Military Review English Edition September-October 2014 | Page 95

WARRIOR SPIRIT

ethos of being a warrior is disappearing—unit esprit
built around ‘bonding’ between warriors is now
disparaged as an irrelevant concept and one that only
serves to rationalize politically incorrect behavior
and policies.”18
Abandoning the warrior ethos in order to conform to societal expectations is not a major factor in a
post-Afghanistan Army, but a return to bureaucratic
routine with a reversion to reliance on easily measurable statistics as indicators of leadership may have the
same effect.

Managerial Routine and Risk
Aversion
Prior to combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan,
much of Army life consisted of highly routine tasks and
mundane responsibilities. Unit staffs focused their energy on creating the quarterly training brief by building

U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. James D. Sims, 139th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Baucom concluded that these factors included an
overemphasis on management and a fascination with
technology which produced an imbalance between
manager and hero brought about detrimental effects
on the warrior spirit.
Similarly, at the conclusion of the Gulf War many
senior military leaders questioned the presence of heroic leadership and the warrior spirit that it produces.
Based on external social pressures the military strayed
from accepting the warrior as a special and unique
individual, focusing more on the standardization of all
military forces who were heavily reliant on technological solutions to win wars.
Retired Army Gen. William C. Moore showed
concern about a departure from the warrior spirit as
reflected by a softening of military training standards
and prevailing attitudes regarding a widening separation of military and societal values. He wrote, “The

National Guard Soldiers from Illinois and surrounding states lift a log during a readiness assessment with 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces
Group (Airborne) based in Chicago at Marseilles Training Center, 12 April 2014. The weekend assessment is designed to test the physical
and mental toughness of the potential Special Forces operators.
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