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How the 75th Ranger Regiment Taught Me to Dance

How the 75th Ranger Regiment Taught Me to Dance
U.S. Army Rangers, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, participate in a Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFX) near Fort Stewart, Ga., on Jan. 10, 2012. The U.S. Army/Flickr/CC by 2.0 [https://bit.ly/1mhaR6e]
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Battlefields Staff
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I was never in the Ranger Regiment, but I’m fortunate to know a lot of Rangers. I even helped write a book about them, once upon a time. But this is a different story, a story about how a unit I was never in, taught me to dance.

I was in the Army for more than 27 years. And as a military intelligence officer with seven combat deployments and service in multiple special operations forces (SOF) units, I saw a lot and done a lot, and been exposed to the best and the absolute worst that humanity has to offer. I’m very grateful for that.

Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Charles Faint served 27 years as an officer in the U.S. Army. During his time in uniform he served seven combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq while assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, and the Joint Special Operations Command. He holds an MA in International Affairs from Yale University and in retirement serves as the Chair for the Study of Special Operations in the Modern War Institute at West Point. This article represents his personal reflections on the war in Afghanistan and is not an official position of the United States Military Academy or the United States Army.
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