May 5, 2008
by Steve Hammons

Jeremiah Wright is obviously an individual with strong feelings and views. He's not shy about speaking his mind and he doesn't necessarily want to do what is politically correct.

Those traits can be a blessing or a curse, or a bit of both, especially for the political campaign of Barack Obama.

It has been noted that Wright is a former Marine, having joined the Marine Corps in 1961 and serving for six years. He reportedly excelled in the naval health care field.

In addition to his experience of being a young African-American man during those pivotal years in his own life and in the life of our society, could his training as a Marine have affected him in ways we see now?

Marines generally have a reputation of being straightforward and prone to being blunt in words and actions. These characteristics seem to be true of Wright.

He might remind some people of former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, a former Navy SEAL during the Vietnam War era and a strong personality and blunt-talking guy if there ever was one.

Ventura, like Wright, reportedly has speculated that there very well could be unpleasant but real conspiracies afoot involving people associated with the U.S. government.

Ventura's new book is "Don't Start the Revolution Without Me!" According to bookseller descriptions, "Ventura pulls no punches in discussing our corrupt two-party system, the disastrous war in Iraq, and what he suspects really happened on September 11."

What characteristics of people like Wright and Ventura might have been influenced by their robust military experiences?

Taking a look at some Marine Corps and Navy SEAL traits, we might see a few that apply to these two public and controversial individuals. We might see areas where Wright and Ventura could be manifesting these traits in interesting ways.

MARINE TRAITS AND WRIGHT

Though he was not an officer, let's take a look at how Wright measures up against some Marine Corps leadership traits.

These qualities include dependability ("certainty of proper performance of duty"), bearing ("creating favorable impression in carriage, appearance and personal conduct"), courage ("mental quality that recognizes fear of danger or criticism, but enables one to proceed with calmness and firmness").

Well, he hasn't created a favorable impression on everybody, and hasn't exactly been calm, but he has certainly proceeded in the face of criticism in doing what he appears to believe is the proper performance of his duty.

Other Marine virtues include decisiveness ("ability to make decisions promptly and announce them in clear, forceful manner"), endurance ("mental/physical stamina measured by ability to withstand pain, fatigue, stress and hardship") and enthusiasm ("display of sincere interest and exuberance in performance of duty").

"A clear, forceful manner" certainly seems to describe Wright's communication style. His "exuberance and enthusiasm" are working for and against him.

Additional Marine leadership traits include initiative ("taking action in the absence of orders"), integrity ("uprightness of character and soundness of moral principles, including truthfulness and honesty"), judgment ("ability to weigh facts and possible solutions on which to base sound decisions"), justice ("giving reward and punishment according to merits of the case impartially and consistently").

Wright takes action, you have to give him that. The soundness of his moral principles, truthfulness and honesty could be debated and doubted by some people as well as embraced and respected by others.

And finally, consider the Marine qualities of knowledge ("understanding of a science, art and the range of one's information, including professional knowledge and an understanding of fellow Marines"), tact ("ability to deal with others without creating offense"), unselfishness ("avoidance of providing for one's own comfort and personal advancement at the expense of others") and loyalty ("quality of faithfulness to country, the Corps, the unit, to one's seniors, subordinates and peers").

Here we might interpret Wright's traits as possibly deficient. Does he understand his fellow Americans as a whole? Is he using tact? Is he being unselfish? Criticism of him on these elements seems reasonable.

There are some additional principles of leadership used by Marines are also worth noting and we might contemplate how Wright looks through the prism of these concepts:

Know yourself and seek self-improvement. Be technically and tactically proficient. Develop a sense of responsibility among your subordinates. Make sound and timely decisions. Set the example. Know your Marines and look out for their welfare.

Keep your Marines informed. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions. Ensure assigned tasks are understood, supervised, and accomplished. Train your Marines as a team. Employ your command in accordance with its capabilities.

(Article Continues Below)

VENTURA AND NAVY SEALS

Some of the traits associated with the Navy SEALs include drive, discipline, responsibility, accountability, ambition, honor, integrity, flexibility, creativity, discipline, learning and winning.

In his life experiences in the Navy, as Minnesota governor and as an author, Ventura has certainly shown many of these characteristics.

When Ventura, in many ways similar to Wright, makes statements that seem overly blunt and accusatory about the "powers that be," it might be useful to interpret them in light of Ventura's SEAL background.

The creed of the Navy SEALs includes the statements:

"My loyalty to country and team is beyond reproach. I humbly serve as a guardian to my fellow Americans always ready to defend those who are unable to defend themselves."

"Uncompromising integrity is my standard. My character and honor are steadfast. My word is my bond."

"In the absence of orders I will take charge, lead my teammates and accomplish the mission. I lead by example in all situations."

"I persevere and thrive on adversity. My nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies."

"We demand discipline. We expect innovation. The lives of my teammates and the success of our mission depend on me - my technical skill, tactical proficiency, and attention to detail. My training is never complete."

Ventura has bluntly said that he is not a "chicken hawk" like many of the people in the current administration who chose to invade and occupy Iraq.

DUTY AND HONOR

Wright, Ventura and all of us struggle to find the best courses of action under the circumstances that we face.

We use our foundations of personal experience, beliefs, relationships, knowledge, intelligence and other resources to interpret the world around us.

It is not always a pretty world. There are enemies, foreign and domestic. Many of them hide within our nation and wave the flag while sending our troops off to die and be horribly wounded in an unnecessary war.

It can sometimes be difficult and painful to admit that our society and government, like many countries, has had a fair share of dishonorable events throughout history.

Even more troubling, we are in the middle of a tremendously challenging phase right now.

People such as Jeremiah Wright and Jesse Ventura must do what they feel is right, based on their experiences and moral compasses.

The rest of us will do the same.

If you enjoyed this post, please make a donation to help keep this website active:

Click Here for the Free Populist Party Newsletter

Steve Hammons [send him email] has worked as a journalist, editor, counselor, juvenile probation peace officer, public safety urgent-response specialist, teacher, instructor and US Government researcher. He graduated from Ohio University with studies in communications/journalism, health education/psychology and pre-law. Hammons's two novels, Mission into Light and Light's Hand, tell the story of a US joint-service military and intelligence research team investigating emerging special topics.

More Articles from Steve Hammons