Bøger af Michael Lee Lanning

SOLDIERS OF $$ Privateers, contract killers, corporate warriors. Contract soldiers go by many names, but they all have one thing in common: They fight for money and plunder rather than liberty, God, or country. Now acclaimed author and war vet Michael Lee Lanning traces the compelling history of these fighting machines-from the "Sea Peoples" who fought for the pharaohs' greater glory to today's soldiers for hire from private military companies (PMCs) in Iraq and Afghanistan. What emerges is a fascinating account of the men who fight other people's wars-the Greeks who built an empire for Alexander the Great, the Nubians who accompanied Hannibal across the Alps, the Irish who became the first to go global in their search for work. Soldiers of fortune have always had the power to change the course of war, and Lanning examines their pivotal roles in individual battles and in the rise and fall of empires. As the employment of contract soldiers spreads in Iraq and America's War on Terrorism-the U.S. paid $30 billion to PMCs in 2003 alone-Mercenaries offers a valuable inside look at a system that appears embedded in our nation's future. Includes eight pages of photographs

Becoming Eisenhower is the story of a young man who pursued the army for its free education but found his calling as an officer, of an officer who was initially overlooked but motivated by frustration to make himself the army's indispensable man, the story of how General Eisenhower carried these experiences to Supreme Command and the presidency.

One company commander's battle against drugs and racial conflict in the war to rebuild the post-Vietnam armyIn 1974, being a soldier was neither an easy nor a popular profession, as Captain Michael Lee Lanning found out when he assumed command of Company A, 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division in Schweinfurt, Germany. The start-up problems of the all-volunteer forces were still painfully evident in the United States Army. Morale was low, drug abuse high, racial conflict frequent, discipline poor, and criminal activity common. Even the barracks were a pathetic shamble. These were just some of the problems Captain Lanning faced as he struggled to make Alpha Company "combat ready." What followed is a shining testament to how leadership by example can make a difference. In eighteen months, Alpha Company went from being an unruly, unprofessional, drug-infested unit to the best in the battalion, racking up top marks, honors, and commendations. They became a company to which Lanning could honestly say: "You are the best soldiers in the best company in the best army in the world."

From the War for Independence to the War on Terror, American military intelligence has often failed, costing needless casualties and squandering money and materiel as well as prestige and all too often it has failed to learn from its mistakes. Senseless Secrets covers more than 200 years of intelligence breakdowns in every American war, including not only how intelligence has been wrong, but also how good intel has failed to make it to battlefield commanders, how spies and traitors have infiltrated the military intelligence community, and more. Here are stories of Benedict Arnold's turn in the Revolution, George McClellan's reliance on the Pinkertons' inflated estimates of enemy strengths in the Civil War, Custer's flawed intelligence prior to the Little Bighorn, the controversy over Pearl Harbor, the surprise German attack that started the Battle of the Bulge, the failure to convey useful intelligence to small-unit commanders in Vietnam, overestimates of Iraqi strength during Operation Desert Storm, the bad intelligence about Saddam Hussein's supposed nuclear arsenal in 2002-03, and the chaos surrounding the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.Senseless Secrets is a military history of the United States through its intelligence operations. It should be required reading inside the U.S. military and beyond.

Had Lieutenant George S. Patton not served on the southern border during the Mexican Expedition of 1916, there might never have been a General George S. Patton who took the world by storm as a bold and daring commander during World War II. Relying on Patton's detailed personal journals of his eight months in Mexico, Michael Lee Lanning describes the young officer's exploits during the hunt for Pancho Villa. As an aide to General John Pershing, Patton learned leadership and logistics from the man who would soon command American forces in World War I. Begging for a field command, he received itand led the first motorized attack in U.S. military history and may or may not have killed two of Villa's lieutenants. The press ate it up, and Patton learned not only how much he loved attention, but how to promote himself.In Mexico are the roots of Patton the World War II general, and Lanning tells the story deftly, focusing on Patton the man as well Patton the commander, and always casting an eye forward to Patton's future career. This is how Patton became Patton.

During World War II, some 10,000 American bombers and fighters were shot down over Europe. Of the crews aboard, 26,000 men were killed, while 30,000 survived being shot down only to be captured and made prisoners of war. Against the longest of odds, nearly 3,000 airmen made it to the ground alive, evaded capture, and escaped to safety. These men proudly called themselves the Blister Club.Drawing on tens of thousands of pages of mostly untapped documents in the National Archives, Michael Lee Lanning tells the story of these courageous airmen. They had received escape-and-evasion (E & E) training, and some were lucky enough to land with their E-&-E kitsbut all bets were off once they hit the ground. They landed after an air catastrophe. The geography was usually unfamiliar. Civilians might or might not be trustworthy. German soldiers and Gestapo agents hunted down airmen as well as civilians who dared help them. If an airman abandoned his uniform for civilian garb, he forfeited Geneva Convention protections. Most faced the daunting task of escaping on foot across hundreds of miles. The fortunate connected with one of the established escape routes to Spain or Switzerland or across the English Channel, or they hooked up with the underground resistance or friendly civilians. Upon return to friendly lines, these men were often able to provide valuable intelligence about enemy troop dispositions and civilian morale. Many volunteered to fly again even though regulations prohibited it.The Blister Club is history with a punch. With a historian's eye, Lanning covers the hows and whys of escape-and-evasion and aerial combat in the European theater, but the book also vividly captures the stories of the airmen who did the escaping and evading, including that of a young pilot named Chuck Yeager, who, during his own escape, aided the French Resistance and helped another downed airman to safetyand then begged to fly again, eventually securing Eisenhower's approval to return to the air, where he achieved ace status. Stories of escape are popular, especially those set during World War II, as are stories of the war in the air. Combining both of these, The Blister Club should find an enthusiastic audience.

This final advice, thoughts, remembrances, and guidelines to life by a dying grandfather to his granddaughter offers "things that I have not yet taught her and experiences that I want her to know about and consider." Its poignant information and guidance, delivered with honesty, humor, and affection that is thought-provoking for all ages. It a book that every grandparent should write and every grandchild should read.More than 130 widely varying subjects-from abortion to Zen, and from military service to writing-are included. "Some of these things I know for sure, others not so much. Some lessons have come easily, others with much angst, disappointments, and sadness. I have placed them in alphabetical order for no other reason than an orderly life is a good life-and that life itself is so complex and constantly changing, there is no other logical or illogical way to list them. Many of these "things I know for sure" and the "others not so much" are accompanied by quotes from the famous and infamous, lines from movies, song lyrics, and from my earlier writings and from my personal journals of the past fifty years."As I wrote this letter, I thought about all the things that I would like to ask my father and grandfathers if they were still alive. There are so many things about them and their experiences that I wonder about because I did not inquire when I could have. I do not want my grandchildren to find themselves in the same situation. My primary purpose in writing this letter is to leave something behind for Allyanna. My secondary mission is hopefully to inspire others likewise to leave a written legacy for their families."Doubtless many readers of this letter will not agree with the myriad of observations, advice, and opinions that I include. That bothers me not at all. I hope readers will feel free to mark out, scratch through, or otherwise eliminate those things with which they don't agree. Margins are good places to record opposing thoughts or expand on what I've written."If nothing else, my deepest wish is for you to have a good, safe, interesting life and to always remember that your grandfather loved you with all his heart. I will always be on your side and at your side as long as I live. After my death, my spirit will always be with you."When my time comes I will fight for every last breath, and for every additional second of life. But I will die in peace knowing I have done all that I could and fought for as long as possible. My last thoughts will be of you and the wonderful life you have before you. there are so many important areas of life for which I have not provided you advice. There are so many things that I want you to know. That is the purpose of this letter."

These are the stories Vietnam vets tell each other at reunions and over beers.

Provides an account of life of the author's first tour of duty in Vietnam - the blood, fear, camaraderie, and tedium of combat and maneuver. First published in 1987, this book shows an eager young recruit growing before the reader's eyes into a proud but bloodied combat veteran.