Trenton Pulls

Posted on Wednesday, March 31, 2010 in supplies

Trenton Pulls
Was George Washington really a good General and President?

Was GW really good? I think he was lucky, I mean come on. He is most famous for being the first president and leading his soldiers across the Delaware River to attack Trenton on Christmas night. Trenton was complete luck. I mean, the chances of like having such a stupid opponent as Rall and Howe is about as likely as pulling five 100 dollar bills out of your @ss crack right now. As for president, all he did was sit around and cr@p in his pants while Hamilton ran the government and take credit for everything. Then, for looks, he went out and decided to crush the Whiskey Rebllion. Washington fired a bunch of $hit bombs at the rebels and the farmers ran away. Washington was not a good person either. He owened slaves. Agree or disagree?

You have to remember that generals fall into two types: tacticians and strategists. Some generals do great in both. Some do lousing in both. Most do mid level in both.

The line is often blurry, but it comes down to this. Strategists decide how to fight the war. Tacticians decide how to fight the battle.

To be sure he started off as a terrible tactician, and got to mediocre by the end of the war. On the flip side, Benedict Arnold was a brilliant tactician. He won battles (for both sides), but he did not grasp the over all strategy of the war.

Washington was a great strategists. He knew that key to victory was to keep the army in the field. So long as Washington and his men were an organized force in the field, the British could not claim victory.

If the British destroyed his army, it might be the end. The Americans might still do an insurgency, but given the limited technology of the times they wouldn't be able to do much. Also, the support for independence was about 30% or the population. A massive defeat, and the other 70% would decide it wasn't worth it and hunt down the insurgents.

Also, without an army in the field, the Americans could not get significant support from France or Spain. They might send the Americans weapons and some funds, but they wouldn't come out and give the support they needed. History showed this. Whenever the Irish rebelled and started an Army, the French would be on their side to get at the British. However, whenever the Irish army was crushed, the French started backing away.

Nearly all of the other high ranking officers wanted to take on the British in a strait fight, European Style. Washington knew this was suicide.

Also, Washington was an excellent administrator which goes with being a strategist. General Eisenhower never led men in battle, but he won World War II in Europe because he was a brilliant organizer. Same thing here.

Another important point of a strategist is to be a good judge of men to place in important positions. Washington picked great commanders: Greeene, Knox, and La Fayette to name a few. Even Benedict Arnold was a great choice. Had Arnold's young wife not had such control over him, he might have stayed loyal.

At the strategic level, more than the tactical level, the commander must be able to be a handler of men. He has to balance all the egos and conflicts that having so many generals causes. He sets the tone and gets them to work as a team. Tactical commanders do this as well, but they do it for the length of a battle: days (weeks at most). Strategists have to do it for the length of the war: years.

Another aspect of Washington's as commander was his lack of vanity. To many commanders think that wars are thrown for their personal glorification: Napoleon, Patton, Mac Arthur, and Montgomery. They might be great commanders but they start worrying more about their own legends than winning the war. Washington had a single-minded sense of duty. He was not in it for glory, and when the war was over he just walked away.

As a President, Washington was the best man for the job. His sense of duty molded the presidency and sets the standard by which we measure presidents. He negotiated compromises. He made people understand that he was citizen called to duty and not a king. They wanted to give him a burial place at the center of the new capital building. He told them no.

He did lousy things. He was as good an owner as you could have, but he did own slaves. He burned Indian villages. He cheated on his wife. In his personal life, he was no different than most men of his age.

However, his greatness comes in the foundation he laid for this country. With every generation, we have done more and more to fix the injustices of his time. We could not have done that, if he hadn't set the idea that America is not one man. It is a system that grows and evolves.

A lesser man, a Napoleon, might have seized power and outlawed slavery. However, the guy after Napoleon could have just brought it back. You don't think so? Look at some of the West African countries. They had men who seized power to make things better, and they did sometimes. However, the guy that seized power after the first guy simply undid it.

That's the brilliance of the Anglo-American (British and America) system that Washington personified. Change comes slow, but when it does, it lasts because the country changes, not just one man.

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Trenton Wire Cabinet Drawer Pulls White 3-3/4"
USD 2.21

Size: 3-3/4" Center to Center / 4-1/8" Overall Length Finish: White Jeffrey Alexander: k271-96-wh All cabinet hardware comes with screws. Our finishes are designed and tested to withstand corrosion by moisture and salt air. When properly maintained, our finishes resist abrasion and enhance the luster and exquisite beauty of our products for years. All our die-cast, stamped and solid brass products are protected by triple treatments of long-lasting genuine laquer which is the only coating designed to enhance the finish without discoloring. Unlimited lifetime guarantee. Ships in 3 to 5 business days.