An Elite Joined the Truly Elite

John Renehan was once a lawyer from a privileged background. He's now a First Lieutenant in The Army assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.

It seemed on the one hand an entirely reasonable thing to be doing, and on the other an outrageous one. Reasonable because the military would probably need the services of motivated citizens in the near future, and I was a motivated citizen. Outrageous because I, a lawyer with no military experience, knew virtually no one from my own background -- comfortable childhood, good education, white-collar career -- who had ever been in the service.

LT Renehan on the man he has become:

About myself, I discovered that there were within me -- within everyone -- latent abilities, tendencies, temperaments that only an environment such as this will bring out. And yes, I'm speaking to you bookish types now. However well you may think you know your own pacific constitution, be assured that there is someone more physical and forceful within you -- someone you will meet, given the right circumstances.

LT Renehan on who should consider The Military:

All else being equal, staffing the armed services with citizens from the broadest range of backgrounds is still the best course. Further, we are in a time, and a conflict, in which the unique demands placed upon the military make the need for innovative leadership acute. (My artillery battalion, for example, conducts foot patrols in Ramadi, performs base security, trains Iraqi police recruits, mans outposts in the desert, forms neighborhood councils, oversees reconstruction projects and . . . oh yes, shoots artillery.) How better to achieve this than to cast a wide net?

Read the entire article here.


OYE Comment: We would like to thank LT Renehan for sharing his personal story of overcoming doubt and following his convictions by joining The Army. As our regular readers will know, we often highlight the privileged who are for a war they're not willing to participate in. It is indeed refreshing for us to spotlight a person that put Our Country before personal comfort.


OYE acknowledges that joining The Military is as difficult and soul searching for people of all backgrounds, and that LT Renehan's story can very well be the same story told by any who've raised their hand to serve Our Country. Although LT Renehan's past credentials may have led the Washington Post to provide him with this forum, it is unquestionable that he is a person of integrity and offers a narrative that is inspiring and credible in a time when similar accounts are all too often "the exception".

H/T: LT Nixon. Feel free to contact Lt. Renehan here.