The master's thesis, which weighs in at 612 pages, proposes a theory of "relative superiority" to explain how a small offensive force can defeat a larger, well-fortified defense, which Clausewitz described as holding a decisive advantage. He had leadership skills we'd expect from a guy who had 35 years in the military." INSKEEP: Admiral, one other thing occurs to me. Adm. William McRaven, who oversaw the raid on Osama bin Laden's home, says as it went beyond the planned time, he feared Pakistani forces might find U.S. troops . As you point out. . "One of the things we made clear to the President and the national leadership was, This is what we do," he told TIME. When the chute blossomed the two parts went different ways and took his legs with them. Admiral William McRaven. HOOVER: You know, you were also in charge of a very successful high seas rescue of Captain Phillips, who was held hostage by pirates off the coast of Somalia. I can see it on the overhead surveillance. And just something said, hey, we got to turn around, weve got to get back, because, you know, tonights going to be the night. With her father by her side, she laughed off the injury like it was a scratch. Years ago the author was badly wounded in a parachute accident and he had to go through months of recovery and rehabilitation. HOOVER: Saddam Hussein became your prisoner when he remained at your camp longer than originally expected, about 30 days. The most recent internal tally counted more than 2,500 such commando missions in and around Afghanistan over 12 months. On September 11th, 2001, you were still recuperating from your injuries when you watched the terrorist attacks on this country play out on a television screen in your living room. McRaven: He went from being pompous and arrogant to frankly, just being, you know, a tired, corrupt old man. On the downside, "relative superiority" does not last long. No, I dont think that contributed to his decline. Well, I think its interesting when you think about Westmorelands observation in context. What are you trying to tell me there? If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. Making your bed as easy to do. Read the full transcript of McRaven's May 19, 2014 speech right here at Rev.com. McRaven speaks respectfully of Bush as Commander in Chief, saying he "made some very, very tough decisions." We always find heroes in the next generation that are more than willing to serve and sacrifice. McCraven is best known as the Navy SEAL commander who oversaw the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. He has unique facial characteristics. . We did. Today on the show, Admiral McRaven and I discuss why something as simple as making your bed every day can lay the foundation for success in every aspect of your life, how a parachuting accident taught him an important lesson on avoiding self-pity and learning to rely on the help of others, and why rolling in the sand as a . There are costs. Shortly after jumping out, McCraven says something was clearly wrong. Later, William McRaven shares his story of a horrible parachute accident, which leaves him hospitalized for . The conversation was . Admiral McRaven, in an inspiring speech, addressed the Class of 2015 at West Point to celebrate 500th Night. And some folks were a little dismissive. I had a medical professional, either a corpsman, a medic or a doctor in the room with him 24/7, along with a security guard. But they do know you as the make-your-bed guy. According to Nan McRaven, one of two older sisters, their father Claude regaled the family with accounts of his exploits as a fighter pilot in British-built Spitfires during World War II. Nothing mattered but your will to succeed. And youve probably seen the iconic photo from Pete Souza. So I saw some young SEALs standing nearby. And Maybe the World . Im absolutely ok with that. I guess he did.". That is not exactly the same as choosing two commandments to rebut in church, but it is provocative. So anybody that claims that theyve got a helmet cam video, nobody was wearing helmet cams. Again, this was 2003 so the technology wasnt quite as sophisticated as it is today. And every day that I went in, he tried to engage me in a conversation. What kind of intelligence did we get off the target? Television, film and video games have infused popular culture, and the political debate, with the power of special warfare to get the job done on the cheap. So if you want to change the world, start off by making your bed. We were holding our breath whether he could make it. The compound could still be booby trapped. "He was a bright guy, but he didn't like my rude and crude way," Marcinko said. William H. McRaven is a retired four-star US Navy SEAL admiral and author of the number one New York Times best-seller Make Your Bed (2017).During his almost 40 years of service, McRaven became commander of America's anti-terrorist and hostage rescue operations, which included the capture of Saddam Hussein and the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. n your account of the rescue. In 2001, McRaven was hospitalized after a parachute accident "kind of . Richard Marcinko, the hard-charging founding commander of Navy SEAL Team 6, the storied and feared unit within an elite commando force that later . The story did not end there. We had a helicopter with an optical ball on it that was providing our ISR, our video coverage, if you will. He was a Vietnam vet. But I also knew at that moment that life was about to change. "It was hard to watch it from afar, at the White House, but at the time, because I was still broken up pretty bad, I'm not sure I could have done much to help," he says. And in the case of the rescue of Captain Phillips, the guys on scene made all the right calls. Tell me about the impact that Moki Martin had on you. INSKEEP: He wasn't in a very good position to negotiate, I suppose. Starting your day off by completing a task will initiate your momentum to do the next task, and then the next, and so on. But that was still many hours after the mission was concluded. . President George W. Bush had asked Downing to inaugurate a new position as Deputy National Security Adviser for Combatting Terrorism. MCRAVEN: Yeah. But at the end of the day, you have to confirm the jackpot. He said, well sir Im six two. And the answer was, millions of men and women, and particularly after 9/11. SINGAPORE - The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) had to prise open a taxi's roof to rescue two female passengers following an accident in the early hours of Saturday morning (July 10). As it turned out, in a dark room at night. All rights reserved. William Harry McRaven (born November 6, 1955) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as the ninth commander of the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) from August 8, 2011 to August 28, 2014. 00:23:10 He knew I'd been in a parachute accident. The standard-issue AMC Eagle wagon was no kind of ride for commandos. Nan McRaven says. He never had his hands raised. He previously served as Deputy Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command from 2003 to July 2007. While the rest of the Pentagon is scaling back spending, special-operations forces are asking for more. WILLIAM H MCRAVEN: And all of a sudden, I realize the guy to the left is underneath me. Im ok with that. Published Dec. 27, 2021 Updated Dec. 31, 2021. This Week on a special, Independence Day Firing Line. So it broke my pelvis several inches apart, you know, ripped muscles out of my stomach and my legs, fractured my back, and I landed about two miles from the drop zone. Well, thats true of every mission you conduct, youve got to be able to delegate to people that you have trust and confidence in. I didnt think much of it. No Americans were harmed. I didnt want to engage with him because, frankly, I didnt want him to, at least psychologically, think that he was a VIP, that he was somebody important enough to be able to engage me in conversation. HOOVER: So upon reaching the third floor, the raids second SEAL, Senior Chief Petty Officer Rob ONeill, came face to face with a, quote, tall, thin man. "People like McRaven know that.". Plenty of junior officers admired McRaven's stand, but most, as one puts it, "thought that was the end of his career." The second helicopter, which was supposed to come in and land on the roof, lands outside. We werent going to put him in a cell with other people, that his days as the leader of Iraq were over. She was seriously injured in a parachute accident. The good news is, as I fell a couple hundred feet or a thousand feet or so, the parachute finally opened. And as I would find out later, it wouldnt be the last time. Admiral, tell me about that premonition. But it wasnt the first time Id had a, quote, premonition. Admiral William H. McRaven is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Make Your Bed and the New York Times bestsellers Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations and The Hero Code: Lessons Learned from Lives Well Lived. ), https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2101745_2102133_2102330,00.html. Then it was back to operations. You know, he ate as well if not better than a lot of the soldiers that we had. Yeah, well, obviously, like a lot of people who watched it on TV, it was a horrifying moment for all of us. But it was a relatively straightforward mission in terms of the first part of it. So a static line parachute is where you hook up inside the aircraft, the freefall you jump out with a parachute on your back. A natural storyteller, he shared highlights from his high-profile career at a John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum last week. "They went through a period of appearing more like cowboys, a period of 'tried but didn't quite make it,' " said retired Marine general James Cartwright, who was vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when the raid took place. The accident happened along westbound ECP at the Rochor Road exit. We all remember those images of Saddam Hussein the moment that he was captured. We werent going to put him in a cell with other people, that his days as the leader of Iraq were over. The New York Times reports that Vice Adm McRaven was asked in February by Mr Panetta to come up with various proposals for a military strike on the compound where Bin Laden was believed to be . And even though I was broken-hearted at the time, I was intent on getting kind of back in the fight and being able to support my fellow special operations warriors. The second helicopter, which was supposed to come in and land on the roof, lands outside. News Skydiving Death Australia. And that little bit of levity kind of helped me through the rest of the night. On the night of the bin Laden raid, there were 13 simultaneous operations in Afghanistan by clandestine "special-mission units" under JSOC, according to McRaven and Petraeus. HOOVER: Duty is among the virtues that you write about in the hero code. Supposed to come in and land on the roof, lands outside the parachute finally opened accomplished the time. 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