My Take
Eric Shinseki is one of those figures who quietly made history in ways that only become clear in hindsight. Growing up in Līhuʻe, Hawaii, the son of Japanese American families who lived through the internment era, he went on to become a four-star general and the first Asian American to serve as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army — and he earned his Purple Heart and Bronze Star in Vietnam, losing part of his foot to a land mine without stepping back from his career. What I respect most is the 2003 moment when he told Congress that occupying Iraq would require "several hundred thousand" troops, directly contradicting Rumsfeld's line — and was quietly pushed out for it. History proved him right. Then Obama tapped him to run Veterans Affairs, a thankless bureaucratic slog he took on with genuine intention. A man of uncommon integrity who paid real prices for telling the truth.
Overview
Eric Ken Shinseki (; Japanese: 新関 健, romanized: Shinseki Ken, born 28 November 1942) is a retired United States Army general who served as the seventh United States secretary of veterans affairs from 2009 to 2014 and as the 34th chief of staff of the Army from 1999 to 2003.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Eric Ken Shinseki
- Name (Japanese)
- エリック・シンセキ
- Reading
- えりっく・しんせき
- Born
- November 28, 1942 (age 83)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Horse
- Origin
- Līhuʻe, Hawaii, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- politician / military commander
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Kauai High School
- University
- Duke University
Awards & achievements
- Bronze Star Medal
- Legionnaire of Legion of Merit
- Purple Heart
- Air Medal
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.