Colonel W. Patrick Lang was a retired senior officer of U.S. Military Intelligence and U.S. Army Special Forces (The Green Berets). He served in the Department of Defense both as a serving officer and then as a member of the Defense Senior Executive Service for many years.
Patrick was a highly decorated veteran of several of America’s overseas conflicts including the war in Vietnam. He was trained and educated as a specialist in the Middle East by the U.S. Army and served in that region for many years.
He was the first Professor of the Arabic Language at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. In the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) he was the “Defense Intelligence Officer for the Middle East, South Asia and Terrorism,” and later the first Director of the Defense Humint Service.” For his service in DIA, he was awarded the “Presidential Rank of Distinguished Executive.” This is the equivalent of a British knighthood. He was an analyst consultant for many television and radio broadcasts.
His interests included history (all kinds), theology, literature, cowboy boots, the War Between the States and Norwich Terriers.
Colonel W. Patrick Lang passed away after several months of illness on April 4, 2023. He will be greatly missed. The world has lost a true hero and the nation has lost a great patriot.
During his illness he asked several of the regular writers on the blog to keep up the efforts as he battled his illness. We intend to continue this effort in his memory and indomitable spirit.
