robertmcnamara

Robert McNamara, b. 1916, d. 2009 from San Francisco.
McNamara graduated from the University of California in 1937. In 1939 he received an MBA degree from Harvard, and in 1940 he returned to Harvard to become an instructor and later Assistant Professor of Business Administration. In 1943 he was commissioned a captain in the air force and served in the UK, India, China, and the Pacific. He was awarded the Legion of Merit and promoted to lieutenant colonel before going on inactive duty in April 1946.

Upon his discharge from the air force, McNamara joined the Ford Motor Company. He was elected as a director of the company in 1957, and president of the company in 1960. At the request of President-elect John F. Kennedy, McNamara agreed to serve as Secretary of Defense of the United States, a position he held from 1961 until 1968. He became president of the World Bank Group of Institutions in April of 1968, retiring in 1981.

Since his retirement, McNamara has served on a number of boards of directors for both corporations and non-profit associations. He writes and speaks on many topics including population and development, world hunger, the environment, East-West relations, nuclear arms, and his vision of our nation in the 21st century.

McNamara has the grace of humility of being in doubt concerning f.ex. the Vietnam-war. His job as president of the World Bank Group put certain ideas in perspective for him.

"We of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations who participated in the decisions on Vietnam acted according to what we thought were the principles and traditions of this nation. We made our decisions in light of those values. Yet we were wrong, terribly wrong. We owe it to future generations to explain why."

quoted from his preface of his book " In Retrospect" serve a perspective of the very efficient, smart, well-educated but also reflected personality. Frankly he has been my favourite since the 60ties.