For Further Study (OODA, Irregular Warfare, and Col. John Boyd)

from J. Mark Hord

Several folks have asked for further information related to the article, "OODA Applied to Individual Combat or Martial Arts Training." To better respond with helpful answers, I thought it would be good to provide some answers in a central location. Sort of an OODA article FAQ. I hope you will find it helpful and feel free to email me with other recommendations.

Irregular Warfare

Some resources for more information on irregular/unconventional/guerrilla/4th Generation warfare.

The Irregulars Discussion Group: This is a group for discussion of this rather broadly-defined topic. We are always happy to have new members but be ready to get political at times and try to have a thick skin. We try to stay civil with one another but at times the discussion gets rather lively when the political angle raises it's ugly head.
The Small Wars Journal: An excellant resource for "small wars" information with a lot of activity military members with real-world experience.
War in the Shadows, by Robert Asprey (2 volumes): The definitive work, I think, on the history of irregular warfare. It is an excellent overview of the topic in two volumes and at an affordable price. For more reading, refer to Stratiotes' Amazon Profile and look at the listmania list there for 4th generation warfare.
4th Generation Warfare at DNI: Extensive information on Fourth Generation Warfare (4GW) theory.

OODA and Col. John Boyd

Col. Boyd's thinking impacted many disciplines and many people. Many of the people he inspired have gone on to produce major contributions to their particular fields of study.

Defense and National Interest: A resource packed full of information related to military thinking inspired by Col. John Boyd.
War, Chaos, and Business: Topics of study specifically concerned about the impact Col. Boyd's thinking had on business.

Systema, Russian Martial Art

There are many Systema websites if you just do a google search. But some of my favorites are listed here.

Systema Review: This is the one I maintain so it is rather close to my heart of course.
Russian Martial Art. The System.: The primary resource for all things Systema. This is the homepage of the primary teacher of Systema in North America, Vladimir Vasiliev. Included is information on finding a training partners group in your area.