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you are here: > Articles of War
> Article 23
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3. Political Leadership
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| Article 23- Weaknesses of a Political Leader | ||
| 23.1 | Weaknesses of a Political Leader | |
| While it is to the General that the army look at times of Battle, it is to the Political Leader that the whole nation seeks confidence and guidance. | ||
| Therefore, every gesture, every word and unspoken gesture represents a strengthening of the confidence of the nation or its weakening. | ||
| 23.2 | Influence of weak leaders on the outcomes of War | |
| A nation may be strong in resources and military capability and still lose a war because of the influence of weak leadership. The power of weak leadership characteristics to affect the outcome of a military campaign and war cannot be underestimated. | ||
| 23.3 | Key weaknesses of a political leader | |
| While there can be considered many weaknesses of human character which may be associated to a political leader, the following are the most grave in concern of matters of war. | ||
| A deafness to wise counsel | ||
| When a leader ceases to listen to the counsel of wise generals in matters of the prosecution of war, then certain defeat or great losses will soon be at hand. | ||
| Replacing generals in mid-battle | ||
| Nothing destroys the moral and fighting spirit of an army than to have its generals replaced mid-battle. A political leader who usurps the command of their generals, who interferes in the operational affairs of the military severely weakens the armed forces ability to prosecute war effectively. | ||
| Cowardice to commit | ||
| A failure to act decisively and promptly with matters concerning the prosecution of war already in progress risks emboldening and strengthening the enemy and therefore costing more resources and lives. | ||
| Disrespect to the military and the dead | ||
| A weak leader is one who forgets to honour the military and the dead by some act of omission or disrespect. Even humour by a leader in times of war can be considered disrespectful if in anyway it belittles the memory or reason for war. A leader who tries to be funny in wartime quickly loses the respect of the military and the people. | ||
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