William S. Lind - Military Expertise

Military Expertise

Alongside several U.S. officers, Lind is one of the originators of Fourth Generation War (4GW) theory. This theory states that the state has effectively lost its monopoly on warfare, and seeks to address the new challenges posed by this situation. The root of this new phenomenon is the "State's Crisis of Legitimacy," which is also linked to Lind's work at the Center for Cultural Conservatism.

Lind served as a legislative aide for the armed services for Senator Robert Taft, Jr., of Ohio from 1973 through 1976 and held a similar position with Senator Gary Hart of Colorado from 1977 through 1986. He is the author of the Maneuver Warfare Handbook (Westview Press, 1985) and co-author, with Gary Hart, of America Can Win: The Case for Military Reform.

With Bruce Gudmundsson, Lind hosted the program Modern War on the now-defunct satellite television network NET.

Lind, an opponent of the Iraq War, has written for the Marine Corps Gazette, Defense and the National Interest, (D-N-I.net), and The American Conservative.

According to writer Robert Coram in his book Boyd, during lectures on maneuver warfare Lind was sometimes criticized for having never served in the military, for having "never dodged a bullet, he had never led men in combat, he had never even worn a uniform". Coram writes that when challenged by an officer, Lind "cut him off at the knees." (Coram 383)