Back at Bragg…
In April 2023, I wrote the most read blog I’ve ever had. About 10,000 people read my blog concerning the name changes occurring on the eight Army bases. You can read it here…Because They Take. That’s What They Do. — Clay Novak. While I acknowledged places like Fort Benning and Fort Hood, I was primarily focused on Fort Bragg because I had spent so much time there.
My arguments, and I stand by them, were that the military was disregarding the sacrifices of so many Soldiers and families who were stationed at Fort Bragg (and others) over so many decades, that there was not a single living person that even remembered the Civil War or slavery or the Generals these bases were named after, and that 99% of America couldn’t tell you a SINGLE thing about their performance or even which side they fought for.
All the hurt feelings were and are made up. Period.
Sunday, Secretary Hegseth through a stroke of brilliance, found a way to reverse the naming of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg. There was a WWII Paratrooper named Roland Bragg who earned a Silver Star for some really heroic stuff. Wounded himself, he stole a GERMAN ambulance and drove it back with some fellow wounded comrades inside. Amazing. That is who SECDEF named Fort Bragg after. It’s a loophole that I do not think the other bases will be able to replicate.
Now, there is more crying. It’s a waste of money. It’s a waste of time. It’s the wrong focus. It isn’t about warfighting.
I would argue this IS about warfighting. It is about esprit de corps that ONLY existed within the Army at Fort Bragg.
There was no other Army base, fort, camp, or anything else that declared itself the “Center of the Universe” and people believed it, even if they hated hearing it. There are lots of bases that were known as “The home of…” or “The fill-in-the-blank Center of Excellence” or some other nickname like “The Great Place”. Sorry Fort Hood, but that one was awful.
Fort Bragg was just “Bragg” and there was no statement in the Army that was despised more than “Back at Bragg…” because anyone listening KNEW what followed was going to be a story or a diatribe about how things were done “better” or the “right way” at Fort Bragg compared to wherever the storyteller was currently stationed. It was pure PRIDE and the esprit de corps that exuded from being stationed there.
I can tell you from personal experience of at least ten people who had never been stationed at Fort Bragg but hated it because of the boisterous “Back at Bragg…” stories they had been exposed to. They honestly couldn’t stand anything about Fort Bragg even though they had never been there. Until they WERE there and then they understood. They drank the Kool-aide, bought into the culture, and realized how special that place was. They were PROUD to be stationed at Bragg.
I can honestly say, I don’t think Fort Liberty has the same draw. None of the units have changed. The 82nd Airborne is still there. So is XVIII Airborne Corps. So are all the Special Operations folks. It’s still the same installation, but something was lost with the name change. Is changing the name BACK to Fort Bragg going to fix that? I really don’t know. I do know I’ve never heard a single person start a story with “Back at Liberty…”
I would ask everyone, especially those who know and understand warfighting, how important esprit de corps and pride are to a unit. It’s not something you can measure, but I know it has an impact. I know people who have spent long careers in many different units and on many different bases can tell you EXACTLY what unit was the best one they were ever in, and they will tell you how great that experience was. Ask someone. Watch their physical response when they talk about those units. Listen to the tone of their voice. You’ll be able to see and hear the pride.
I’m not saying there aren’t good units at other bases. Of course there are. What I am saying is, morale and esprit de corps have a DIRECT impact on unit cohesion, motivation, and warfighting. Dismissing the name change as having nothing to do with warfighting is shortsighted, in my opinion. Asserting that the “name” of something should be irrelevant, is also pretty narrowminded.
If you don’t believe me, go tell any Marine, and I mean ANY Marine past or present, that being called a Marine isn’t important and they need to get over it. Or that they are considering changing the name of “The Corps” to something else. Let me know how that works out for you after that individual is done pointing out the stickers on their car, their USMC ball cap, and their Globe and Anchor tattoo. The one branch of the military that has absolutely cornered the market on esprit de corps knows those things matter.
To me, you can’t put a price tag on it. You can’t spend enough time on it. You can’t focus enough on it. And it IS part of improving warfighting. Esprit de corps is invaluable.
The military has taken a pretty big hit over the last four years or so, especially in the morale department. Why would anyone argue about an effort to reverse that? Can you put a dollar value on it?
Again, am I positive this is going to work? No. Is it worth a try? Hell yeah.
You know, that has me thinking. I remember this one time, Back at Bragg….