Its been going on for awhile. When I left Security Police school, my ass went straight to the SAC Northern Tier. I arrived on base in late October and 3 months later, I was on the ramp in 25 below zero guarding the nukes. Day after day. In my case, I grew up in a state with a cold winter. Some of my fellow troops were from the deep south or the desert southwest. One of my barracks mates was a Hawaiian who had never worn shoes before he joined the service. These guys from warm or hot climates suffered and were miserable. The USAF had bases all over the country and could have assigned people from warm climates to warm climate bases. Just one way to keep a grunt type happy and help him to be more efficient in his job. If you are in a hot war, go ahead and fill any open spot with who is available. But in peace time and stateside, common sense should have prevailed.
"War is hell, but peace is a motherfucker"!

Indeed this has been going on for quite some time. From my knothole it started in the early-mid '80s and accelerated culminating in Zippy the Wonder Putz's purge of competent senior officers leaving self serving inept political hacks at the helm.

I could not serve in today's military.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:
The senior Navy enlisted guy (Chief Petty Officer of the Navy?) visited the carrier that had the suicides. His response? 'It could always be worse.'

Way to be tone deaf and ignore the plight of your enlisted force. That, by the way, is his JOB: to take care of the enlisted by advocating for them in the upper Navy echelons.

You can bet the command reflects what Braack Obama wanted in his military officers. Braack purged out any officers who might even be inclined to oppose his political views. Hence, all we have left are Milley-type scum ready to say and do anything for their power and prestige and the rest of the Navy can go fuck itself. That's what the Master Chief just told them.

So, 23 years in the and twice in the yards (USS America and USS Tarawa) and two things i found,

1. You had the party barge alongside until barracks opened up.

2. Some idiots insisted on staying aboard plus

There were always those few who checked aboard just after the keel got dry. It sucks but at the same time, we all learned how to use a needle gun and paint roller. I’ve worked along side E-8s and E-9s doing just that and with the exception of the First Lieutenant, the officers would be AWOL.

So while the Navy’s E-10 needs to retired (if his quoted words are truly accurate) to say this as succinctly as possible, "boo fucking hoo."

choose your rate, choose your fate

Some things will never change in the Navy; being in the yards and chipping paint. And when it’s the former, you will not be set up in the Hilton.

The formula for effective leadership has always been some fundamentals. First, you take care of your people. Second, you make sure your people are properly trained and have a clear understanding of their mission. Third, you make sure your people have the things they need to perform the mission. Fourth, you support your people and shield them from outside interference. And fifth, you understand that leadership is not about you the leader, it is about your people. That means being a servant leader.

You can tell if you have good or poor leadership in a unit the minute you walk in. Your senior NCO's are a good barometer of leadership. I have never understood how so many people in leadership positions lose sight of the fundamentals.

Good NCO's can compensate a lot, but they can only do so much. When your senior NCO's lose heart, your unit becomes s vortex of despair and hopelessness in short order. When poor leadership leads all the way to the top, everything falls part. When it gets to that point a drastic change in leadership is all that can save them.