patrick.net

#generaldavidhbergerI am so proud of the fact that a graduate of Tulane, General David H. Berger, is now Commandant of the US Marine Corps. He is the commanding officer of some 186,000 active-duty marines and another 38,500 marine corps reservists.
Anna long ago I introduced you to "Jack's 2% Rule." In simple language only 2% make it to the top in their profession.
General Berger passed a 4-year training program to become a US Navy officer while at Tulane. When he decided to be a US Marine officer, he was sent to Marine Corps OCS at Quantico, Virginia. It is rougher than US Marine Corps boot camp and with a high failure rate.
Once he graduated, he became a second lieutenant in the US Marine Corps. He ended up getting combat tours in the first Gulf War, Afghanistan and Iraq. Statistically some 5% of marines are killed or seriously wounded in combat. He survived this. Much to the surprise of many, far more marines die or are severely injured in helicopter or aircraft crashes, training accidents, etc. General Berger survived this also.
As a career marine officer, it is possible to earn the rank of Lt. Colonel or Colonel. Only 2% of officers at this level advance to general. The stereotype of a general is someone who is cigar-smoking, hard-drinking, vile-mouthed, and a right-wing extremist. In reality, a general is someone who is a great conceptual thinker and has extraordinary leadership capabilities. Once one makes 2-star general, it gets very competitive to get a third star or the fourth star of the Commandant of the US Marine Corps. General Berger passed through all these filters to make it to the top.