--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Scott Ritter is a very well-known…" description: "\"Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain U.S. military officer. Very hard talking, very ambitious, zealous, and completely consumed wit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg" --- # Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain… ![“Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain U.S. military officer. Very hard talking, very ambitious, zealous, and completely consumed with carrying out his mission. He's a guy who, throughout his career, I would say, did not break rules, but he worked around road blocks.” quote by Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg) > “Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain U.S. military officer. Very hard talking, very ambitious, zealous, and completely consumed with carrying out his mission. He's a guy who, throughout his career, I would say, did not break rules, but he worked around road blocks.” [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes a military archetype who follows orders zealously while navigating obstacles creatively. **In simple terms:** A zealous officer who bends rules to fulfill his mission. Key Takeaway Balance ambition with ethical boundaries. Themes military ambition ethics Mood critical analytical Type explanatory character study When to use this quote - military operations - corporate strategy - policy implementation Key Concepts leadership rule navigation Questions to Reflect On - When is it acceptable to circumvent rules? - What are the risks of excessive zeal? A Different Perspective Overreliance on rule‑bending can erode trust. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) [Career](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/career/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Mission](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mission/) [Rules](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rules/) ## Related quotes > [Few things are more damaging to our democracy than a military officer who doesn't have the moral courage to stand up for what's right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mullen/few-things-are-more-damaging-to-our-democracy-than-a-military-officer/) [Michael Mullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mullen/) > [After I graduated from Tuskegee with a masters in nuclear engineering, the draft was on so I signed up for ROTC. I figured if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lonnie-johnson/after-i-graduated-from-tuskegee-with-a-masters-in-nuclear-engineering/) [Lonnie Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lonnie-johnson/) > [A true military officer is in one particular like a true monk. Not with more self-abnegation will the latter keep his vows of monastic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/a-true-military-officer-is-in-one-particular-like-a-true-monk-not/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [One of my most rewarding congressional duties is nominating future military leaders to study at America's service academies. The exceptional young men and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brady/one-of-my-most-rewarding-congressional-duties-is-nominating-future/) [Kevin Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brady/) > [I didnt go into the NASA program to pick up rocks or to go the moon or anything else. I went in there because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lovell/i-didnt-go-into-the-nasa-program-to-pick-up-rocks-or-to-go-the-moon/) [Jim Lovell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lovell/) > [As a military officer - and this is - I have lived my life in the national security realm - I don't think I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-mcgrath/as-a-military-officer-and-this-is-i-have-lived-my-life-in-the/) [Amy McGrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-mcgrath/) > [That is why every military officer fights - so that there may be peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-manuel-santos/that-is-why-every-military-officer-fights-so-that-there-may-be-peace/) [Juan Manuel Santos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-manuel-santos/) > [I used to have a military officer travelling with me at all times with a suitcase - referred to as the nuclear football -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/i-used-to-have-a-military-officer-travelling-with-me-at-all-times/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [A lot of what a military officer does is not just leading troops in combat. It's also doing budgets. It's solving complex problems. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-zinke/a-lot-of-what-a-military-officer-does-is-not-just-leading-troops-in/) [Ryan Zinke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-zinke/) > [I spent much of my life - almost 40 years - as a military officer. My specialty was in the part of the Navy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-g-stavridis/i-spent-much-of-my-life-almost-40-years-as-a-military-officer-my/) [James G. Stavridis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-g-stavridis/) > [“and indent all but the simplest of blocks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lutz/and-indent-all-but-the-simplest-of-blocks/) [Mark Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lutz/) > [Creativity is our true nature; blocks are an unnatural thwarting of a process at once as normal and as miraculous as the blossoming of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/creativity-is-our-true-nature-blocks-are-an-unnatural-thwarting-of-a/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [There's discussion in athletics about how sport - where they say 'SportsCenter' has ruined the fundamentals of basketball because it's - it only applauds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-pfeiffer/there-s-discussion-in-athletics-about-how-sport-where-they-say/) [Dan Pfeiffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-pfeiffer/) > [My concentration level blocks out everything. Concentration is why some athletes are better than others. You develop that concentration in training and concentrate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-concentration-level-blocks-out-everything-concentration-is-why/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Until the Nineteen-Eighties, when Deng Xiaoping designated the area as China's first special economic zone, Shenzhen had been a tiny fishing village. Suddenly, eleven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-specter/until-the-nineteen-eighties-when-deng-xiaoping-designated-the-area-as/) [Michael Specter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-specter/) ## More by Barton Gellman > [On March 12, 2004, acting attorney general James B. Comey and the Justice Department's top leadership reached the brink of resignation over electronic surveillance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/on-march-12-2004-acting-attorney-general-james-b-comey-and-the/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [For political and bureaucratic reasons, governments at all levels are telling far less to the public than to insiders about how to prepare for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/for-political-and-bureaucratic-reasons-governments-at-all-levels-are/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Searches of al Qaeda sites in Afghanistan, undertaken since American-backed forces took control there, are not known to have turned up a significant cache…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/searches-of-al-qaeda-sites-in-afghanistan-undertaken-since-american/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I don't think Cheney started off in 2000 with a burning desire to become vice-president. I think the prospect gradually became more appealing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-don-t-think-cheney-started-off-in-2000-with-a-burning-desire-to/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [As militias go, the Ohio Defense Force is on the moderate side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/as-militias-go-the-ohio-defense-force-is-on-the-moderate-side/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I doubt there's any government in the world that guides itself primarily by strategy or conceptual documents or worldview. Anybody who has the reins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-doubt-there-s-any-government-in-the-world-that-guides-itself/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [U.S. intelligence services routinely use collection methods against foreigners that foreseeably - with certainty - ingest high volumes of U.S. communications as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/u-s-intelligence-services-routinely-use-collection-methods-against/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Snowden is an orderly thinker, with an engineer's approach to problem-solving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/snowden-is-an-orderly-thinker-with-an-engineer-s-approach-to-problem/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Experts said public companies worry about the loss of customer confidence and the legal liability to shareholders or security vendors when they report flaws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/experts-said-public-companies-worry-about-the-loss-of-customer/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [The United States, a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention, destroyed the last of its stocks of VX and other chemical agents on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/the-united-states-a-signatory-to-the-chemical-weapons-convention/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [As Trotsky didn't exactly say, you may not be interested in electronic snoops, but snoops are interested in you, whether or not you keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/as-trotsky-didn-t-exactly-say-you-may-not-be-interested-in-electronic/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [You don't need to be a spook to care about encryption. If you travel with your computer or keep it in a place where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/you-don-t-need-to-be-a-spook-to-care-about-encryption-if-you-travel/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I learned the technology and tradecraft of electronic security in self defense, with a lot of expert help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-learned-the-technology-and-tradecraft-of-electronic-security-in/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Nothing is absolute in security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/nothing-is-absolute-in-security/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Early in 1986, the World Health Organization in Geneva still regarded AIDS as an ailment of the promiscuous few.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/early-in-1986-the-world-health-organization-in-geneva-still-regarded/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) [Explore all 139 Barton Gellman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) ## More Ambitious quotes > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [I want my squad to be confident, ambitious. They have to believe in big things and we have to set targets internally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-howe/i-want-my-squad-to-be-confident-ambitious-they-have-to-believe-in-big/) [Eddie Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-howe/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [“Getting rich is easy, staying rich is impressive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-trip/getting-rich-is-easy-staying-rich-is-impressive/) [Don Trip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-trip/) > [Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion...What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/trying-to-be-perfect-may-be-inevitable-for-people-who-are-smart-and/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Business is always a struggle. There are always obstacles and competitors. There is never an open road, except the wide road that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kirubi/business-is-always-a-struggle-there-are-always-obstacles-and/) Chris Kirubi > [I am ambitious to do more than what has been offered me. I want to be the best in whatever career I choose and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uday-chopra/i-am-ambitious-to-do-more-than-what-has-been-offered-me-i-want-to-be/) [Uday Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uday-chopra/) > [There are four varieties in society — the lovers, the ambitious, observers, and fools. The fools are the happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hippolyte-taine/there-are-four-varieties-in-society-the-lovers-the-ambitious/) [Hippolyte Taine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hippolyte-taine/) > [People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/people-who-are-ambitious-politicians-who-crave-power-think-that-they/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [I'm not ambitious. Not a bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-m-not-ambitious-not-a-bit/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. Men are continually applauded for being ambitious and powerful and successful, but women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/aggressive-and-hard-charging-women-violate-unwritten-rules-about/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I understood early on that I was not the best-looking girl in the room. But I knew my advantage was a hard work ethic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-o-connor/i-understood-early-on-that-i-was-not-the-best-looking-girl-in-the/) [Erin O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-o-connor/) > [It is ordained that to the ambitious, who derive no satisfaction from the gifts of life and the beauty of the world, life shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/it-is-ordained-that-to-the-ambitious-who-derive-no-satisfaction-from/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [If Reagan and John Paul II were linked by anything, it was a grand, ambitious, and generous idea of Western political civilization, one in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/if-reagan-and-john-paul-ii-were-linked-by-anything-it-was-a-grand/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [To talk only about national security, national defense, means to be selfish, ambitious. It is discrimination, isolation. "It is just me. What do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evo-morales/to-talk-only-about-national-security-national-defense-means-to-be/) [Evo Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evo-morales/) [Browse all 1,269 Ambitious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain U.S. military officer. Very hard talking, very ambitious, zealous, and completely consumed with carrying out his mission. He's a guy who, throughout his career, I would say, did not break rules, but he worked around road blocks.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Barton Gellman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archetype-of-a-certain-u-s-military/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ambitious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archetype-of-a-certain-u-s-military/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/barton-gellman-3126_ambitious_scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archet_3106692.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Scott Ritter is a very well-known archetype of a certain U.S. military officer. Very hard talking, very…” — Barton Gellman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Barton Gellman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Scott Ritter is a very well-known...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archetype-of-a-certain-u-s-military/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/scott-ritter-is-a-very-well-known-archetype-of-a-certain-u-s-military/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```