Forging a Special Operations Force: The US Army Rangers(Association of the United States Army (AUSA) publications)

Forging a Special Operations Force: The US Army Rangers

About the Author :
Dominic J. Caraccilo is the COO for a security firm in Charlotte, NC. He was most recently the Director for IT Operations at Facebook and a regional director for Amazon.com. His first post-retirement position was as a consultant for the United Arab Emirates Land Forces leading their training and readiness transformation process. Caraccilo served for over 27 years as a commissioned officer and was selected for brigadier general before retiring as a colonel in 2011. He has experienced 65 months of combat over 7 combat tours. In combat he commanded an 82nd Airborne company in Desert Storm, a 173rd Airborne battalion in a combat parachute assault in Northern Iraq and a 101st Airborne Brigade combat team in South Baghdad at the height of the insurgency. He was also the Operations Officer for the 101st Airborne as they controlled MND-N in Iraq and the Executive Officer for the 75th Rangers in Afghanistan during the initial assault in OEF in 2001. He served as the Executive Officer to General Ray Odierno for USF-I in Baghdad before serving in his final assignment as the Deputy Commander for the 101st Airborne Division and Acting Senior Commander of Fort Campbell. He has a Doctorate in Business Administration, Global Economy and Leadership from CalUniversity, as well as an Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the US Naval War College, a Master of Engineering from Cornell University in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from the US Military Academy at West Point and served as an assistant professor for systems engineering at the US Military Academy at West Point. He is also a graduate of the War College, Marine Corps and Army Staff Colleges. He is the author of a number of books including: Beyond Guns and Steel: A War Termination Strategy (Praeger, 2011); Achieving Victory in Iraq: Countering an Insurgency (Stackpole 2008); Surviving Bataan and Beyond (Stackpole 1999 and 2005); and The Ready Brigade (McFarland, 1993). He has been married to his wife Karen for 30 years and they have three children: Robert, Jacob and Jenna.

Review :
"In today’s U.S. Army, the 75th Ranger Regiment serves as the connectivity between the Army’s conventional and special operational forces. Based on their esprit de corps and their capability to fight and win anytime, anywhere, and against any enemy, Army Rangers have participated in every military conflict since their inception as a permanent force in 1974. After reading Dominic Caraccilo’s Forging a Special Operations Force, you understand why." "This book illustrates the genesis of the first Ranger Battalion formed since WWII and how the original 600 Rangers established such incredibly high standards at a time when the Army was at its nadir. More importantly, it describes the impact these men had on sowing the seeds of professionalism throughout the Army upon leaving their Ranger unit." "This book is the true history of the creation of the Modern day Rangers.  It clearly explains how we, the United States, got to the point we could successfully mount the Bin Laden raid.  It is all about the Resurrection of the Army, the people who led that effort and techniques they developed to make the term “Ranger” a universally understood word for The Very Best and why Rangers Lead The Way!" "Dom Caraccilo does a commendable job in blending an historical account of the formation, training, and development of the Rangers into an integral part of the US Army that has a much greater impact than its size would indicate. In keeping with the Abrams Charter, Ranger qualified commissioned and noncommissioned officers are assigned to key positions throughout the Army setting the example, leading the way, and strengthening each unit to which assigned. This book explains how and why." "An extremely well-written “must read” for those who want to truly understand the genesis of the Special Operations capabilities our military has today." "Forging a Special Operation Force: The US Army Rangers, a book I wish I had written. Authored by COL (Ret) Dominic Caraccilo, a Ranger who has ‘walked the talk,’ this work captures the essence of how history’s premier light infantry fighting force evolved from the shards of the Vietnam era to inculcate a new warrior spirit within the United States Army. More importantly, Caraccilo conveys why the Ranger Creed and ethos has become and must continue to be the firm foundation of the Army’s continued successes on the field of battle."