to blog."


Born to blog, huh?

Hackworth's website used to be a good place to go for news about some high-ranking jerk who was screwing over the little guy.

Massa Damnata: "Shaun Mullen was born to blog."

Born to blog, huh?

Didn't he also sing that damned "Lullaby" song?

WoodyHayes: Seriously, if you haven't read it, pick it up from your local library.

THIS
seriously
I am NOT a war or history geek
this book is jsut amazing

and is still relevant given todays military quagmires

Who started deregulation? That would be President Jimmy Carter.

globalwarmingpraiser: deeproy: AntiNerd: Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

You won't find any right-wing farkers celebrating anyone's opinion of the current White House occupants, except their own.

What about people like me who can't stand either the Bush Family or the Clinton family? We also think McCain is too old and Obama is too left.


Obama is not too far left. You have to remember, that in almost every case, when Americans are polled about issues (and no mention is made of party), they overwhelminly prefer the liberal stance. To the point that if their legislators accurately voted for what the people wanted, they could override a Presidential veto every time. Obama is in effect to the right of the American people.

He is certainly not perfect: but of the 3 major candidates he is the best choice. Go ahead and vote for him in the general election with a clear conscience. Seriously.

Snaps to, and offers a salute to Hackworth's memory. Most decorated, who cares? He was a warrior of the first order and a comrade-in-arms, well done, sir.

1) As was mentioned before, Audie Murphy.
2) There was a green beret in Vietnam who won more decorations than Hackworth.
3) Hackworth's behavior crossed the line sometimes,like with the Navy Admiral he went after for wearing unearned medals while Hackworth sported a Ranger tab he never earned.

MickCollins: 1) As was mentioned before, Audie Murphy.
2) There was a green beret in Vietnam who won more decorations than Hackworth.
3) Hackworth's behavior crossed the line sometimes,like with the Navy Admiral he went after for wearing unearned medals while Hackworth sported a Ranger tab he never earned.

1. Audie Murphy along with any of the other thousands of soldiers who have won the Medal of Honor, something Hackworth never did.

Was there some kind of point system involved with figuring out he was the highest decorated? (and please don't tell me it was based on the promotion-point values...)

Admittedly, Hackworth is extremely impressively decorated, but it's a stretch to put him above Murphy...or if we're getting technical, the 14 service members who have been awarded the Medal of Honor twice. (new window).

al-Mundane: Admittedly, Hackworth is extremely impressively decorated, but it's a stretch to put him above Murphy...or if we're getting technical, the 14 service members who have been awarded the Medal of Honor twice. (new window).

Hey, Custer's brother is on that list. I thought he was killed when the Canadians invaded Montana.

/obscure?

I'm a military historian and followed Hackworth's career as a media "expert" on and off through the 90s.

Some of his better comments.

1. He claimed in Newsweek, in fall of 1990 that the US would be beat by Iraq, like the US Army was beat in Tunisia, because the Iraqi Army had more "trigger pullers" and the US Army was too technologically complex.

2. He claimed in Playboy in the spring of 1992 that he was embedded in an Egyptian Army unit during Desert Storm and was attacked by an A-10.

None of these things were true.

al-Mundane: (and please don't tell me it was based on the promotion-point values...)

OMG OMG OMG I GOT SIX PROMOTION POINTS FOR READING BOOKS ON HOW TO TIE MY SHOES AND EAT WITH A FORK OMG OMG OMG

/slams head into desk repeatedly

al-Mundane: Location: Lake Charles, LA

Hehe, I have fond memories of having relations of an adult nature with several young ladies from Lake Charles while I was at Fort Polk. :)

I dunno. As a former Marne Dog, I've always admired Audie Murphy but in the long run, he was one of those guys who seemed to expect his own fame to keep him running without ever doing anything else. An MoH is impressive, but there is some controversy concerning what makes his deeds more impressive than other during the war. Sometimes, mind you, sometimes the award is as political as it is valid.

I know on his last trip back from Iraq, my old gunner was biatching because all E-4s and below got ARCOMs, E5-E6 got Bronze Stars and E7 and above got Silver Stars. It was an upper echelon trick to flesh out everyones medals. Heck, during Korea my father overheard two LTs talking about putting each other in for MoHs because they knew it would be downgraded but still prestigious.

I liked Col. Hackworth because he was always loud and strident, but in the defense of the EM. He biatched about softer standards in Basic because it meant soldiers would expect it at duty stations. He always wanted the soldier to do a little more, and when they went and pushed through, he rewarded it. Was he a maverick? Yes. Did he break rules? Yes. Was it hypocritical of him to attack Boorda? Yes and no.

From what I've read, when Col. Hackworth broke the rules, it was for morale. Boorda pinned on ribbons for himself, no one else. Is a soldier impressed and willing to follow if he sees that his CO brought in hookers to blow off steam after a week in the jungle? Yes. Is an EM impressed if his CO has two more ribbons on his jacket? Probably not.

WoodyHayes: al-Mundane: Location: Lake Charles, LA

Hehe, I have fond memories of having relations of an adult nature with several young ladies from Lake Charles while I was at Fort Polk. :)

Lake Charles is a blight on the planet. It looks like a chunk of the Death Star landed in Louisiana.

Aarontology: Hey, Custer's brother is on that list. I thought he was killed when the Canadians invaded Montana.

/obscure?

Only if you don't appreciate James G. Blaine as America's greatest president.

Hackworth was a bit of a hack and a major self-promoter. Mostly, he's one of those guys that cash in their 'tough guy' image by playing to the left-wing of the party. Sort've like a Wesley Clark who said he would've been republican if Karl Rove returned his calls. As someone else mentioned, Hackworth basically cashed in and became a talking head. He was almost court martialed because of his unprofessional behavior as well. Though it's not as if the military scorned him. It said so right in the article he was offered a chance to go on to advanced war college studies.

The main thing about Hackworth though is that he never got out of a Mid-70s to Early 80s mentality. The army changed dramatically in the Late 80s-Late 90s, and he never acknowledged it.

Comrade438: Aarontology: Hey, Custer's brother is on that list. I thought he was killed when the Canadians invaded Montana.

/obscure?

Only if you don't appreciate James G. Blaine as America's greatest president.

In retrospect, perhaps. The Remembrance Ideology certainly helped pave the way for the victory in the Great War.

Hackworth was on Fox for a while, until they realized that he wasn't parroting their "fair and balanced" line. He was more worried about the guys in the ranks than most of today's "Support the troops" yahoos.


inconnu

The main thing about Hackworth though is that he never got out of a Mid-70s to Early 80s mentality. The army changed dramatically in the Late 80s-Late 90s, and he never acknowledged it.

Nice to see farkers striving to live up to their monikers. If you check out some of his columns on his website, you can follow his change of mind about a lot of things week-by-week. He actually liked Rummy for a while, until he saw how farked up things were going to get in Iraq. That's about the same time Fox dumped him.

KeatingFive: globalwarmingpraiser: deeproy: AntiNerd: Of course you won't find all the right-wing farkers here celebrating his opinion of the current occupants of the White House.

You won't find any right-wing farkers celebrating anyone's opinion of the current White House occupants, except their own.

What about people like me who can't stand either the Bush Family or the Clinton family? We also think McCain is too old and Obama is too left.


Obama is not too far left. You have to remember, that in almost every case, when Americans are polled about issues (and no mention is made of party), they overwhelminly prefer the liberal stance. To the point that if their legislators accurately voted for what the people wanted, they could override a Presidential veto every time. Obama is in effect to the right of the American people.

He is certainly not perfect: but of the 3 major candidates he is the best choice. Go ahead and vote for him in the general election with a clear conscience. Seriously.

I worry about Obama's penchant for government programs. Personally I wish Harold Ford Jr. had been run instead of Obama. Oh and most Americans are for more programs until they find out the costs. Tell me, if you knew the Great Society programs would lead to the epic Fail they have would you be for them. For a fraction of the cost we could have done more, through encouraing more Americans companies to build cars, Added more Nuclear Power Plants, and encouraging more businesses to build here. That would have effecively dealt with our poverty issue. Anyone who didn't want to work would be in trouble. Also it would have not led to the destruction of poor families. A man would still be expected to take care of his family not father 20 kids he doesn't know. This is a problem in poor white communities too, to those who that I mean blacks. People are for government solutions till they see the results.

I remembered the soldier from Vietnam who was more decorated than Hackworth. He was nominated 3 times for the MoH and only one it once because a law was passed saying you could only win it once. His name was Robert Howard.
Dude was a badass beyond badass.

We can argue forever what constitutes the "most decorated" soldier in history; and then throw in all the soldiers who never got the medals they should have (the Choctaw & Navajo codetalkers, the Special Ops guys) and throw out the ones who got medals they didn't deserve. It can go on for years, and usually does.

Hackworth was one of a breed of soldier the military establishment (as opposed to the actual military) kind of prefers not to have around in large numbers: They're great to have out in the actual field while the shooting's going on, because they'll get shiat done and get it done fast. However, once the wars are over, they run their mouths loudly and contradictorally about everything that went wrong and who was to blame (except themselves) to anyone who will listen on both sides of the political spectrum.

Hackworth could have been a Colin Powell or a Norman Schwartzkopf if only he could have shut up; but he wasn't that kind of person. He was a good soldier; but a rotten politician.

Col. Hackworth, whom I have met on several occasions on both a professional and personal basis, is extremely intelligent, very brave, and a solid thinker. He is not shy about his opinions, and even when you disagree with him, you still have to admit that he has actually put some thought into the issues. Unlike many, he has actually earned most of that fruit salad on his chest, and is known to have returned decorations he didn't think he deserved (3 Bronze Stars, 1 Silver Star, and 2 Purple Hearts, and a few more).

My respect for the man is enormous. And he deserves it.

That said, his number one problem, then and now, is that he has never learned, and has never had an interest in learning, how to rein in his mouth. He has almost no sense of propriety, and has very little respect for the chain of command, and zero patience with those he thinks are not as smart as he is. That more than anything else is what impeded his progress in the Army, and indeed contributed to the events that ended with him leaving the military.

Just a for what it's worth.

Col. Hackworth's"About Face" is certainly worth reading.

RIP brave soldier!

/Wolfhounds FTW!

Aarontology: In retrospect, perhaps. The Remembrance Ideology certainly helped pave the way for the victory in the Great War.

Yeah, but the damn Socialists almost blew it in the interwar years. Al Smith and his goddamn plebiscite.

/FREEDOM!

Well at least he wasn't as bad as Blackford..... that bastard....

WoodyHayes: I feel that every single American should read that book. It contains what is so damn right about the Army but on the other hand it also contains what is wrong with the Army and the sort of problems he had with it still exist today.

Seriously, if you haven't read it, pick it up from your local library.


Looking up from my computer, I can see my personalized, signed copy I got when he did the book tour.

When the book came out I was taking a military history class; an elective for me, but required for the Army ROTC. I read a review of the book, asked the Professor his opinion and you could have knocked him over with a feather. He asked how I knew about the Colonel and I showed him the article. At this point, all the ROTC guys were paying attention as the Professor went on to tell me how he knew Colonel Hackworth and about the signing later that week. Since this was Tampa in the late '80s, there wasn't a line and I got an introduction and a chance to speak with him for about an hour.

One of those crazy little things in life.

Hackworth seemed to be a good guy to me but Richard Marcinko (Kicks Ass in New Window)is The Man.

19 Kilo: I dunno. As a former Marne Dog, I've always admired Audie Murphy but in the long run, he was one of those guys who seemed to expect his own fame to keep him running without ever doing anything else. An MoH is impressive, but there is some controversy concerning what makes his deeds more impressive than other during the war. Sometimes, mind you, sometimes the award is as political as it is valid.

I know on his last trip back from Iraq, my old gunner was biatching because all E-4s and below got ARCOMs, E5-E6 got Bronze Stars and E7 and above got Silver Stars. It was an upper echelon trick to flesh out everyones medals. Heck, during Korea my father overheard two LTs talking about putting each other in for MoHs because they knew it would be downgraded but still prestigious.

I liked Col. Hackworth because he was always loud and strident, but in the defense of the EM. He biatched about softer standards in Basic because it meant soldiers would expect it at duty stations. He always wanted the soldier to do a little more, and when they went and pushed through, he rewarded it. Was he a maverick? Yes. Did he break rules? Yes. Was it hypocritical of him to attack Boorda? Yes and no.

From what I've read, when Col. Hackworth broke the rules, it was for morale. Boorda pinned on ribbons for himself, no one else. Is a soldier impressed and willing to follow if he sees that his CO brought in hookers to blow off steam after a week in the jungle? Yes. Is an EM impressed if his CO has two more ribbons on his jacket? Probably not.

You're a smart dude for a fookin' tanker. Great post.