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Lewis Millet, Dead at 88
November 19, 2009 | Posted by Abu Muqawama - 5:24pm | 34 Comments
What. A. Legend.
“I went from Army deserter to colonel,” he said. “I served in two armies, in three wars — in Africa, Europe and Asia.” He said he had met presidents, “had my picture taken with some of them. But I was honored to fight for freedom, and I’d do it again.”
I know he was an
I know he was an infantryman, but I'd sure to like to meet this guy when I get to Fiddler's Green.
“The Phoenix program got a
“The Phoenix program got a lot of bad publicity about being murderers and so forth,” Colonel Millett told Military History, evidently referring to charges that civilians had been singled out by the program as Vietcong sympathizers. “I never saw any of that. We were trying to capture Vietcong leaders to find out more about them. But we did kill a lot of them when they wouldn’t surrender.”
Right.
Chester Nimitz - NJP Chesty
Chester Nimitz - NJP
Chesty Puller - Summary Court Martial
Col Millet - Court Martial
None of whom would have ever had a chance in our modern day Army/Navy or Marine Corps.
RIP Col Millet
COL Millett, Well done.
COL Millett,
Well done. Thank you for your service and your example. Thousands of Rangers and Infantrymen have followed in your giant footsteps. If we see so far it is only because we stand on the shoulders of giants.
RLTW!
The guy entered the Second
The guy entered the Second World War as a freshly-enlisted private. By the time it was over, he was a highly-decorated first lieutenant, whose leadership abilities had been demonstrated in the field. All that in little more than three years. We've been in Iraq for more than twice that length of time, but that war hasn't produced any Lew Milletts. Even the brightest and most courageous of our enlisted men would be hard pressed to climb all the way from E-1 to senior NCO in that length of time, much less to receive a battlefield commission.
The US Army distributed some battlefield commissions during Vietnam, on an irregular and unsanctioned basis, but it's the last time it happened. The USMC had a smarter approach. They set up an in-country review panel to review the performance of enlisted men under fire, and to award commissions when appropriate. A total of 62 were awarded, which sounds about right - it's an exceptional thing, but is occasionally warranted. But neither service has awarded a single battlefield commission since. We still staff our officer corps like a 1950s-era corporation. It's absurd.
That's what really stands out to me about Lew Millett's career. Not its irregularity per se, his exceptional bravery, or his - shall we say - issues with authority. It's that, despite all of these factors, the Army of his day was configured to recognize extraordinary leadership, and to place those leaders where they could best serve the mission at hand. Our Army does abysmally at that same task today. It's far too institutionalized. The Time in Grade requirements are still geared for a peacetime Army. Even the below-the-zone promotions function more as signals of excellence than as devices to place round pegs in round holes. Promoting an officer a year early does relatively little to solve the Army's staffing problems. Small wonder that so many junior officers have looked ahead, and left. If Millett had served in Iraq, he might have won a Silver and Bronze Star, just as he did in World War II - and today, he'd have progressed from E-1 all the way to E-4.
To fix, 1) Fire 80% of Flag
To fix,
1) Fire 80% of Flag Officers, 50% of Field Grades. Don't replace.
2) Keep firing by whatever name until you get the Officer Corps to 5% of the ranks in the Army.
3) Scrap the personnel system Officer and NCO entirely, start from common sense basis. Needs of the Army and the Nation, not "fairness". Also dump the entire 1947-2007 personnel system. Let our known heroes of ability pick the next generation and the current promotions by known ability.
4) Then you turn around and instill a new common sense system. "Fairness", "Career Progression", and "Up or Out" move on out. No Anon boards.
If you need a deeper bench and roadmap of how to run the railroad ruthlessly other than your combat leaders...then go over to recruiting Command. They know how to fire people.
If you enjoy reading stories
If you enjoy reading stories about the other spectacular old soldiers we are slowly losing, then check out this page on a regular basis, anyone with an interest in military history will like it:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/
I had the chance to spend
I had the chance to spend several days with COL Millett and his son, Lee, in 2000 when they were in Korea for the 50th anniversary of the Korean War commemoration, for which I was tasked to be COL Millett's driver.
The quality that stood out most for me about COL Millett was how deeply he loved and believed in soldiers. Being around soldiers made him vibrant. One time, we made an impromptu stop on post as we were driving by soldiers conducting some kind of training (setting up a TOC, I think). The OIC, who was border-line fanboy giddy, gathered his troops and COL Millett gave them a heartfelt, motivational speech, entirely unprepared, that made me very proud to be a soldier.
Two memories: COL Millett allowing me to hold and examine his Medal of Honor and the afternoon in the Yongsan Heritage Center he 'hung out' with MoH recipient Ola Mize. I was awed to be in the close presence of two genuine, great American heroes.
RIP, Sir.
I was with the original
I was with the original group of "Millet's Menehunes" at the Tactical Training Course in Ft. Devens , Mass. I learned a lot from the Colonel as he had us construct a Vietnamese Village and trained us in our roles as VC aggressors. I enjoyed listening to his stories. In later years it helped me to survive my time with the 101st Abn Div and 5th Mech Div in Vietnam.
Thank You and RIP, Sir!
I had the honor to serve
I had the honor to serve with and under Col. Millet, At Ft. Devens Mass,and in RVN. I never knew a better officer nor a better man. I guess it would be hero worship that I had for the man. I was truely upset when I found out that he had died.I thought he would live forever. When I was wounded for the third time in RVN he visited me and asked "Did I forget to teach you to duck!" I would have followed him anywhere.
RIP Col.
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It is a bad news that their
It is a bad news that their is an terror with so many injuries and dead bodies. Do some thing to make peace their.
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In the Mid 1960's, I served
In the Mid 1960's, I served Lt. Colonel Millett as his orderly and often pushed into becoming a Viet Cong Agressor. The skills learned from combat hardened NCO's and the spirit of Lt. Colonel Millett has left a lasting impression and direction to my life. His scenarios were difficult for the Viet Cong Agressors with the assumption we would lose. I never liked losing and tried to win the scenarios using the guile and military sciences of different cultures.
One time, I was so into the role of Viet Cong Commander that I was slapped to get me out of the role while during the debriefing. I do not take that as an offensive move, but was a shock treatment to get me out of that role model.
He was a little crazy, but when you look at medal of honor winners; they are a little nuts for a short period of time. I saw the Medal Honor on his desk and he asked if I would every earn the medal. My reply was absolutely not. It is not a medal you strive for, but is given for exceptional gallantry under fire.
My coldonlences to the family even though it is belated.
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The guy entered the Second
The guy entered the Second World War as a freshly-enlisted private. By the time it was over, he was a highly-decorated first lieutenant, whose leadership abilities had been demonstrated in the field. All that in little more than three years. We've been in Iraq for more than twice that length of time, but that war hasn't produced any Lew Milletts. Even the brightest and most courageous of our enlisted men would be hard pressed to climb all the way from E-1 to senior NCO in that length of time, much less to receive a battlefield commission. LED High Bay Light LED High Bay lighting
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“I never saw any of that. We
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