Fly Like an Eagle - Part 2

Invasions?

One of defining moments in my life was the Cuban Missile Crisis. Several of the powerful lessons learned from this crisis was that of the Bay of Pigs. One of the largely unknown facts about Cuba and the U.S. is that it was Cuban women who responded to French admiral DeGrasse’s appeal and sold their jewelry to finance the campaign that won America:

This and more is documented in Barbara Tuchman’s The First Salute.

During the Cuban Missile Crisis, several catastrophic mistakes were made during the Bay of Pigs invasion. The invasion forces were unsupported by artillery, naval gunfire or air cover. The invading contingent was soon outflanked, outgunned and defeated. The courage and determination of the defenders had been underestimated. It is ironic that JFK, a decorated former naval officer who had experienced the war in the Pacific during WWII and had certainly heard about the successive and successful amphibious assaults of his nation’s Marines, had not learned much from the experience:

?Vietnam, the war I served in, we were to learn that a nation willing to sacrifice up to 50% casualties, is not defeated by firepower alone:

In Vietnam, the war I served in, we were to learn that a nation willing to sacrifice up to 50% casualties, is not defeated by firepower alone:

Ukraine

Putin is about to learn many of these very same lessons during the madman’s invasion of Ukraine. In addition, he has counted on the dreaded combat in a built-up area to conquer, decapitate and cause regime-change in Ukraine. During the Cuban crisis, President Kennedy was advised that the Bay of Pigs assault had to succeed within 2 days or the world press, the world, would turn against him. Putin’s underestimation of Ukrainian morale and the determination and perseverance of its army, its people and its leadership, will cost him and Russia dearly:

Mattis:

"If you haven’t read hundreds of books, learning from others who went before you, you are functionally illiterate – you can’t coach and you can’t lead,” Mattis wrote. “History lights the often-dark path ahead; even if it’s a dim light, it’s better than none. If you can’t be additive as a leader, you’re just like a potted plant in the corner of a hotel lobby: you look pretty, but you’re not adding substance to the organization’s mission.”