February 22, 2013

Thursday night I attended General Stanley McChrystal’s presentation of his memoirs, My Share of the Task, at PML. He gave a summary of his experiences and spoke specifically about the events leading to the 2006 targeted killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq. McChrystal spoke of his military career in general and how, with hindsight, it is clear how the hunt for al-Zarqawi forced him to adapt his leadership style. McChrystal mentioned how difficult the transition was from Cold-War to Counterinsurgency tactics. Then Friday night I was asked to attend the “125th Annual George Washington's Birthday Celebration” at the Union League Club featuring General McChrystal as the keynote speaker with some of the staff, volunteers, and interns from the Library. It was a great opportunity to network and make contacts for the future... And the free drinks and steak and salmon dinner weren’t bad either. It was as “fancy” an event as I have ever attended, complete with a Jazz Ensemble from the Illinois Army National Guard’s 144th Army Band. I sat at the table with the President of PML and even met some board members... I feel very fortunate to have been at the right place at the right time to get invited.