EDWARD LANSDALE: ONLY IN AMERICA

 

My readings into post-World War II American foreign policy often mentioned a mysterious Air Force officer named Edward Lansdale. So when I discovered a biography of Lansdale at the local bookstore entitled The Road Not Taken I eagerly purchased it and read through almost immediately. Max Boot, the author, took Lansdale out of the shadows and showed how he inadvertently became the symbol of US foreign adventures and misadventures in Southeast Asia after 1945.

Most of these mysterious types were Ivy Leaguers from old money establishment backgrounds. But Lansdale was different, vastly different. He was born in southern California in a modest, but comfortable, family situation. He attended the newly founded UCLA where he majored in English and earned money as an extra actor in Hollywood films. Lansdale left college a few credits short of graduation and traveled to New York City where he planned to make his mark as a cartoonist. He also married a much older woman and had two sons with her.

But cartoonist fame did not come to Lansdale and eventually he went to San Francisco to join an advertising agency (think Mad Men) where he was successful particularly with a local client he helped to market as a national brand- Levi’s. But war came to the US in 1941 and Lansdale joined the Army and became an intelligence officer in the Office of Strategic Services- the forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency. His war record was routine stateside service. But with the end of the war he decided to remain in the military and with the creation of the Air Force as an independent branch he switched to the new service with no flying experience. Lansdale reasoned that opportunities for promotion and assignments would be greater in the Air Force than in the Army.

Following World War II the US granted independence to the Philippines, an American colony since the conclusion of the Spanish-American War in 1898. Despite American investments in Filipino internal political and social structures, independence was no picnic for the Filipinos. They were plagued by corrupt politicians and communist rebels. When Lansdale was assigned to the US Embassy staff in Manila as a public affairs officer he saw his chance to make a difference and took the initiative in bonding with the cabinet Secretary of National Defense, a honest politician ambitious to become president. Lansdale became the unofficial campaign manager for the aspiring president who was elected to that office. Lansdale was also instrumental in executing policies to defeat the communist guerillas and he also fell in love with a Filipino woman who became his mistress.

Despite the fact that the newly elected Filipino president died in an accidental plane crash Lansdale had made his mark and was noticed by his superiors in Washington. They reasoned that if Lansdale could be successful in the Philippines he could be successful in Vietnam- yes and no. The Philippines and Vietnam were two different situations united by a common threat of communism. Although he helped to create the new nation of South Vietnam, he was not able to establish the same bond of trust with that country’s president as he did in the Philippines. Lansdale was reassigned to the Pentagon where he was promoted to general.  With the election of John Kennedy as president in 1960 he became a favorite of the Kennedy brothers as a trouble-shooter in foreign policy.

A major foreign policy thorn in the Kennedy Administration was the issue of Cuba after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961. Lansdale was assigned to a special unit researching possible ways to assassinate Fidel Castro. Obviously, he failed and with the intensification of the communist insurgency in South Vietnam, he was sent back to that nation. But with bureaucratic intrigues and rivalries Lansdale’s positive contributions were thwarted and he ended back up in the United States with his military and intelligence careers blunted. He retired from the Air Force and with his wife’s death, he married his long-time mistress. Lansdale had a relatively quiet retirement and died in near obscurity.

There were two mars on his reputation during retirement. The first was the congressional investigation into post-war intelligence activities and the second was the movie “JFK” in which it was strongly suggested that he was one of the masterminds of the assassination of President Kennedy. Despite these hits Lansdale led a remarkable life- he was an actor, cartoonist, and advertising executive who became an Air Force general who was a major player in US foreign policy. Only in America!

 

 

CAT AT THE GLASS

 [originally published in The Rockhurst Review Spring 2006]

Cat clawing at the glass door

Wanting to get into the party

Hoping to be noticed

And permitted entrance

But ignored all the same

 

Not our type

Maybe has a hairball or two

Might cause one to sneeze

Wouldn’t be proper

Let’s leave him where he is

 

We all love animals, don’t you see

Makes for a diversified planet

Nice for the mice

Fun to watch

But let’s leave him where he is

 

Cat continues clawing at the glass door

Still wanting to get to the party

Hoping differences can be overcome

And permitted to join the fun

But ignored all the same 

TEACHERS FIGHTING A "THREE-BLOCK WAR"

 

Several decades ago the Marine Corps leadership designed a strategic concept called the Three Block War. The thrust of this concept is that Marines in future conflicts will undoubtedly be involved in fighting, peacekeeping, and humanitarian aid simultaneously with a confined area of three contiguous city blocks. This concept was certainly prescient of future military actions in places such as Bosnia, Iraq, and Afghanistan as a Marine or a Soldier is more than simply a warrior even though that is his/her traditional role.

 

As a retired educator having served as a classroom teacher, instructional specialist, and administrator I immediately sensed a connection between the Marines and teachers in what they are required to do to be successful. I want to emphasize at the beginning that warfare and education are related only in a general sense in that they are human activities and teaching is not combat in how we traditionally view combat. Nevertheless, to accomplish our tasks, we humans tend to use similar concepts and patterns across organizational and operational boundaries. The Three Block War is one such instance.

 

A teacher’s “area of operations” is usually a single classroom not three contiguous city blocks. However, an effective teacher uses the educational equivalents of fighting, peacekeeping, and humanitarian aid. In fact, if a teacher does not do all three that teacher cannot be effective even if he/she is highly skilled in one or two of the equivalents. So, how exactly does the Marine concept translate to the classroom?

 

First, a teacher’s fight is instruction. That is how we ordinarily view a teacher. Some folks would state that a teacher teaches- period. For the most part that is true. An effective teacher teaches students some subject matter and as a result, students become proficient in that subject matter by learning from the instructional strategies designed by the teacher. A teacher’s lesson plan is his/her operational plan for success. The state educational authorities reinforce the instructional emphasis by evaluating schools (and sometimes teachers) by annual testing results.

 

 Yet, an effective teacher must be highly skilled beyond implementing instructional best practices. This is the peacekeeping part of the teacher’s task- classroom management. Consider for a moment the actual diversity many, if not most, teachers face each day in their classrooms. Diversity of race and income levels, diversity of readiness for new learning, and diversity of parental support are very real challenges. Diversity in general is desirable and needed for our culture in general and schools in particular to be healthy and creative. But extreme diversity can tear at the fabric of classroom effectiveness including teaching and learning. Like peacekeeping is essential for modern Marines to keep order in chaotic environments, the wise use of classroom management skills are essential for modern teachers to keep order and safety in often chaotic or potentially chaotic classrooms.

 

Finally, an effective teacher is caring, which is the equivalent of an effective Marine offering humanitarian aid to the local population. A teacher sees the needs of his/her students that impede the learning process and acts to reduce those needs to negligible obstacles. Sometimes students have physical needs and often they have emotional needs. Sometimes a new pair of glasses will work wonders and in other situations, some words of unexpected encouragement. Networking with fellow teachers, counselors, nurses, and administrators is vital. And a wise teacher makes the distinction between what a student truly needs and what a student routinely desires or expects.

 

Our teachers who effectively instruct, manage their classrooms, and care for their students do an amazing job. Their “war” is not with students and parents (they are allies and potential allies) but with illiteracy and ignorance.  While their methods differ from those of our Marines and Soldiers. their “fight” is similar- to allow their fellow Americans the learning and liberty needed to take advantage of opportunities offered.