-Caveat Lector-
WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Peace at any cost is a prelude to war!
VOICE OF THE GRUNT, 1999-11-17-B
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ARTICLE 4
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ANCHORS ARE GOING AWAY
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SUMMARY: Man, we need help. This is the Navy of Jones, Perry, Nimitz,
Spruance, Kincaid, and Rickover. What the hell has happened?
**********************************************
By A NAVY SWO
There are many problems in the military today, a majority of them making
some headlines thanks to your diligent efforts. Unfortunately, one major
issue that will truly effect readiness has not made the major press. The
Navy has been able to keep it well hidden from the public, only printing
articles in Proceedings and Navy Times. This issue is Junior Officer
retention in the Surface Warfare Officer (SWO) community.
SWO's are responsible for making all the "big, gray boats" get to the
fight and return. We stand watch and lead divisions. Whether an amphibious
assault ship or guided missile cruiser, SWO's get ships to the fight and
bring them back to port (with the help of the finest sailors in the world).
Even the "mighty" aircraft carrier could not get anywhere if it were not
for SWO's (their engineers are SWO's). Our job is unglamorous, yet we
continually do it, taking pride in a military tradition spanning centuries.
For fiscal year '98, the Navy was only able to retain 24% of it's junior
SWO's. It needs 38% to be viable. Article after article, admiral's call
after admiral's call, senior officers keep "trying" to find out why we're
leaving. We tell them, in explicit detail; our leadership translates it all
to money. In my humble opinion, the $50,000 SWO Continuation Pay is blood
money. First, an officer has to wait until six years into his career to
earn it. We don't earn Sea Pay until after 3 years of Sea Duty. Many of us
don't do this for the money, we do it because it's what we want to do:
serve our country on the sea. The SWOCP will only retain those who need to
leave, while those who need to stay will leave.
I'm not some bitter poor performer who's just griping because I'm failing
at my profession. I qualified Tactical Action Officer as a first tour
division officer, a watch-station often reserved for department heads with
six years more naval experience. I was a qualified Helicopter Control
Officer, Anti-submarine and Anti-Surface Warfare Evaluators and, most
importantly, Officer of the Deck (Underway). I've worked hard at my
profession, only to watch the community turn on itself. You may have heard
the line "SWO's eat their young." It's worse; we're self-destructing as a
community.
Close attention should be paid to the problem. The retention numbers have
been dropping by 1-2% each year. It is approaching a dangerous point. For
years, admirals have been blaming it on a booming economy, but are now
growing concerned. I want to try and improve life for these junior officers
who stay. Only by having national attention, with policy makers asking the
junior officers themselves (vice going through admirals), will the problems
get fixed.
I know this seems insignificant, but look at our national policy. How
quickly are Navy ships sent to fulfill the President's foreign policy? When
there are not enough junior officers, in cooperation with the Chief Petty
Officers, to lead the sailors, what will happen?
P.S. In reference to Hazardous Duty, I heard ADM "Snuffy" Smith speak once.
He was an "Old School" sailor, who believed in the John Paul Jones attitude
of wanting a fast ship for going into harm's way.
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ARTICLE 5
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AIR FORCE AIN'T WHAT IT USED TO BE
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SUMMARY: An almost 20 year man of the AF unloads. Makes you wonder, was the
U.S. Army Air Corps, U.S. Army Air Forces and U.S. Air Force before 1992
real or did I just imagine it all. The heritage, courage and dedication of
those WWII Army Air Forces, the MIG Alley pilots of Korea and the 300 plus
Vietnam missions of Chuck Yeager seem all but gone from today's 1990's AF.
*************************************************
By A Blue Suit Warrior
As a 16 year and counting veteran of the USAF I am now so fed up with the
state of the AF that I will add my two cents worth of experiences which you
may or may not find useful in your endeavors.
I came to know of you through a retired AF friend living in San Antonio,
TX. The article finally causing me to write you was the one entitled
"Living in luxury off U.S. dollars." Here at Holloman AFB, NM they are
building a new Distinguished Visitor lounge in the new Base Operations
building. There was a DV lounge in the old location and a replacement was
needed. I'm not personally against someone of senior rank being afforded a
nice place to plop their behind down and sip a soda while they wait to
leave. I am against the over $200,000 being spent on this nice place to
sit. There's a room, and some hallway and outside work being done to ensure
the 3 or 4 possible users of the room per year have a memorable experience
of having passed through the air patch here. Furniture and artwork will
only add to the final cost. I'm not aware of anyone sucking the funds out
of some needed parts or maintenance accounts anywhere. It's probably all
above board and has all the appropriate approval. This isn't as bad as the
examples you listed in your article but I have to say that this is my tax
money and it's a damn lot of money for a nice place to sit. With all due
respect to your rank, my butt is in need of no more or less comfort than a
Col. or Gen. Give them a lazy boy recliner and a private room with a phone
and fix up base housing or the dorms with the rest of the money.
I know all my complaining will do no good. I just get tired of seeing it
day in and day out. I can't wait to finally retire and move on with my
life. I have stories of what I would think would be criminal negligence
surrounding treatment my wife received in the base hospital. I confronted
the Medical Group commander and got nothing. I now take her downtown and
won't let any of those military medical wackos near her. I won't bore you
with it.
When I was 17 and first enlisting I thought I was part of something big
and good. We were going to protect Democracy from the "Red Menace" and all
that patriotic rot. I went from that to just doing my time until I can
collect my annuity and get on with the business of having a real life. I
guess that doesn't say much for my ability to overcome evil with good. I'm
just tired of the crap.
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ARTICLE 6
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'YOU ASKED THIS MAN TO DIE'
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SUMMARY: A "Letter to the Editor" from the 12 November issue of The Wall
Street Journal.
**********************************************
Yesterday, as we celebrated the last Veterans Day in this century, I
recalled the British version I attended several years ago in Westminster
Abbey, the only Christian church that contains a national war memorial. I
was seated in the nave close to the tomb of the British Unknown Warrior
buried in the floor. It is a black marble stone framed by red poppies, and
is the only grave no one ever walks over.
I'll never forget that ceremony. Both nave and choir were full of people,
many of them service men and women. After the psalm and anthem, the
readings and prayers, the celebrants moved in procession down the nave,
with three senior officers bringing up the rear, and halted around the
Unknown Warrior's grave. After the hymn ended and the dean said a brief
prayer, the choir sang the haunting Russian "Kontakion for the Departed."
As the last note died away, Big Ben began to strike, in the distance a gun
was fired, and the abbey was enfolded in a profound silence.
The last post and reveille followed, and then for those with war-time
memories came one of those moments that send a cold shiver down the spine
and a tear to the eye. For standing beside the abbey choir were 90 young
people of the Dresden Kreutzhcor. Both choirs sang "Blessed are the Dead"
from Brahms' "Requiem." As they sang I was reminded of the saturation
bombing of Dresden, with its meaningless destruction and the killing of
100,000 civilians. The young choir members must have been the grandchildren
of those who suffered in Dresden, but they probably did not understand the
significance of that moment: After the war, the German church leaders
stated in the Stuttgart Declaration, "With great pain do we say that
through us great suffering has been brought upon many peoples and many
lands. We ask for forgiveness."
With the service over, as I filed out of the abbey and walked out past the
grave of the Unknown Warrior, I could not help but think of Auden's lines:
To save your world, you asked this man to die:
Would this man, could he see you now, ask why?"
Harry R. Gasker
Alpine, Texas
====================================================
MEDAL OF HONOR ARTICLE 7
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MORRIS, CHARLES B.
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Rank and organization: SSgt., USA, Co. A, 2/503rd Inf., 173rd ABN Brig.
Place and date: RVN, 29 June 1966.
Entered service at: Roanoke, Va.
Born: 29 December 1931, Carroll County, Va.
C.O. No.: 51, 14 December 1967.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life
above and beyond the call of duty. Seeing indications of the enemy's
presence in the area, S/Sgt. Morris deployed his squad and continued
forward alone to make a reconnaissance. He unknowingly crawled within 20
meters of an enemy machinegun, whereupon the gunner fired, wounding him in
the chest. S/Sgt. Morris instantly returned the fire and killed the gunner.
Continuing to crawl within a few feet of the gun, he hurled a grenade and
killed the remainder of the enemy crew. Although in pain and bleeding
profusely, S/Sgt. Morris continued his reconnaissance. Returning to the
platoon area, he reported the results of his reconnaissance to the platoon
leader. As he spoke, the platoon came under heavy fire. Refusing medical
attention for himself, he deployed his men in better firing positions
confronting the entrenched enemy to his front. Then for 8 hours the platoon
engaged the numerically superior enemy force. Withdrawal was impossible
without abandoning many wounded and dead. Finding the platoon medic dead,
S/Sgt. Morris administered first aid to himself and was returning to treat
the wounded members of his squad with the medic's first aid kit when he was
again wounded. Knocked down and stunned, he regained consciousness and
continued to treat the wounded, reposition his men, and inspire and
encourage their efforts. Wounded again when an enemy grenade shattered his
left hand, nonetheless he personally took up the fight and armed and threw
several grenades which killed a number of enemy soldiers. Seeing that an
enemy machinegun had maneuvered behind his platoon and was delivering the
fire upon his men, S/Sgt. Morris and another man crawled toward the gun to
knock it out. His comrade was killed and S/Sgt. Morris sustained another
wound, but, firing his rifle with 1 hand, he silenced the enemy machinegun.
Returning to the platoon, he courageously exposed himself to the
devastating enemy fire to drag the wounded to a protected area, and with
utter disregard for his personal safety and the pain he suffered, he
continued to lead and direct the efforts of his men until relief arrived.
Upon termination of the battle, important documents were found among the
enemy dead revealing a planned ambush of a Republic of Vietnam battalion.
Use of this information prevented the ambush and saved many lives. S/Sgt.
Morris' gallantry was instrumental in the successful defeat of the enemy,
saved many lives, and was in the highest traditions of the U.S. Army.
====================================================
ARTICLE 8
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THE USMC THROUGH THE AGES IN QUOTES
(Some are not actually Marine quotes.)
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SUMMARY: I regret that I didn't have this to run last week. This was sent
in as a form of birthday cheer. Would greatly appreciate an Army, Navy and
Air Force collection as well.
********************************************
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand
ready to do violence on their behalf."-GEORGE ORWELL (Not attributed to the
U.S. Marines)
"The deadliest weapon in the world is a MARINE and his rifle!"-
GEN. PERSHING, US.ARMY
"Hard pressed on my right. My center is yielding. Impossible to maneuver.
Situation excellent. I am attacking!"-FERDINAND FOCH
"We're surrounded. That simplifies the problem!"-CHESTY PULLER, USMC
"The more MARINES I have around the better I like it!"-
GEN. MARK CLARK, US.ARMY
"Sometimes it is entirely appropriate to kill a fly with a
sledge-hammer!"-MAJ. HOLDREDGE
"A ship without MARINES is like a garment without buttons."-
ADM. DAVID PORTER, USN
"The MARINES have landed and have the situation well in hand!"-RICHARD
HARDING DAVIS
"Casualties many; Percentage of dead not known; Combat efficiency: we are
winning!"-COL. DAVID M. SHOUP, USMC
"I can never again see a UNITED STATES MARINE without experiencing a
feeling of reverence."-GEN. JOHNSON, US.ARMY
"The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a MARINE CORPS for the next
500 years."-JAMES FORRESTAL, SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
"Come on, you sons of bitches! Do you want to live forever?"-
GySgt. DANIEL DALY, USMC
"We're not retreating, Hell! We're just attacking in different
direction!"-GEN. OLIVER SMITH, USMC
"I have just returned from visiting the MARINES at the front, and there is
not a finer fighting organization in the world!"
GEN. DOUGLAS MACARTHUR, US.ARMY
"Teufelhunde!(Devil Dogs)"-GERMAN SOLDIERS, WW1 at BELLEAU WOOD
"So they've got us surrounded, good! Now we can fire in any direction,
those bastards won't get away this time!"-CHESTY PULLER, USMC
"We have two companies of MARINES running all over this island and
thousands of ARMY troops doing nothing!"-
GEN. JOHN VESSEY, CHAIRMAN OF JOINT CHIEFS
"Retreat hell! We just got here!"-CAPT. LLOYD WILLIAMS, USMC
"The safest place in Korea was right behind a platoon of MARINES. LORD, how
they could fight!"-MAJ. GEN. FRANK LOWE, US.ARMY
"Panic sweeps my men when they are facing the AMERICAN MARINES."
* CAPTURED NORTH KOREAN MAJOR
"Our Country won't go on forever, if we stay soft as we are now. There
won't be any AMERICA-because some foreign soldiery will invade us and take
our women and breed a hardier race!"-
LT. GEN. LEWIS "CHESTY" PULLER, USMC
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference.
The Marines don't have that problem." PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN 1985
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EDITOR'S NOTE:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
First, see references above. Second, brevity where possible.
************************************************
As a rule of thumb, please try to keep article for possible publication to
700 words or less. We do make exceptions and will not turn away an 800 to
900 word piece, but please make every editing effort not to exceed these
guidelines.
If you believe you have a story that is longer than 700 words we will
consider running it in parts. Keep the piece focused on the story you want
to express, not impress upon the reader.
Submit in OPEN format only, not as a file attachment. Thanks to everyone for
keeping the communication lines open and the ideas
flowing.
Semper Fi,
Bob McMahon
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.freeyellow.com:8080/members7/rlmcmahon
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HACK'S DEFENDING AMERICA COLUMN:
Many readers have asked for guidance/help/ideas for getting Hack's column
in their local newspapers. See http://www.hackworth.com --- NEWSPAPERS for
a few suggestions.
Much appreciate your effort. What we're into is getting the word to as many
citizens as possible about what is causing our military machine to sputter
like an M-4 Sherman tank.
Thanks,
Bob McMahon
=============================================
ARCHIVED DEFENDING AMERICA COLUMNS:
You can now find copies of Hack's previous columns at:
http://www.hackworth.com
These are found in the Defending America Section, under Archived Copies.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GLOSSARY OF MILITARY ACRONYMS:
We've had numerous requests from troops in different branches of the
military to establish this link so that we will all know how "all you
others" talk that talk. Please see below:
http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/acronym_index.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CONGRESSIONAL E-MAIL ADDRESSES
Congressional e-mail addresses can be found by going to (www.hackworth.com)
and accessing Congressional e-mails at the bottom of the first page.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*****CHRISTMAS BOOK SPECIAL:*****
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hack's books About Face*, Hazardous Duty*, The Price of Honor* and The
Vietnam Primer would make a great addition to any library. We are offering
this special SFTT price.
All four books, to include postage and handling for only $75.00. If you
were to pick these books up separately, you would pay $96.00. This special
is a saving of $20.00. So take advantage of this special while it lasts.
Just send the following information with your check (we are not set up to
take credit cards) made payable to: Twin Eagles Ink, via snail mail to:
Twin Eagles Ink
Attn: Book Orders
P.O. Box 5210
Greenwich, CT 06831.
SFTT SPECIAL
Your name: _____________________________
Address: ___________________________________________
Phone Number: _________________________________
E-Mail: _________________________________
The profit that these sales generate help fund this outfit. Hack lays out
more than four grand a month for payroll, phones, office costs etc. That's
what I call putting your money where your mouth is.
====================================================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
VOICE OF THE GRUNT: Administration Volunteers:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
David H. Hackworth, Taker of Names and Spiritual Leader
Robert L. McMahon, Publishing Editor, Chief bottle-washer, and former Jarhead
Kate Aspy, Contributing Editor and Oracle
Barry "Woody" Groton, Assistant Editor and Medicine Man
Ed "Edgar" Schneider, Copy Editor, Man of Letters and gentleman :
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Larry Tahler, WebMaster Guru and Crack-shot
Judy Bowyer Martin, Administration and Brains of the Outfit,
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Kyle Elliott, Book List Editor and Most Over-worked
*********, MOH Editor and NCOIC
===================================================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
VOICE OF THE GRUNT:
VOLUNTEER EDITORS/SPECIALISTS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ALL Letters and Articles for considered publication are to be submitted to
one of these brave, resolute and caring volunteers.
****************************************
****************************************
U.S. Army:
"Emory Upton", Armor, Generalist and Senior Editor
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Col. Bruce B.G. Clarke, USA (Ret), Strategic Issues, Armor, Arms Control
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Ed, Aviation, Army Aviation, Choppers
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Abe Sternberg, Army Nat'l. Guard, Infantry, and History
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F.R. Lewis, SF, Special Warfare issues
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**********************************************
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U.S. Navy:
Mark Crissman, Naval Aviation, Generalist and Senior Editor
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Steve Rowe, Naval Aviation, Anti-sub/surface warfare.
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Vince, Naval Aviation, Weapons, and Generalist
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Clinton C. Owen, Submarines and Nuclear Power
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**********************************************
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U.S. Air Force:
Paul Connors, Seniro Editor, AF Historian, 11B2P experience, Procurement
and AirCrew issues
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Sean Fermat, Fighters, WSO, Weapons, C&C, Generalist
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Frank Ballinger, USAF Generalist for now.
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**********************************************
*********************************************
U.S. Marines:
Maj. Gordon Todd, USMCR, Communications & Tech., Small Arms Training,
Senior Editor, Senior Editor
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Tom Uryga, Naval/Marine Aviation, some USAF Aviation, CAS
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Sgt. Jason S. Grabill, USMC, Communications, Enlisted Issues, Generalist
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Jason B. Tanner, USMC, Infantry, Operations and Generalist
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============================================
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