Thoughts on Professional Military Education:
After 9-11, Iraq, and Afghanistan in the Era of
Fiscal Austerity
By
Dave Maxwell
Journal Article |
Jan 1 2012 - 5:50am
The nation that will insist upon drawing a broad line of demarcation between the fighting man and
the thinking man is liable to find its fighting done by fools and its thinking by cowards.
General Sir William F. Butler
These are wise words to consider as we enter a new era in a complex national security environment. As
we have departed from Iraq and will drawdown in Afghanistan within a few short years, it is time to
consider the way ahead for Professional Military Education (PME). We need neither fools nor cowards
and hopefully we will have the wisdom to fight for the education we need to be successful in the future
national security environment.
It is fashionable to tout the blogs with their critiques of the war colleges, the admonitions that everyone
should go to civilian graduate schools or that the military is anti-intellectual and that while PME is a
necessary block to check for advancement, few really desire to attend (except for the break from
operations it provides) and fewer still desire to teach (at least while in uniform). While there are many
areas that could (and should) be considered for reform this paper will focus on two: A common core focus
on the five fundamentals for professional military education and the development of an educational
framework that separates education level from advancement in rank. Although the emphasis is on military
education this proposal may also have application to a broader professional education for national security
professionals as well.
First some assumptions:
Despite the charges of anti-intellectualism it is assumed that education of military leaders and national
security professionals contributes to successful strategy, campaigns, and tactical operations and the nation
desires and requires its leaders to be well educated professionals capable of thinking and acting tactically,
operationally, and strategically to ensure US national security.
Clausewitz’ concept of
coup d’oeil
(the “inward eye” of Military Genius) is a trait worth striving
