POST: On the Hunt in Baghdad, by Michael J. Totten, December 15, 2008

Exchange:

"One night I asked Captain Looney which he prefers: kinetic fighting or nation-building? "I vastly prefer this," he said. He meant nation-building. Killing people does not make the would-be pacifist happy. "Some soldiers tell me they prefer fighting," I said. "They're immature," he said"

Perfect example of why I always describe the Leviathan work as a young man's game and SysAdmin as requiring the more experienced hands. But it's also an example of why I am always bemused by the expectation of some readers that unless the SysAdmin is declared extant one day in some hoopla, then the idea hasn't reached some fruition. As I have told people from the start, I make the argument to both cite ongoing and long-term (already) change and to give voice to that evolution. So when people say, "Has Washington decided to create your SysAdmin force?" I am a bit puzzled. The community has been building this force for a couple of decades now. It simply emerges in people, tactics, doctrine, regulations, etc., slowly over time in response to the build-up of operational experience. In short, it's not my proposal. It's a description of an evolving and emerging reality. Captain Looney is an example of that evolution. I've met and interacted with thousands just like him over the course of the last two decades. (Thanks: Rob Johnson)