-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! ARTICLE 10 The Guard: We are Home Town America Ed.: Thoughts on the citizen soldier now and then by trustee and seasoned Guardsman Keith McWilliams. By Keith E. McWilliams, BG, AUS, Ret. The National Guard has received quite a bit of attention lately in this newsletter. There is one aspect, which has not been focused upon. It came to my attention, when I finished reading the very fine book "A Democracy At War" by William L. O’Neill. O’Neill’s book covers the War as waged on the battlefield, but also gives the reader a fine insight into the War on the home front. The issues with the Guard have primarily been about the inability of the Guard to meet the standards of the Regular Army. Little is ever said about the duties of Home Town America, which makes this Nation great. The Guardsman comes from Home Town America. Admittedly the Guard soldier cannot be the "professional" that the Regular may be. Similarly the Regular is not the center of any Home Town America. There is a tendency on the part of all people to judge the Soldier by the standards of the professional and not by the standards of the Militiaman. The history of this Nation personifies the Citizen Soldier from the French and Indian War to the present day. To know and understand the National Guard and the mission of the Guard is to know Home Town America. With the exception of the full time cadre, the Guardsman is a civilian first and a Soldier second. His family, home, job and community are an essential part of his daily life. The Guardsman is not meant to be a Professional soldier. He is to be able to perform the mission when called upon by the Federal or State authority. Examine the mission of the National Guard: "To provide a reserve component of the Army of the United States, capable of expansion to war strength, able to furnish units for any where in the world and equipped: a. To defend critical areas of the United States against land, sea-borne and air-borne invasion. b. To assist in the governing, mobilization and concentration of the remainder of the reserve forces. c. To participate by units in all types of operations, including the offensive, either in the United States or overseas." In addition the Guard has the Mission of the several States: "To provide sufficient organizations in each state so trained and equipped as to enable them to function efficiently at existing strength in protection of life and property and preservation of the peace, order and public safety, under competent orders of state authorities." Home Town America provides the Citizen Soldier to perform these missions. The importance of the hometown in wartime can be found through out the history of this nation. Don’t throw out the essential part of the Citizen Soldier in a quest to "professionalize" the U.S. Army. The One Army concept can work, if the Regulars and the Reserves will strive to cooperate and positively approach the problems. Our strength as a democracy requires the presence of the Citizen Soldier. ARTICLE 11 Celebrate 50 Years of Freedom Korea Vets Shouldn’t Miss This Opportunity Ed.: As many WWII vets have visited the beaches of Normandy and other locations of their wartime travels and life’s trials, here is a wonderful opportunity for those who fought in Korea, to close wounds, revisit the past and rekindle friendships. Many thanks to Bill Beebe for alerting us to this possibility. By Bill Beebe - Orlando, FL Dear Zimm, My wife and I have just returned from a trip to Seoul, South Korea, which was sponsored by the Korean Veterans Association of South Korean and Republic of Korea, MPVA. They wined and dined us for four fabulous days. We were greatly honored by the people of South Korea: The school kids were taught to say hello in English and to wave to us. We wore identifying badges and large nametags. Our bus was well marked and as it drove the streets of Seoul the school children and adults waved to us in greeting. Our group of 36 ex-soldiers (many accompanied by their wives) from all over the US, were given metals at a reception and banquet hosted by Admiral Kim (retired) and Mr. Chong-ho Vice Chairman of the KVA. Maj. Gen. Homer Long (retired) was the spokesman and leader of our group. Together, we participated in wreath-laying ceremonies to the US Monument at Imjingak near Camp Bonifas (Panmunjom), and the South Korean National Cemetery. Our group was really impressed with the "Korean Wall," which was located in a west wing of the War Museum (much like the Viet Nam wall in Washington, D.C. Except, the diseased were listed by the state they were from and dedicated to foreign serviceman who had lost their lives to save South Korea from communism. One of our group, Marine LTC Rus Hudson (retired), had nine of his Marine war buddies names on this wall. Even with the eleven-day jetlag I suffered after arriving back home in Orlando, the trip was well worth it. The Korean's are paying the cost of meals, lodging, and the bus tours to Inchon Memorial Hall and the Wolmido Tour, Tour Duksoo Palace, Camp Bonifas (Panmunjon), Wreath Laying Ceremony to US Monument at Imjingak, Wreath Laying Ceremony Korean National Cemetery, War Memorial Honor Guard Ceremony, and Tour of Korean Folk Village. We had to pay for the flight to Seoul. Wives are welcomed. Our two tickets from Orlando, FL, cost a total of $1,580. To make arrangements for the next trip in November contact Chuck Sterchele, Central Florida Veterans Assoc: 2500 Leahy Ave DFAS Building, Room 125 P.O. Box 931670 - DFAS Orlando, FL 32893-1670 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] If you know anyone who has not taken the trip back to Korea in the Fifty years since, tell them to go. ARTICLE 12 Military Health Care Some Thoughts About Our Independence Ed.: A passionate message as we approach another celebration for our independence. It’s time to speak out and protect our freedoms once again. By Pete Peterson, Contributing Editor E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Web URL: http://mhcrg.militarybenefits.org With the Senate threatening to work through the Independence Day holiday break, my military mind wandered off into American History. I thought about what caused us to require our independence in the first place. In short, there was this King who sent over a bunch of political appointees from England and started regulating everything under the sun. The folks here were mostly a bunch of agrarian working or service industry stiffs, who were trying to make a living, but kept loosing more and more of what they earned to the King’s government. A bunch of rowdies finally had enough of this parasitic stuff and decided they didn’t want to be British anymore. They took matters into their own hands and it got pretty bloody. They were insurgents, so they shot from behind trees and rocks at the British troops that were sent to waste them. Eventually, unconventional warfare paid off, but at a heavy price. Logistics wasn’t so hot back in those days, so, many times the insurgents had to make do with whatever they could hunt and gather. A bunch of the better-educated folks that were part of the insurgency got together after the fighting ended and wrote up a Declaration of Independence. They argued a lot but eventually came up with a companion piece called the Bill of Rights. Both these documents put down the idea that government should be of the people and for the people. They didn’t want anything to do with Royalty anymore. Two hundred and twenty five years later, we’ve got a Royalty problem. A lot of the new Royalty is appointed, just like in the old days. Some do get elected. It’s a technical thing, but once again we’re pitted against those who say they represent us, but who really made their bones on what they did for their political parties and themselves. Whether elected or appointed, their individual power is derived from "who they know," how well they fool people, and their status in their political parties. There’s money to be made "doing the peoples’ business." Of course, it doesn’t always show up as salary. Sometimes it’s perks. Campaign contributions to these guys and gals keep them going, and sometimes they can make additional bucks on speaking gigs. Eventually they all become millionaires. "Out-sourcing" is another creative way for political appointees to create "deferred income." In military health care, a lot has already been "out-sourced," just like they’re going to do with electricity and payroll services the military services use. Now, the out-sourcees don’t do this out of patriotism -- these aren’t Non-Profit corporations. They make big bucks off these deals. The appointees who make the decisions to "out-source," usually have to divest themselves of the personal holdings that might look like conflicts of interest (i.e., hide it), so they won’t appear to be making a bundle on the deal. Still, some interesting stories do float to the surface. A guy working as a health care guru for a famous Senator helps create the nightmare of TRICARE. He then un-asses his 9-year senate job, goes out on the economy, and catches what he helped push through the Congress onto DOD. He becomes a CEO of one of the consortium TRICARE Contractors. The circle is closed with campaign contributions. That cements the relationships. Now, I don’t know what this guy is worth today, but it’s got to be in the millions. Meanwhile, my wife and I try to help victims in his TRICARE Region through our rinky-dink organization (URL above). It’s nasty out there and getting worse in many cases. We haven’t been able to get many of our former leaders - our Generals and Flag Officers - to help fight what’s been done to us. By and large, they’re all out there running their own businesses or working in Corporations that are profiting from our misery. Many are waiting their turn for their appointments in government, so they can divest/hide all they’ve made. At that time, they’ll publicly declare how much they care for the troops. Will there be another Revolution against the "new Royalty?" We’ve become too lazy and complacent letting other people do stuff for us. NO -- You see, the "Greatest Generation" had children, their children had children, etc. These generations are waiting for stuff they have coming to them from government. Each generation seems to be more self-centered than the one before. Revolting … isn’t it? Please sign the "Bush Proposal/Tricare or VA not Both" petition online at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/wbr1/petition.html Congress / DOD: FIX TRICARE NOW! *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 ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. 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