CPT Dan Kearney receives MacArthur Award for Leadership

[zzsql]

He got promoted to major already.

We're lucky to have guys like him in the US Army

[xAntiIdiot]

Alpha male and great leader.

[thundercliez]

In the movie Restrepo, Kearney was a terrible choice for a leadership position. In the beginning of the movie he admitted he hadn't read anything about the area and was continuously rude to the tribal elders. One time he ordered an aerial attack that killed a bunch of people and injured children and women. Then when it cuts to him he says "Deeeaaamiitt, first impressions are last impressions.. blah blah maybe i shouldn't have done that duuuurrr..."

[murdan13]

LOL Macarthur didn't stand for duty, he abandoned his command in the Pacific at Bataan ,disobeyed orders during the Korean war and a MASSIVE ego on top of that. This captain seems to be a humble and talented leader who can follow orders.

[FREAKNIZZLE100]

kearney's a total badass

[johnanthonyp]

Military people don't have the time to intellectualise on an issue. They allow you the opportunity to do that. Each one to his own, All I know is I doubt anybody out there could improve on his performance under such shit. But you'd probably know better thanks to the likes of him.

[grifter84]

@johnanthonyp Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to anyone like Capt. Kearney who puts his ass on the line for me. I'm not criticizing his military decisions. I'm not competent to do that. But I get the impression that, since they dress differently and speak a different language, he just can't see the Afghans as real people. This award is for leadership and, by treating the locals the way he did, he set a bad example for his troops to follow, maybe even a dangerous one.

[grifter84]

Have to disagree with most of the comments. I've never been in the military, so my perspective is incomplete, but I saw in Restrepo an officer who, while he might have been a solid tactician, was horrendously ill-suited to the job of communicating with the local people. He lectured and alienated the village elders even after his unit inflicted great harm on them. I understand that he was trained to be a soldier, not a diplomat, but, in this war, he needed to be both. Hope he's safe, though.

[The0fficerRadical]

@grifter84 i couldn't agree more.

[FlyingBoxHead]

@grifter84 But then again there's the ''shit happens'' aspect that the Afghans seem to forget about.

[grifter84]

@FlyingBoxHead Not to be glib, but try saying "shit happens" the next time a foreign army drops airborne munitions on your hometown and kills your neighbors or your family. Even if what happened on that operation was the result of a reasonable mistake, it didn't absolve the officer who ordered it of the obligation to address the victims with dignity and consideration for what he'd just inflicted on them. Instead he got petulant and talked down to them as if they were children.

[Mfresh43]

GREAT soldier

[jerboy2468]

Considering the exceptionally difficult situation Captain Kearney had to deal with in Restrapo, his decisions seemed to be spot-on. If I were in the military, I hope officers would be of his caliber.

[schmonkey]

Just watched Restrepo, the man seemed like a hell of a leader, I'm glad to see he got awarded

[666ThaScarecro666]

@schmonkey the guy is a definition of bad ass.

[TheGhostfacekilla86]

@schmonkey I love when he says, " I DON'T GIVE A FUCK." lol