-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a prelude to war! ***************************************************************** ********** VOICE OF THE GRUNT ********** ********** 03 November 1999 ********** ***************************************************************** TABLE OF CONTENTS ARTICLES Hack's Column Lap Dogs or Tigers 1 Mac Notes 2 From The Field: Hope For The Future 3 Why Are Marines Different 4 Another Example of Veterans Getting The Shaft 5 A "Hackworthing" Story 6 Medal of Honor: 7 Barnum, Harvey C., Capt., USMC Co. H, 2d Battalion, 9th Marines, 3d Marine Division (Rein). Ky Phu in Quang Tin Province, RVN, 18 December 1965. Commentary: Public Tragedy Renews Bonds of The Blue Angels 8 =========================================================== ARTICLE 1 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "LAP DOGS OR TIGERS?" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By David H. Hackworth, 02 November 1999 Everyone on Sen. John Warner's (R-Va.) Armed Services Committee is worked up because British Lt. Gen. Mike Jackson didn't blindly follow the orders of NATO commander U.S. Gen. Wesley Clark. Last June, Clark ordered Jackson, then the NATO commander in Kosovo, to push the Russian troops out of Kosovo's main airport. Jackson told Clark, "No, I am not going to do that. It is not worth starting World War III." Remember, Russia still has thousands of nuclear-tipped ICBMs pointed at us, and it would make many a hard-liner's day if the launch order was given. Jackson -- who's since been promoted to full general, presumably, in part, for the wisdom of this decision -- wisely concluded that the gain of winning King of the Mountain against the Ruskies wasn't worth the possible pain. Sure, discipline is essential in the military. But soldiers should not be robots and blindly follow dumb or illegal orders. Back in 1817, Napoleon said, "Insubordination may only be evidence of a strong mind." Of course, look who's talking. Insubordination came naturally to me from buck private to full colonel. I found it easy to find ways around obeying or passing on orders that would cause my guys unnecessary hassle or blood. Or orders that were just flat stupid, like Gen. Westmoreland's early Vietnam War, guaranteed-to-get-troopers-killed rule of engagement order: "Don't fire at the enemy until he fires first." Maybe I was born with rebellion in my genes. Family legend has it that in the 1770s, my Revolutionary War ancestor John Hackworth told his CO, "Captain, ya'r attackin' the wrong hill. Ain't goin' with ya'. But follow me, I'll take ya' up the right 'un." In Korea or Vietnam, if I got an order that was stupid -- like sending my soldiers into minefields to count enemy dead -- I'd "Wilco" (will comply) that order -- in this case from Col. Ira Hunt, my superambitious fruit-case boss at the time -- then tell my troops to ignore same. My loyalty was to my troops and their tender bodies, not some Perfumed Prince's career. And I know a lot of limbs and lives were saved that way. British Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson won one of the most decisive naval victories of the 19th century after "not seeing" his commander's signal to "discontinue (the) engagement" during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801. He explained later, "I have only one eye; I have a right to be blind sometimes." In 1914 at Tannenberg, German corps commander Gen. Hermann von Francois repeatedly disobeyed orders. He ended up bagging 90,000 prisoners, destroying a complete Russian army and winning a major victory. During the Korean War, my patrol captured a squad of Chinese soldiers. By the time we got back to our front lines, it was dark. It was a nine-hour hike to the battalion C.P., and since some of the POWs were wounded, it would have taken more than half of the men in my rifle platoon to get them back for interrogation. Because my CO needed my soldiers to defend the front, he ordered me to shoot them. I told him to get stuffed. If Lt. William Calley's soldiers had refused to follow his insane order -- which killed between 300 and 400 unarmed Vietnamese women and children at the village of My Lai -- one of our country's most shameful acts wouldn't have happened. And perhaps the Jane Fonda gang's term "baby killers" wouldn't have become part of the cruel legacy of the Vietnam War. During my first four years in the Army, I had total obedience hammered into me. But 20 years later, I'd learned that the best way to run an outfit was to drop the Prussian "Yes, Sir; No, Sir" nonsense. At the end, I encouraged my soldiers to challenge my orders and sound off. It worked. Many a time a youngster came up with a far smarter idea than mine, which made the operation better and saved lives. Maybe Warner and committee, besides trying to eliminate all the waste and redundancy in the services, should find out if our all-volunteer armed forces' leaders are lap dogs or attack dogs with the chutzpa to stand up and be counted. If I were in Warner's boots, that would be my priority. ================================================== ARTICLE 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ******MAC NOTES****** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By Robert L. McMahon, 02 November 1999 Thank you to everyone that wrote in regarding my comments last week on the "Airfare" issue and the Kosovo refugees. I agree that perhaps the scenario is not as bad as I first imagined, but I still think it's odd for the U.S. State Department to make a request for payment from war refugees. I would also like to reiterate my previous request that you please stop passing the Jane Fonda P.O.W. story around. It is false and a near total fabrication. Ms. Fonda did visit North Vietnam and allow herself to be used for propaganda purposes back in 1971. However, she was never spit upon by any P.O.W, was never "slipped pieces of paper" by P.O.W.'s, and her actions never caused the death of any of our captive servicemen. None of us like what she did, but please do not help create a false mythology about her actions. Hack is back in the CP now and working on getting some R&R. Thank you to all of you who wrote me during his book-tour and dropped by to see him at certain of his signing engagements. I understand that certain stores were sold out within an hour of the doors opening. I have my wife reading his book now and she is completely taken with the story. She never thought a "military" book would be her speed, but she's really enjoying it. Have to keep this short because I'm heading out to St. Louis today on business. I may be out there pretty regular the next few weeks, so please keep the traffic light. Have a good week. Don't bunch up. [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.freeyellow.com:8080/members7/rlmcmahon/ ==================================================== ARTICLE 3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ HOPE FOR THE FUTURE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SUMMARY: An optimistic piece from a new LTC. This piece was edited by our Colonel Bruce Clarke, a West Point Classmate of General Shinseki. ************************************************* By Lt. Col. Steven A. Beckman, USA My Dad (a vet of WWII, Korea and Viet Nam) has been a fan of yours for some time. Last year, while I was in Bosnia, he would mail me copies of your column. I still remember your column "Sending the 1st Cav to Bosnia is Dumb" (my paraphrase). While running the 1st Cav's Intel Center in Bosnia, I got to see the corporate, take no risks military close up. I got to see the hole our over reliance on technology has put our Army into...especially when the threat is low-tech and very human. I also got to see beltway fed PP fools. That having been said, the majority of the 100 soldiers who worked for me were simply magnificent. They did literal back flips to answer the near impossible, usually ill conceived and often contradictory intelligence tasks we received. Often the answers we provided were not what the chain of command wanted to hear. My soldiers almost got used to the generals in the chain of command telling us that our analysis was off base. In fact, they took quiet pleasure in letting time prove them right. I was humbled by the fact that they didn't need any belated praise from the upper echelons...a simple, "Hooah, that's good stuff" from me was all they cared about. It's with these soldiers (and a battalion Commander who shared with me the sabot rounds fired by those more senior) in mind that I recount the following: Tomorrow, 29 Oct, I will pin on silver LTC oak leaves. It's going to Take place in Fredricksburg, TX at the Admiral Nimitz Museum. My Dad and wife will pin on the new leaves and an old salt, retired RADM Grojean (an old WWII submariner) will officiate. I'm doing it there because it is a special place. The place is visited often by the men who fought a tough war, in nasty places against a determined enemy. These old GI's, Marines and Sailors still have a sparkle in their eyes. One can only be humbled to be amongst that kind of company. I think being humbled is a good way to start off as a no time in grade LTC. I found a picture, while digging through an old scrapbook, of then COL, now GEN Shinseki, with a soldier putting a pie in his face. Back in '88 the XO of 2d BDE 3ID gave me the vital task of designing a program to raise money to purchase brigade coins. Being Cheekier than I am now, I proposed a raffle within the BDE with the winners getting the opportunity to put a pie in the face of their BN and BDE Commanders. The BDE XO thought I had lost my mind, but COL Shinseki was game. When the day came, he dutifully stood there and let the winning PFC do the deed. He didn't lose any military decorum, in fact I've never seen an officer more respected by his troops (the grunts and tankers). I remember him telling the division commander, after what appeared to be a particularly dumb, short fused tasking came down, "Well Sir, if you want it bad, that's just how you are going to get it." He took the sabot rounds and shielded the troops from the wrath of those above him. He could also be pretty humble. I only once heard him raise his voice (behind closed doors to a deserving Company Commander). I know there is a real soldier at the helm of the Army, and hopefully, we can reverse some of the rot I've seen since 91. It's easy to fall into the corporate, ticket punch Army. I won't speak for myself, but for every PP that has screwed the soldiers, I'm also seeing real soldier loving officers pin on new brass and command battalions. I wish the ratio wasn't so close to 50-50, but they are out there...some of them even wear stars. So between the old vets and my knowledge of our Chief of Staff, I'll be pinning on silver oak leaves with a little bit of hope for the future of our Army. Please remind the guys in the ranks occasionally, that there are officers at all levels whose number one thought in the morning and at night is the training and welfare of their soldiers. Thank you for your service and the columns. Hell on Wheels, Rock of the Marne, and First Team! ============================================ ARTICLE 4 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ WHY ARE MARINES DIFFERENT? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SUMMARY: An Army officer sums up what makes Marines different. ********************************************************* By Col. Daniel F. Bolger, USA (Excerpt from DEATH GROUND: TODAY'S AMERICAN INFANTRY IN BATTLE "What makes Marine infantry special? Asking the question that way misses the most fundamental point about the United States Marine Corps. In the Marines, everyone--sergeant, mechanic, cannoneer, supply man, clerk, aviator, cook--is a rifleman first. The entire corps, all 170,000 or so on the active rolls, plus the reserves, are all infantry. All speak the language of the rifle and bayonet, of muddy boots and long, hot marches. It's never us and them, only us. That is the secret of the Corps." "If Army infantry amounts to a stern monastic order standing apart, on the edge of the wider secular soldier world, Marine infantry more resembles the central totem worshiped by the entire tribe. Marines have specialized, as have all modern military organizations. And despite the all-too-real rigors of boot camp, annual rifle qualification, and high physical standards, a Marine aircraft crew chief or radio repairman wouldn't make a good 0311 on a squad assault. But those Marine technical types know that they serve the humble grunt, the man who will look the enemy in the eye within close to belly-ripping range. Moreover, all Marines think of themselves as grunts at heart, just a bit out of practice at the moment. That connections creates a great strength throughout the Corps." "It explains why Marine commanders routinely, even casually, combine widely disparate kinds of capabilities into small units.... Marines send junior officers and NCOs out from their line rifle companies and expect results. They get them, too." "Even a single Marine has on call the firepower of the air wing, the Navy, and all of the United States. Or at least he thinks he does. A Marine acts accordingly. He is expected to take charge, to improvise, to adapt, to overcome. A Marine gets by with ancient aircraft (the ratty C-46E Frog, for example), hand-me-down weapons (such as the old M-60 tanks used in the Gulf War), and whatever else he can bum off the Army or cajole out of the Navy. Marines get the job done regardless, because they are Marines. They make a virtue out of necessity. The men, not the gear, make the difference. Now and again, the Marines want to send men, not bullets." "This leads to a self-assurance that sometimes comes across as disregard for detailed staff-college quality planning and short shrift for high-level supervision. Senior Army officers in particular sometimes find the Marines amateurish, cavalier, and overly trusting in just wading in and letting the junior leaders sort it out. In the extreme, a few soldiers have looked at the Corps as some weird, inferior, ersatz ground war establishment, a bad knockoff of the real thing. 'A small, bitched-up army talking Navy lingo,' opined Army Brigadier General Frank Armstrong in one of the most brutal interservice assessments. That was going too far. But deep down, many Army professionals tended to wonder about the Marines. Grab a defended beach? Definitely. Seize a hill? Sure, if you don't mind paying a little. But take charge of a really big land operation? Not if we can help it." "Anyone who has watched an amphibious landing unfold would be careful with that kind of thinking. The Marines actually have a lot in common with their elite Army infantry brothers, if not with all the various Army headquarters and service echelons. True, Marine orders do tend to be, well...brief. But so do those of the airborne, the air assault, the light-fighters, and the Rangers, for the same good reason: Hard, realistic training teaches soldiers how to fight by doing, over and over, so they need not keep writing about it, regurgitating basics every time. More enlightened soldiers consider that goodness. A three-inch thick order, a big CP, and lots of meetings do not victory make. The Marines consciously reject all that. And why not? Despite the occasional Tarawa or Beirut, it works." "A Corps infused with a rifleman ethos has few barriers to intra-service cooperation. The Army talks a great deal about combined arms and does it down to about battalion level, often with great wailing and gnashing of teeth. Marines do it all the way down to the individual Marine. Soldiers have defined military occupational specialties and guard their prerogatives like union shop stewards. Finance clerks don't do machine guns. Mechanics skip foot marches to fix trucks. Intell analysts work in air-conditioned trailers; they don't patrol. Marines, though, are just Marines. They all consider themselves trigger pullers. They even like it, as might be expected of an elite body." ==================================================== ARTICLE 5 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF VETERANS GETTING THE SHAFT ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SUMMARY: Someone over at the VA better start reading up on the generation that saved the world from Fascism. Apparently they have not heard who the greatest generation was. ******************************************************* By T. Matison Nearly a year has past now since I stood in a covered enclave, with the rain and wind blowing about me, as the final words were spoken at my Dads funeral. It was a gut wrenching experience as the Naval Honor Guard fired their salute and the distant sounds of Taps was heard, played at another ceremony nearby (Mom didn't want it played at Dads), but the timing couldn't have been better. Placed next to the 'cigar box' which contained his ashes was a photo of Dad in his uniform, in black and white, with his hat cocked back on his head which was how they wore them in the 40s and 50s. No name tag, no medals, just a cocky and proud CEM who didn't wear his ego on his chest. Dad was 81 when he died. A cancer took him, a cancer that I believe came as a result of his participation in the nuclear tests after W.W.II, but of course, the government denies this. Dad had prostate cancer, a cancer that the VA states is not figured into the covered illnesses. He also however had skin cancer removed from his groin, and later cancer throughout his back; hot spots in his neck, shoulders and spine. Though in pain, he complained little. His greatest pain was not the illness, but from what he felt was the betrayal of the service he gave so much for. Dad was on the USS Salt Lake City, CA 25 throughout the war. In the end, the ship was selected for the nuclear tests at Bikini in 1946 (Operation Crossroads). Dad was there (Onsite Participant). After the detonation tests, he and a crew went back aboard ship and stayed, taking readings and attempting to "scrub down" the ship. His mission was to start the generators for power. He was first to arrive and the last to leave. He sometimes wore film badges to determine radiation levels. After "Able and Baker" detonations, it was determined that it was "too hot" to stay on board so they left. The ship was later towed to California and was sunk during target practice. He often talked about his 20 years in the Navy, including being on board the ship after the nuclear tests. It wasn't till many years later that he requested a copy of his service records after being treated for skin cancer. What he found, to his astonishment, was that his participation in the tests were no where to be found. In place during this time period was a notation signed by the Executive Officer that he attended a "fire fighting school" in Hawaii. He was then faced with, 'If it wasn't in the record, it didn't happen.' This started a crusade to correct the omission, subsequently learning about and joining the Atomic Veterans Association. Through this organization he met other veterans that were exposed to radiation and were denied assistance. The DoD line being it could not be proven their health problems were the result of their radiation exposure. Through his association with the NAAV (National Association of Atomic Veterans) he did finally receive recognition that he had been there. Research done by the Nuclear section of the Naval Department and the Defense Nuclear Agency confirmed this. They had skimpy records at best regarding total REMs exposed to the sailors, but it was something. He filed a claim concerning skin cancer and waited while the wheels of government turned. As the years went by his health deteriorated. Severe arthritis in his neck, shoulders, knees and hands (which cropped up in 1957 when he retired) were his daily companions. His ability to receive the medical care which was promised to him back in 1937 was reduced, forcing him to pay more and more to receive civilian care. He was then treated for prostate cancer. Claims were submitted to the VA and other government organizations but always returned with delays, 'that your claim is currently being researched.' You see, if you wait long enough it won't matter, as they will all be dead. That is what happened to my Dad. My brothers and I are grateful to the Navy that we were able to receive the benefits when we were young. But the benefits that were promised to my Dad evaporated and he became a non-priority in his later years. He was denied the proper care he was entitled to and victimized by the denial/omission of his official involvement in the Bikini tests. According to his official Navy records, he was never involved in any of these tests. Those who wrote the entries of the service records are no doubt dead, following the guidance of their superiors, under the guise of national security I assume. I don't blame them for the testing that was done. Their knowledge of radiation was limited at the time and they had no way of knowing the long term effects of exposure. But to ignore the health complaints of veterans who willingly did their duty and to hide behind dated research or biased medical opinions is wrong. It's financial, as I assume it will open up Pandora's Box and all sorts of claims would be made if the standards were relaxed. I find it interesting that the cancers allowed by the VA is in inverse proportion to the amount of specific cancers found by the NAAV in their limited Morbidity Study. Veterans are dying at a record rate now and very soon now it really won't matter, because if you wait long enough... ===================================================== ~~> more articles in Section B~~> **COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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