"Don't Talk... shoot!"

Encounter with Sir Nicholas Carter, Chief of the Defense Staff (retired), United Kingdom armed forces. Hoover Institution Spring Retreat, Phoenix AZ, 15 April 2023.

I caught up with Sir Nick in a private coffee break conversation. I referenced his "more action, less talking" admonition for Western leaders in his earlier presentation with an anecdote from the film, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. In the film, the Eli Wallach character, Tuco, is taking a bath in heavy suds in an abandoned hotel. He is surprised by a former nemesis who, intending to kill Tuco, soliloquizes on Tuco's many sins while he holds Tuco at gunpoint. Suddenly, Tuco pulls his six-gun out of the suds and shoots his castigator. After the shooting, Tuco says: "Don't talk, shoot!" I suggested to Sir Nick that he could use that anecdote in future speeches where he admonished more action and less talking. Sir Nick seemed to accept my suggestion amiably. What else would he do? Be dismissive? Nah. I saw Sir Nick and his wife early the next AM (16 April 2023) as we were leaving the hotel. We had another nice little chat. I thanked him for his tactful admonishments to America's leaders given in his remarks the previous day. He smiled, and said, "we in the UK are not without blame when it comes to hesitation on advancing the aims of the West in today's chaotic world."