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2019 General William E. DePuy Special Topics Writing Competition
Contest opened 1 January 2019 and closes 15 July 2019.
Reinvigorating the Army’s Approach to Mission Command: It’s Okay to Run with Scissors (Part 1)
Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, U.S. Army
Maj. Gen. Douglas Crissman, U.S. Army
Maj. Kelly McCoy, U.S. Army
There is a significant difference between what mission command should be versus what actually happens, according to the commander of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command and his fellow authors. They believe the Army must reinvigorate its approach to mission command by evolving its doctrine, adapting leader development, and refining its training. This article was previously published by Military Review as an online exclusive in April 2019.
Responding to the Perfect Storm: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Disaster Response in Puerto Rico, 2017
Brig. Gen. Diana M. Holland, U.S. Army
A senior leader in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers describes its unique missions and the situation it faced during recent hurricane recovery operations in Puerto Rico. She then assesses the operation and makes recommendations for responding to potentially worse future natural disasters.
Civil Authority in Manbij, Syria: Using Civil Affairs to Implement Stabilization Activities in Nonpermissive Environments
Lt. Col. Peter S. Brau, U.S. Army
An experienced civil affairs officer describes how early and adequate planning among Departments of Defense and State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and local civil authorities was critical to the successful introduction of humanitarian aid and the eventual rebuilding of Manbij, Syria, after the town was liberated from Islamic State control. This article was previously published by Military Review as an online exclusive in February 2019.
How We Win the Competition for Influence
Lt. Col. Wilson C. Blythe Jr., U.S. Army
Lt. Col. Luke Calhoun, U.S. Army
Victories on the twenty-first century’s physical battlefields will be fleeting unless tied to an integrated information operations campaign. The achievement of campaign and strategic objectives requires a sustained competitive advantage over other actors in the ability to influence outcomes in the information domain.
Symphony or Jazz: Mission-Planning Timelines
Capt. Victoria Hulm, U.S. Army
The tempo of historical combat operations demands a unit that can respond quickly—“play jazz.” But, our training centers allow too much time to “compose a symphony” of precise synchronization—which is unrealistic in combat operations. The author uses this music metaphor to describe changes over time to operational tempo during large-scale combat operations.
Targeting in Multi-Domain Operations
Maj. Kyle David Borne, U.S. Army
Using lessons gleaned from several military exercises, the author examines each phase of the joint targeting cycle and highlights key aspects of targeting in the multi-domain environment.
When the Balloon Goes Up: High-Altitude for Military Application
Lt. Col. Anthony Tingle, U.S. Army
The author describes the pros and cons of using high-altitude balloons as a resilient and redundant complement to satellites and considers their military applications.
Decision Conflict in Army Leaders
Adrian Wolfberg, PhD
The author explores how conflict affects the decision-making of military leaders by identifying decision contexts and decision conflicts and offering a framework for leader decision-making self-assessment.
Russian Forecasts of Future War
Lt. Col. Timothy L. Thomas, U.S. Army, Retired
A Russian expert examines the writings of contemporary military analysts from that country to describe the Russian military’s approach to future war planning.
Use of the Brazilian Military Component in the Face of Venezuela’s Migration Crisis
Maj. George Alberto Garcia de Oliveira, Brazilian Army
The author provides a detailed overview of the actions taken by the Brazilian armed forces in response to directives of its government to deal with the refugee crisis on Brazil’s border with Venezuela resulting from the economic and political collapse of the Venezuelan state This article was previously published by Military Review as an online exclusive in October 2018.
Enabling Leaders to Dominate the Space Domain
Capt. Nicholas Deschenes, U.S. Army
Codifying international norms and behaviors regarding the space domain will establish a position of strength for national leaders to operate from, permit delegation of authorities over space assets down to tactical-level subordinates, and allow them to dominate space by executing effective tactics in defense of U.S. space-based assets.
The Gradual Shift to an Operational Reserve: Reserve Component Mobilizations in the 1990s
Capt. Miranda Summers Lowe, U.S. Army National Guard
The author describes the history of how the U.S. Army reserve component shifted from a strategic to an operational reserve, beginning well before 9/11.
Upon the Fields of Battle: Essays on the Military History of America’s Civil War
Christopher M. Rein, PhD
The author critiques a book edited by Civil War historians Andrew Bledsoe and Andrew Lang that effectively bridges the divide between academic and military historians over the relevance of military history.
Suggested Themes and Topics for Future Editions
Staff Sgt. Travis W. Atkins - Medal of Honor Recipient
Staff Sgt. Travis W. Atkins was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor 27 March 2019 at the White House in Washington, D.C. Atkins’s son, Trevor Oliver, accepted the award from President Donald Trump on his father’s behalf.