All That We Can Be: Black Leadership and Racial Integration the Army Way

Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT PROPOGANDA
Review: Charles Moskos and John Butler have delievered in our hands an excellent propoganda treatsie telling us that integration has worked in the Army. It has worked without lowering standards and has provided an environment in which African-Americans can excel. Surely society and other institutions need to take a look at the Army and borrow some of its strategies to provide equal opportunity for African-Americans in the civilian sector.

If you have served in the Army for any length of time you would know that is is not "race" free. Institutional racism was not addressed in this text. Although you have African-Americans in leadership positions in the NCO Corps that changes when we go into the officer's Corps and when we look at positions that African-Americans hold in each branch. Not everything is equal.

The Army is portrayed as a good paternalistic organization which is able to take low performing Blacks and make them into good soldiers. Very little is mentioned at all that many Blacks who have joined the Army have come from stable homes, have a sense of purpose and are instilled with deep family values. These young men and women will be successful in any environment.

Of course there are certain things that outside organizations can learn from the Army and implement the changes in their structures. We must keep in mind that the Army has different control systems in place by virtue of its nature that can't be duplicated in the civilian world. In such a case the Army is able to be successful in integrating its force. The Army's purpose is to defend our country. It can't do it if there is racial strife in the organization. Racists behavior is not in its best interest for defence.

If you create an environment where there is a level playing field then everyone has the opportunity to excel. What the Army has done is not unique as Moskos implies. Civilian society can not be compared with the Army because of its unique mission. The Army doesn't change until society tells it to do so.

Mr. Moskos would have done a better job in presenting the Army as an alternative for African-Americans to explore as they embark on their way to viable careers for their lives. The Army is not racism free and better attention needs to be addressed to the institutional barriers. Purchase this book if you are highly optimistic or have your head buried in the sand regarding integration the Army way.

Rating:
Summary: Uninformed
Review: I belive that the author of this book is blaming society, especially Universities, a little too much. In the beginning when he makes this assertion that Universites are racist he basis it on the astute obervation that since there a few African Americans in the Universities that they are racist or something like that. Furthmore since the Military has more African Americans it is a better instiution. Here is a better explanation. Universities are a lot more selective and thus can choose from the entire population. The Army will take anyone it can get its hands on. I just did not like the Authors atitutde that the whole is racist. Furthermore he knows nothing about music. I love when he writes white soldiers are listening to more black music and he uses Heavy Metal and Rock n Roll, both white music! In fact Heavy Metal is white protest music against Black music! Do some research or think before writting a book.

Rating:
Summary: Good premise, but a bit unrealistic
Review: Perhaps confirming suspicions of most African-Americans, I can attest to the very real resentment that their presence in the ranks engenders. It is true that their representation in the NCO corps is quite heavy, but I have personally observed that the officer corps is equally topheavy with whites. Naturally the officer corps is better educated, if not always smarter. To the average white observer without the benefit of liberal indoctrination,it is quite obvious that the reason for this preponderance of Black NCO's is that the military lifestyle is often infinitely more palatable than the civilian cycle of poverty, drugs, and crime that surely await the average black who is either too witless, or too proud to take advantage of the many programs developed by Whitey to raise him above his circumstances. This is not to say that many African-Americans do not benefit in a true moral sense from the strict meritocracy envisioned and implemented by the military. Quite often they are superior soldiers and human beings when shown the truth and beauty of discipline and self-sacrifice. Unfortunately, there are many more who have never managed to embrace these equalizing truths, and have managed to cling to the ghetto mentality to the detriment of those they presume to command. For this reason you will see most whites leave service after the contracted number of years, and many blacks stay on to fill the NCO ranks.

Rating:
Summary: Good premise, but a bit unrealistic
Review: Perhaps confirming suspicions of most African-Americans, I can attest to the very real resentment that their presence in the ranks engenders. It is true that their representation in the NCO corps is quite heavy, but I have personally observed that the officer corps is equally topheavy with whites. Naturally the officer corps is better educated, if not always smarter. To the average white observer without the benefit of liberal indoctrination,it is quite obvious that the reason for this preponderance of Black NCO's is that the military lifestyle is often infinitely more palatable than the civilian cycle of poverty, drugs, and crime that surely await the average black who is either too witless, or too proud to take advantage of the many programs developed by Whitey to raise him above his circumstances. This is not to say that many African-Americans do not benefit in a true moral sense from the strict meritocracy envisioned and implemented by the military. Quite often they are superior soldiers and human beings when shown the truth and beauty of discipline and self-sacrifice. Unfortunately, there are many more who have never managed to embrace these equalizing truths, and have managed to cling to the ghetto mentality to the detriment of those they presume to command. For this reason you will see most whites leave service after the contracted number of years, and many blacks stay on to fill the NCO ranks.