"Perhaps this depth of perception explains why a single individual stands out prominently in a crisis. Events become focused, hence mandating that decision making should follow suit. Into this focal point steps a leader who must either sort out the complexities and make the momentous decisions, or be labeled by history as mediocre at best. Few individuals seek that kind of responsibility; fewer yet can handle it. Of the latter, only a rare person of character can survive the exercise of that much power without succumbing to the ever-present leech of corruption. But General Pershing was one of those rare individuals."
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Military leaders from the United StatesEpiscopalians from the United StatesLawyers from the United StatesMemoirists from the United StatesPeople from Missouri
Original Language: English
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Sources
George M. Hall, The Fifth Star: High Command in an Era of Global War (1994), p. 23–25
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_J._Pershing
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John J. Pershing
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