Go Listen to LTG Van Riper on Midrats

As I bury myself in writing chapters and looking for jobs, I have not had much time to keep up with the blog circuit. However, I finally got around to this interview with LTG Paul Van Riper, USMC (Ret.), on Midrats–and it is awesome. There is a good amount of time devoted to John Boyd, media-military relations, and the learning culture of the military, but the most fascinating bit for me was a discussion of training infantry in the same way combat aviators are trained a la “Top Gun” and the like. Small arms training has been an interest of mine for a long time, and the feedback I have gotten from those who know much more about the topic than I do is that the military needs to spend more time training the basics and training them in line with current best practices. This is much more important than worrying about the latest, whiz-bang SALW system whether we are talking the faux-revolutionary XM25 or the endless string of M16/M4 replacements that get proposed every year.  At any rate, go listen to that interview.  There is something for everyone.