Major Furphy

Reflections about life in the Department of Defence at Russell Hill, reputedly extracted from musings recorded in the personal diary of the ever-observant personal staff officer to the Vice Chief of the Defence Force.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cultural revolution redux

Air Marshal Stoush eschews post-modernism and resorts to satire mimicking the self-criticism sessions of the Maoist Cultural Revolution.

They also serve who only stand and wait

Air Marshal Stoush, as acting CDF, is summoned to brief the prime-minister and carefully organises some detailed logistic sustainment arrangements in order to do so.

Fast night at the proms

The VCDF's wife tries to broaden his musical tastes with an unexpected result for the gun-runners, their entertainment budgets and the ethics of some headquarters staff officers.

Splits, kilts, understudies and the Hindu Kush

Air Marshal Stoush sheds his responsibilities for joint operations so he can better understudy the CDF and perhaps others.

Proust for dummies

Air Marshal Stoush regrets the Minister ignoring the Proust Report, tackles the Secretary about the unprecedented tripling of deputy-secretary positions in the Department of Defence and explains how many defence force personnel have been wearing hijabs for years.

Gnashing teeth all round

Why have so many occupants of the Deputy-Secretary Strategy appointment in the Department of Defence previously served on Kim Beazley's personal political staff, and why do Defgrams multiply like rabbits?

Floored by events

While the ADF is busy fighting several wars the Department of Defence seems overly concerned with minutia.

Slipped disks, gamesmanship and elephants

Air Marshal Stoush wins again at bureaucratic games while others lose sleep over who will be the next Secretary of the Department of Defence.

The games we play

Why do so many Deputy Secretaries responsible for strategic policy come from backgrounds that positively avoid tertiary qualifications or formative experiences in things strategical?

Cutting, plotting, inter-dependence and noblesse oblige

As the VCDF's Christmas present will the new Deputy Secretary Strategy be a jet-ski or just another pair of light-weight nylon socks?

The long drop from the 5th floor

Winds of change seem to be gusting along the hallowed corridors of the fifth floor.

Political interaction at the highest levels

Why did Mark Latham nickname Air Marshal Stoush "Porter"?

Dr Who joins Defence

Some musings on the new Defence Capability Development Manual (DCDM).

Sensitivity is touching both ways

The opportunities for travel afforded through Equal Employment Opportunity training.

The war within

The problems perpetuated by the bureaucratisation of our intelligence agencies.

The wisdom of Solomon

How Defence accounting really works.