3rd Cause - Inadequate Training and Leadership Flashcards
What were the reasons as to why the leadership gap grew?
Rapid training of fresh recruits and the loss of seasoned soldiers meant the leadership gap grew.
What meant that less capable men were involved in the war?
The more capable men had found ways to avoid serving in the war.
How was Calley chosen and promoted to a leadership position?
Calley was one of the inexperienced leaders that emerged from the military’s reduced skill pool for officer positions. He was promoted quickly even though he lacked the skills required.
How was combat motivation and leadership continuity further destroyed?
By the rotation system where morale suffered.
What was the rotation system?
Soldiers rotated in and out of structures before they could comprehend the complexity of the conflict or establish cohesive groups.
What did soldiers become more and less concerned with and what was the result of this?
Soldiers became less concerned with mission objectives and more concerned with survival - leading to a breakdown in discipline and decline in ethical standards.
What allowed troops to believe that was they were doing was ok?
The leaderships failure to address this behaviour prior.
What did majority of the soldiers have little comprehension on, how they felt and why?
Majority of the soldiers had little comprehension of the moral and political implications, they felt alone and demoralised due to their ignorance and lack of the war’s purpose.
What did the uncertainty and anxiety incline soldiers to do?
Uncertainty and anxiety inclined soldiers to act irrationally whilst under duress, contributing to the dehumanisation of Vietnamese people.
Those a part of the massacre were byproducts of what?
Of an ineffective system that didn’t give resources and direction they needed.
What were they key reasons regarding inadequate training and leadership that the massacre occurred?
It occurred due to structural failures inside the U.S military and by a system that prioritises survival rather than mission performance and effective leadership.
