If Not Now, When?: Duty and Sacrifice in America's Time of Need

Jack Jacobs is an extraordinary story teller. He recalls critical facts that help provide context to the reader and lessons learned to those looking for wisdom. I was privileged to have dinner with Colonel Jacobs twice and both settings were surreal and are worth mentioning. The first was in a busy, trendy Ian Shrager Hotel with our common friend who is a Purple Heart recipient. I remember afterward feeling sorry for those around us, thinking it was a shame those surrounding us were unaware they were in the presence of a couple of great warriors that had made countless sacrifices for the freedom all Americans enjoy. The second was earlier this month. I was with an enthusiastic group of veterans in an unlikely setting, the back of a public open air restaurant in one of the 'Left Coasts' more liberal enclaves. I saw the heads turn at the closest tables, seemingly annoyed at first, at the roar of laughter from our crowd - interrupting their dinners; then curious, then envious, as Jack Jacobs entertained and shared valuable lessons. I would encourage you to see/hear him live. In the interim I would recommend you to buy and read his book; then lend it to others. He lays out a blueprint for: * universal service * who to target if you are courageous enough to mentor * who should question authority * why the civilian/military power hierarchy is inherently conflicted

I believe that when you read an autobiography and the author has something in common with you... it adds to the enjoyment of the book. These commonalities can bring the reader happiness... sadness... longing... and it can also bring enlightenment... as it helps solve long unanswered questions... even though some of the questions that are answered... you didn't even realize you still carried within your very soul... more than forty-years later. The author Jack Jacobs and I are both Jewish... both our Parents were born in Brooklyn... both our Grandparents immigrated/escaped Europe's anti-Semitic scourge... we both spent our early years in Queens... we both loved the Brooklyn Dodgers and the sacred ground of Ebbets Field... we both played stickball and stoop ball... we're both Honorably Discharged Vietnam era veterans. BUT... Jack is five-feet-four-inches tall and I'm six-feet-two-inches tall... and Jack is a **MEDAL-OF-HONOR-RECIPIENT** **THE NATIONS HIGHEST MILITARY AWARD** Jack is truly a giant among men. It is an honor to read his life story and review his book. Jack's story is as much about the changing of a countries persona as it is about his life. He tells of his Father's military service during World War II and the fact that nineteen-million Americans were on active duty, and as a boy, Jack never even thought of his Father having been a soldier... he thought of him as an electrical engineer because "the ubiquity of military service in a time of peril made it unremarkable. In the forties and fifties, it was rare to encounter an adult who hadn't been in uniform." And that's one of the points that Jack drills home in his no-holds-barred writing, that current day America should have the same spirit of service to country. When I was in the military I was a "first-termer-and-a-short-timer"... that's what a million of us young guys called ourselves. We were honorably serving our country... but we were definitely NOT going to become a "lifer"... which is what Jack became. And that is the part of the book that answered and alleviated so many of my deeply buried questions from my time in the military. Jack openly berates the decision making and logistics of the military then and now. All the degrading comments the "short-timers" mumbled under their breath regarding the oxymoron's of ?military-intelligence? is echoed by Jack... a lifer. Jack hits a homerun that applies to the Vietnam War... today's war... and business life in general... when he says: "IT WAS THEN THAT I LEARNED ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LESSONS IN THE USE OF ANY INSTRUMENT OF POWER, INDEED IN ANY HUMAN ENDEAVOR ON OR OFF THE BATTLEFIELD: IT ALWAYS TAKES MORE RESOURCES THAN YOU THINK. ALWAYS! THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO MANY RESOURCES, AND ANYONE WHO BELIEVES HE HAS TOO MANY ASSETS HAS CERTAINLY MISCALCULATED AND NEEDS TO CHECK HIS MATH." Another absolute bull's-eye by Jack that was true in Vietnam and sure as hell is true in today's war is "THAT IT ALWAYS TAKES MORE RESOURCES TO

A most compelling story of a genuine war hero. A man with a tender heart, self respect and charity. A man for all seasons. He writes with dignity, honesty and humor. A true American idol. This book should be on everyone's bookshelf.

What a fantastic read. In my opinion, the combat scenes of Vietnam are reminiscent of the best writing to come out of that conflict--books like "The Things They Carried" and "We Were Soldiers Once and Young," although during the worst fighting of the Tet Offensive, Colonel Jacobs was not serving with his own U.S. Army troops in the 82nd Airborne but "embedded" as senior advisor with the South Vietnamese Army. The great revelation of this book, though, isn't the scenes of valor for which Jack Jacobs earned our nation's highest military honor. It's the comedic tone throughout. On almost every page, there's a joke or two. Growing up as a scrappy, undersized Jewish kid in New York and New Jersey, Jack comes across as the quintessential class clown. This is top-level humor writing in the tradition of S.J Perelman, Woody Allen and Steve Martin. There were moments when I was literally putting the book down, because I was laughing so hard. Colonel Jacobs is, as Brian Williams of NBC News says, a man of real greatness-- "the complete American." Buy this book and pass it on to all the veterans in your family -- fathers, uncles, grandfathers. They will love it.

This book is unique. No Medal of Honor recipient has ever written a book that is both powerful and hilarious at the same time. For five years I have been recommending Medal of Honor by Peter Collier as the ideal Christmas present for veterans, young people and students of history. I must add the Jack Jacobs book to my short Christmas list. With not a word of profanity, this book is a great read for children of all ages. What a role model of selfless service.