May 1, 2026

General James Van Fleet: Lessons for Modern Special Operations Soldiers

One can be forgiven for not associating Gen. James Van Fleet with special operations or Special Forces. He is best known as the commander of the U.S. Eighth Army from April 1951 to February 1953 during the Korean War. The majority of Van Fleet’s career was spent in traditional infantry roles, as a machine gun battalion commander in World War I and as a regimental, division, and corps commander during World War II. However, his assignment as head of the Joint United States Military Advisory Group, Greece (JUSMAG-Greece) in 1948, and his leadership and design of “Operation Rat Killer” during the Korean War, should grab our attention.

July 10, 2025

Book Review: Patton’s War: An American General’s Combat Leadership, Volume 1

George S. Patton, Jr. remains one of the most renowned leaders in American military history. This is the narrative any student of history will find, emblazoned by Patton’s own memoirs, the seminal works of Martin Blumenson, Carlo D’Este, and Stanley Hirshon, and autobiographies of Patton’s peers and superiors. Historian Kevin Hymel seeks to contextualize this narrative through the lens of another Patton, “the man mentioned in the letters and memoirs of the many soldiers he led into battle.”