Elliot Ackerman
https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/10/elliot-ackerman-interview-waiting-for-eden
http://elliotackerman.com/
https://www.tpt.org/firing-line-with-margaret-hoover/video/elliot-ackerman-chdcbr/
https://www.cfr.org/historical-roster-directors-and-officers
Mr. Ackerman is primarily known to the public as a celebrated Jewish author. He also is a decorated veteran, serving 8 years as a Marines Special Ops officer. He was a White House Fellow during the Obama Adminstration. He is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations (a think tank).
What I find most interesting is his odd overlay of various demographics. He was born to privilege, son of Peter Ackerman, an infamous Wall Street tycoon who attempted to found a viable third party in the U.S., but also was charged with major tax evasion as well as illegally attempting to get the California legislature to pass an act that would be a tax shelter for him personally. Both Peter and Elliot graduated Tufts University in their times, and are highly educated.
Elliot Ackerman worked hard during the U.S. evacuation of Afghanistan to help save loyal Afghans who were being slaughtered as the Taliban took over. I saw him just now on Firing Line and noticed that he never smiled, almost never, in the interview, which was notably odd in presence of Margaret Hoover who beamed, as usual. From his establishment connections and acclaim, it seemed likely he was a Jewish author, which also interested me since I took a course in Jewish American authors as part of my undergrad studies. On top of everything else, his square chin and intense stare make him quite a handsome face, even if a bit TOO intense in a manner we sometimes see in obssessive types or zealots.
As far as him as a total human being, I don't feel qualified to approve or condemn. His service in Iraq and Afghanistan was distinguished, if the wars dubious. His acclaim as a gifted author is well deserved, and it is worth noting his mother was an author as well, so some is probably genetic as well as being raised in such a wealthy home and with such distinguished an highly educated parents, as well as their circles. From seeing his responses and intensity in the interview with Hoover, he will be added to my "must reads" list, as he writes from the intersection of very disparate worlds.
As for personal appeal, I don't think we would be sympatico were we ever to have been neighbors, coworkers, or similar. But I admire his accomplishments, even if jumpstarted by being advantaged by birth. He put his life on the line in the wars, which is commendable no matter what the politics or wealth, and he has worked hard to effect a change in U.S. immigration policy for the Afghans who made it here. His contributions to fiction also make him a paragon.
Edit: I just looked at the post, and that pic from Vanity Fair looks like had hair transplants up front there, as the temples clearly indicate a receding hairline, plus there's a noticeable color shift. Or am I imagining it? If he did, I don't begrudge it, as I think a lot of men justifiably resent being discounted as aged when they just have a receded hairline.
