The soldier's heart, the soldier's spirit, the soldier's soul are everything. Unless the soldier's soul sustains him, he cannot be relied on and will fail himself and his country in the end.
General Richard H. Thompson's career traveled many different roads, and he encountered many ethical dilemmas. But his steadfast focus on the preeminence of ethical behavior always seemed to carry the day. Thompson the general doggedly applied the same standards that had guided his actions as a young soldier.
Interestingly enough, Army doctrine as developed in various Department of the Army Field Manuals (FMs) such as FM 100-1 (The Army), FM 22-103 (Leadership and Command at Senior Levels), and FM 22-100 (Military Leadership) implies that as rank and responsibility increase, a certain amount of flexibility and situational judgment are required. However, for Thompson no ambiguities or dilemmas fell outside the bounds of his basic ethical framework.
He blended the professional Army ethic into a uniquely personal leadership style and philosophy. This philosophy provided him the staying power to weather the frequent storms of the turbulent decades following World War II. His was a self-made career. It might have been a quirk of fate that he achieved the pinnacle of his profession as the first-ever four-star general in the Quartermaster Corps and as the commanding general of the United States Army Materiel Command. It certainly was not a series of picture-perfect assignments. Regardless of why and how Thompson achieved success, his consistency in making value decisions was a hallmark of his career. Superiors, peers, and subordinates alike always knew where General Thompson stood in terms of the Army's professional ethic.
General Thompson's career was anything but typical. He served in the New York State Militia, the Army Reserve, and the Active Army. General Thompson did not graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. He neither received a Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) nor an Officer Candidate School (OCS) commission. Rather, he received a direct reserve commission through a post World War II program for specially qualified veterans attending college.
He wore the brass of four different branches. As a young soldier, he wore Artillery brass. As an officer, he wore the brass of the Adjutant General, the Infantry, and the Quartermaster Corps.
While his career spanned three wars -- World War II, Korea, and Vietnam -- he was not a highly decorated warrior. Despite aggressively volunteering for duty and eventually serving three wars -- he was never tactically involved.