I don’t think he should have been characterized as the insane show-off that 20th Century-Fox wanted to make him- which I resisted down the line. He had many admirable qualities: duty, honor, country and so forth instilled in those men. The most admirable quality about him was- I have to be so precise in wording this- that he disapproved of taking casualties. Almost fanatical disapproval, and coupled with that, his intense desire to inflict casualties on the enemy.
George C. Scott
Decisive and aggressive leadership is the key. And it is very rare. Patton had it as did Lee Iacocca had when he saved Chrysler. I remember during the days when we were nearly bankrupt and were about to launch the mini-van. Research indicated that there was only enough of a market to fill one assembly plant but Iaccoca, before the first unit was sold, ordered another plant be put on line despite everyone’s objections. People like Patton and Iacocca have a vision and the guts to carry it out that we seldom see. I think Trump is like this.
Trump is like this in a way that every single establishment Republican isn’t. In keeping with the analogy, the Democrats really are Nazis. Abortion is a holocaust and much of the USCCB are quislings.
At which point they discovered that the people who buy minivans aren’t in the market studies… (seriously, what mother of 4 has TIME for that?)
When we were united, we were the strongest country in the history of the world. And, unified as never before, we defeated the greatest organized evil the world had ever seen. But the evil learned; and we forgot.
United, unified country: strong; divided country: weak. Accident?
Or does someone, some someones, or some other country or country profit?
Who foments and funds division here? and why? {same questions, change “country” to “Catholic Church”]
Will they, evil to their very cores, walk into the USA like Hitler did in Austria? without a shot fired? and the next day, the Catholic Austrian cardinals, peace-loving and merciful, wooed, a week earlier, and promised peace, were unable to have an audience with Hitler. And as they say, the rest truly is history.
Guy McClung, Texas
“that he disapproved of taking casualties. Almost fanatical disapproval, and coupled with that, his intense desire to inflict casualties on the enemy”
Something to keep in mind when voting for our commander-in-chief.
Not vote in a president who will announce a withdrawal date or a VP who will publically ID military units involved in covert ops!
My brother lost one of his best friends because of that.
Never proven, of course not. Totally a coincidence, couldn’t possibly be any connection. Nevermind what the bad guys themselves were saying or doing.
/mourn
Gen. Patton instructed his men disembarking to “Kill them with kindness.” “Kill them with kindness”
Hmmm; a couple of comments to challenge. Mike, Iococca did turn Chrysler around, but with a massive infusion of gov’t money and union concessions…much like Trump starting with a million from his father; I say that despite liking, agreeing, and supporting both.
As for the opening comment re: Patton sparing the lives of his men, there is much to refute the jingoistic propaganda of that comment and the classic movie. For one, the sacrifice of many lives in the Brolo landing in Sicily after the para-drop fiasco didn’t stop our devout coreligionist Gen’l Frido von Senger from getting the bulk of his army and equipment to the mainland under Patton’s and Monty’s collective nose, and all with paltry air cover. To jump ahead for another example, the high losses incurred in the sloppy piecemeal attacks on Metz were also unjustified and unnecessary. Just two blatant examples among others, but viewed in the context of overwhelming American/Allied material superiority, Patton could be considered little better tactically than the plodding Monty. Should I mention the overstated ‘wheel’ to relieve Bastogne, touted as a never-attempted tactical miracle?
Any student of military history knows many German commanders had done that in equally bad, or worse conditions with much less materiel advantage.
To personalize this, my late Father-n-law #2 was in the combat engineers in Third Army, and being in the vanguard, attested to Patton’s unpopularity with many, though not all, grunts for his frontal attacks. My late father, who got his citizenship after his medical discharge from the Combat Engineers, told me his oldest brother, who was a sergeant in the Royal Signals in Eighth Army, loved Monty because he was sparing of his men’s lives; but he was nonetheless a lethargic commander in contrast to Patton.
We can still honor these leaders without all the hype and still get the history right, no?