Leadership Stories
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The War We Refuse to Name
John argues the war in Ukraine is already a European war, fought with drones, code, and propaganda, and that denial is its sharpest weapon.
Odessa's Cathedral: Stones vs. People
A Russian missile tore open Odesa's Transfiguration Cathedral in 2023. John on the people who cleared the rubble and kept praying.
After World War II: A Blueprint for Real Recovery
Ports, then rail, then power. John on what the Marshall Plan and postwar Japan teach leaders about rebuilding in the right order.
Veterans' Stories Are Fading Fast
When World War II veteran Frank Wal died, John was grateful his story had been recorded in time. Most families won't be so lucky.
Why the 80th Anniversary of VE Day Still Matters
On May 8, 1945, most soldiers didn't cheer. They lit a cigarette and sat in the quiet. John on why that day still asks something of us.
250 Years Since the Shot Heard 'Round the World: Why Lexington and Concord Still Matter
On Lexington Green, John met a young man whose sixth great-grandfather was John Adams. It's a reminder that history lives only if we carry it.
Five Miles of Ash and Valor: Eighty Years of Remembering Iwo Jima
Black ash that grabs your boots, and the Marines who pushed forward anyway. John on Iwo Jima at eighty.
February in World War II: The Words and the Lessons Left Behind
Churchill asked for tools. Goebbels demanded total war. John reads February in World War II through the words leaders chose.
"Ace of Aces": Shy on the Ground, Relentless in the Sky: The Story of Richard Bong
Forty aerial victories, more than any American in history, and most people have never heard his name. John on Major Richard Bong.
Voices That Endure: An Auschwitz Survivor's Account on the 80th Anniversary of Liberation
She was thirteen when she reached Auschwitz. John retells Livia Bitton-Jackson's survival on the 80th anniversary of the camp's liberation.
The Untold Story of Thier du Mont: A Forgotten Battle of Heroism and Sacrifice
Deep snow, German guns on the ridge, and the 508th Parachute Infantry going uphill anyway. John on a Bulge battle few remember.
Honoring the Legacy of the Battle of the Bulge: A Leadership Experience in Bastogne
Today's 101st Airborne soldiers walked the ground their predecessors held at Bastogne, connecting the Bulge's lessons to modern leadership.
What January in World War II Taught Us
From Hitler's 1939 Reichstag threat to the liberation of Auschwitz, John finds lessons in the Januaries of World War II.
Thanksgiving 1944: Gratitude and Grit during World War II
Rationing at home, a meal in a foxhole, monks serving soldiers in a library. John on how Americans kept Thanksgiving in 1944.
Lessons from the Greatest Generation—A Roadmap for Young People Today
John looks to the Greatest Generation's resilience and initiative as a roadmap for young men and women facing today's setbacks.
October 2024: The 80th Anniversary of Some of World War II's Defining Moments
Aachen, Warsaw, a revolt inside Auschwitz, Belgrade, Leyte Gulf. John on what happened in October 1944 and why it deserves remembering.
The Battle of Saipan and What It Means 80 Years Later
Twenty-four days, the war's largest banzai charge, and a battalion commander firing a jeep's machine gun to the end. John on Saipan at 80.
A Story of Courage and Ethical Decision-Making
John's Special Forces definition of integrity, doing right when no one's looking, meets Raoul Wallenberg's courage in wartime Budapest.