Would you care to cite any examples of alpha males who were allowed to keep shooting their mouths off past the point when their immediate usefulness ended?

No, because that wasn't my point. We were talking about (at least *I* was) so-called alpha males who were essentially wusses in person, but fierce at a distance (in email and the like). My point was that anyone who does not assert their dominance in person is not an alpha male. Period. It doesn't mean that they don't exercise restraint and tact in the business world, but it DOES mean that a guy like Rumsfeld sounds the same in a memo to his staff as he does when he's being interviewed about the war. He is a classic alpha male. Others include Cheney (another classic), Steve Ballmer, George Lucas (ask any actor who has worked with him, and compare to his interviews), Arnold Schwartzenegger, Dr. Dre, and the list goes on. These people assert dominance EVERY time they get the opportunity and NEVER wuss out for fear of public reprisal.

Do you concede the point??