The Tennessee Army National Guard, which has deployed every major unit in the state since Sept. 11, 2001, also has been affected.I'm hoping thigs turn for the better but as the economy grows the recruiters have a more difficult time selling their occupation as a unique career. But then again one could always join up here.
5.23.2005
The Army's recruting problems don' t stop with not having enough troops. A one day moratorium was issed by the Army Recruiting Commander in response to some reported recruiting abuses. The following story is an inside look at the Army's recruiting woes in my hometown. This statement must have some impact in recruting.
After reading this column by Fouad Ajami I'm tempted to say that our perspective here in the states is so unabashadly skewed towards failure that this is a much needed breath of fresh air.
Read the whole thing.
The doors have been thrown wide open, and the truth of that world laid bare. Grant Mr. Bush his due: The revolutionary message he brought forth was the simple belief that there was no Arab and Muslim "exceptionalism" to the appeal of liberty. For a people mired in historical pessimism, the message of this outsider was a powerful antidote to the culture of tyranny.
Read the whole thing.
5.20.2005
Tales of a nasty reservist
Fall Semester 1998
I was nineteen and entering a new chapter in my life. College, with all of its wild idealism was actually having an affect on me. I hated it. So far I knew very few people. My friends had gone off to college elsewhere or were still in high school and the only person I knew well enough to call an acquaintance was my dorm mate Scott. We lived in a dorm room comparative in size to a horse stall though ours was kind enough to have laminate flooring instead of dirt. It reminded me of a hospital wing with its abundant fluorescent lighting and freshly cleaned floors reeking of too much bleach.
Scott was a second year student who came from a small family and an even smaller town. He was tall with a lanky frame and had a buzzed hair cut very reminiscent of a Rockwell painting. Scott was not your typical student though. On top of his schoolwork and undergrad commitments he was also a Marine, and a fresh from boot camp. The following summer he enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve and returned to school after he graduated from boot camp. He was very new to the Corps but he was also very dedicated. I thought very little of this since I had zero interest in the military. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t dislike the military. This is the kid that grew up playing with G.I. Joe and watching Desert Storm play out on television like it was some kind of kick ass video game. I happened to think very highly of the military and especially of the Marines. So much so that I knew it wasn’t for me. For one thing I was incredibly out of shape. After finishing football in high school I didn’t have to worry about being in peak physical condition so I ate till my heart’s content. Voila! I’m fat. I was even more certain that the Marines were so tough and so crazy in the head that their was no way I could ever survive training and, God help me, fight in battle. I assured myself that this was not the path I wanted to go down.
I was nineteen and entering a new chapter in my life. College, with all of its wild idealism was actually having an affect on me. I hated it. So far I knew very few people. My friends had gone off to college elsewhere or were still in high school and the only person I knew well enough to call an acquaintance was my dorm mate Scott. We lived in a dorm room comparative in size to a horse stall though ours was kind enough to have laminate flooring instead of dirt. It reminded me of a hospital wing with its abundant fluorescent lighting and freshly cleaned floors reeking of too much bleach.
Scott was a second year student who came from a small family and an even smaller town. He was tall with a lanky frame and had a buzzed hair cut very reminiscent of a Rockwell painting. Scott was not your typical student though. On top of his schoolwork and undergrad commitments he was also a Marine, and a fresh from boot camp. The following summer he enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve and returned to school after he graduated from boot camp. He was very new to the Corps but he was also very dedicated. I thought very little of this since I had zero interest in the military. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t dislike the military. This is the kid that grew up playing with G.I. Joe and watching Desert Storm play out on television like it was some kind of kick ass video game. I happened to think very highly of the military and especially of the Marines. So much so that I knew it wasn’t for me. For one thing I was incredibly out of shape. After finishing football in high school I didn’t have to worry about being in peak physical condition so I ate till my heart’s content. Voila! I’m fat. I was even more certain that the Marines were so tough and so crazy in the head that their was no way I could ever survive training and, God help me, fight in battle. I assured myself that this was not the path I wanted to go down.
5.19.2005
Revenge of the Frist
MoveOn has posted their latest ad. It portrays Senator Frist as an up and coming Emperor hell- bent on putting 'right wing judges' in the judiciary. Hmmmm...
Not a very good likeness of him really. He needs more...more...well this might work.
Update: Jim Geraghty has a good question, poor special effects put aside, is this what MoveOn embers wants to spend their money on?
See the insanity (and poor sepcial effects) by clicking here.
Not a very good likeness of him really. He needs more...more...well this might work.
Update: Jim Geraghty has a good question, poor special effects put aside, is this what MoveOn embers wants to spend their money on?
It has been a good while since I've blogged. I'm starting now.
USA Today's DeWayne Wickham is his editorial column yesterday entitled "A 15 month enlisment? Better check the fine print" is a wonderful example of the ignorance of journalist's knowledge about the military. He states,
This is untrue. Upon completion of an individual's first active or reserve duty enlistment contract (any where from 15 months-6 years) enlistee is then transferred to the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) to complete the eight years. They are only required to update their home address and contact information with their corresponding command. It requires no active duty service. The military does have the authority to place the enlistee back onto active duty from the IRR if deemed necessary. The 'stop loss' directive does not bring someone back into the active duty ranks like the IRR, but rather keeps them from leaving the active or reserve component. It keeps personnel in valuable specialties such as linguistics and intelligence from leaving before suitable replacements can be recruited and trained.
The difference might be insignificant to most but to us in the military it means a good deal. This would make Mr. Wickham's opinion piece much more compelling were he to include this distinction between 'stop loss' and the IRR.
Everyone who enters the all-volunteer military incurs a total service obligation of eight years, a portion of which is spent on active duty. For the remainder of this time, the enlistee can be called back into uniform at the government's discretion under a program called "stop-loss."
This is untrue. Upon completion of an individual's first active or reserve duty enlistment contract (any where from 15 months-6 years) enlistee is then transferred to the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) to complete the eight years. They are only required to update their home address and contact information with their corresponding command. It requires no active duty service. The military does have the authority to place the enlistee back onto active duty from the IRR if deemed necessary. The 'stop loss' directive does not bring someone back into the active duty ranks like the IRR, but rather keeps them from leaving the active or reserve component. It keeps personnel in valuable specialties such as linguistics and intelligence from leaving before suitable replacements can be recruited and trained.
The difference might be insignificant to most but to us in the military it means a good deal. This would make Mr. Wickham's opinion piece much more compelling were he to include this distinction between 'stop loss' and the IRR.
2.03.2005
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