The good NCO has never been short in confidence, either to perform the mission or to inform the superior that he or she was interfering with traditional NCO business.

The goal of the corps of NCOs, whose duty is the day-to-day business of running the Army so that the officer corps has time to command it, is to continue to improve our Army at every turn. We want to leave it better than we found it. Regardless of the kind of unit you're in, it ought to be an elite outfit, because its NCOs can make it one.

Citizens everywhere, and especially soldiers, should remember that entrenched bureaucracy, whatever the level, can be overcome. You've got to stick to it, be polite but firm, and just not take no for an answer.