“As the sociologist Ann Swidler has observed, “common sense”is really just deeply embedded culture: “the set of assumptions so unselfconscious as to seem a natural, transparent undeniable part of the structure of the world.” — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“Ask an American soldier to identify himself, and he probably will say he is “in the Army.” By contrast, a Marine— especially if he… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“The natural state of man is war. I think that peace is an interval for preparation.” The novel is significant because” — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“the platoon moves out to the rifle range barracks for basic rifle training . The gospel according to Parris Island is that shooting accurately… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“Any Marine veteran can reach back thirty or forty years and summon the names of his drill instructors. Flying in a Marine jet over… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“Lt. Gen. Zinni has distilled his experiences in a talk on “twenty lessons learned”that feels like a modern appendix to the Small Wars Manual.… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“What bothers him most about today’s military, he goes on to say, is careerism. It has eroded the other services, he warns, and is… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“Overall, Zinni’s rules read like an updating of how to apply the Marine Corps culture to today’s conflicts: Stay loose. Stay focused. Keep it… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“Overall, Zinni’s rules read like an updating of how to apply the Marine Corps culture to today’s conflicts: Stay loose. Stay focused. Keep it… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“War. In 1901, he graduated from the Virginia Military Institute, where he marched before Stonewall Jackson’s widow. He soon joined the Army, which then… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“As the sociologist Ann Swidler has observed, “common sense”is really just deeply embedded culture: “the set of assumptions so unselfconscious as to seem a… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
“break his hold on power, as…we had come to expect,” the first president Bush and his national security adviser, Brent Scowcroft, wrote in their… — Thomas E. Ricks Copy Share Image
