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General Peter Cosgrove: My Story   Written by: General Peter Cosgrove, Harper Collins Publishers, NSW, 2006,  ISBN: 9780732283841, 468pp.     Reviewed by: Dr Albert Palazzo, Research Fellow, Land Warfare Studies Centre The writing of autobiography is a problematic endeavour. The author’s closeness to his subject makes attaining objectivity almost impossible and can thus call into question the work’s value and viewpoint. This is especially true when public records will remain closed for many years, …

The Partnership: The Inside Story of the US–Australian Alliance Under Bush and Howard   Written by: Greg Sheridan, University of New South Wales Press, 2006,  ISBN: 9780868409221, 260pp.   Reviewed by : Bree Larkham, Researcher, Land Warfare Studies Centre From its inception in 1951, the debate in Australia about ANZUS has been conducted broadly between two forces. There are those who oppose the alliance on the grounds that it is a manifestation of an ingrained Australian cringe to a distant imperial …

Failed States: The abuse of power and the assault on democracy   Written by: Noam Chomsky, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2006,  ISBN: 9780805082845, 328pp.   Reviewed by: Hugh Smith, Visiting Fellow, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy The main title of Chomsky’s latest book is somewhat misleading. It is not an examination of the misery experienced by the many Third World states riven by civil strife, criminality, corruption and …

Losing Iraq: Inside the Postwar Reconstruction Fiasco   Written by: David L. Phillips, Basic Books, New York, 2005, ISBN: 9780813343044, ix + 292pp.   Reviewed by: Major Lynda Liddy, Research Fellow, Land Warfare Studies Centre. In the aftermath of civil wars, international actors often worry about sectarianism, tribalism and ethnic division in war torn states. In Iraq, however, it is evident that forced regime change is also fraught with similar challenges. Religious and ethnic divisions, political …

The ability to concentrate superior forces at the critical time and place has been a hallmark of successful commanders throughout history. Since warfare emerged from the inter-tribal squabbles when a few dozen men endeavoured to cut each other’s throats, to the stage when state and national armies were formed, man has been constantly striving to develop more powerful weapons and improved means of mobility. During the 15th Century B.C., Ethiopia fell to the empire-building Egyptians, not because of any lack …

Introduction No doubt this title will provoke some violent objections. The passing of the horse-drawn and horse-borne era did not occur in quiescent silence either. The demise of the tank does not imply any degradation in strength or status of armoured units; but rather a need to adapt to the products of technology. Just as the introduction of the tank to modern warfare had great impact on tactical philosophy, so will its passing. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that changes in tactics have led to the …

In this edition of Retrospect, we feature two articles published in the Army Journal of March 1970, which take opposing views of the relevance of the Main Battle Tank (MBT). The first article, by Major W Lennon of the Royal Australian Engineers, provocatively asserted ‘The Tank is Dead’. While conceding that, even at that time of writing, the Centurion Tank was still performing effectively on operations in South Vietnam, the author argued that the increased lethality of individual shoulder-fired weapons, …

Abstract The author argues that the hype surrounding the supposedly unique characteristics and workplace demands of ‘Generation Y’ deserves closer critical analysis. He questions those within the Army and the Australian Defence Force who use the simplifications of ‘generationalism’ as the basis for making long-term strategic workforce management decisions. He concludes by outlining five common workforce needs that might be expressed differently in each generation but which remain at the foundation of …

TO THE EDITORS Congratulations on publishing, in the Winter 2006 AAJ , the article by Captain Daimien Patterson entitled Army Force Structure - What has gone wrong? As a staff officer serving with HQ 1st Division, I am simultaneously impressed that Captain Patterson wants to sack me: ‘we don’t need a Division Headquarters’[1], while he also provides some excellent critical thinking on the future of our Army. This type of critical thinking should be encouraged at all levels within Army, especially if we are …

Abstract The New Zealand Army has not had experience in high-intensity urban warfighting for over sixty years. However, as Afghanistan and Iraq illustrate, stability and support operations (SASO) in a complex human environment can be just as daunting as the actual warfighting stage. It is within this enivornment that the New Zealand Army has been repeatedly successful. Analysis of the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team (NZPRT) in the province of Bamyan Central, Afghanistan, reveals the New Zealand …