Fort Leonard Wood

I retired from active duty at this mid-Missouri post in 1992 but at that time it was all "engineers". Now, it's one of the Army's largest joint training installations (all services) and home to the Army's Engineer School, Military Police School and Chemical School. In sum, it's a very busy place. Driving around today, I saw a large amount of new construction, such as family housing shown here, as well as new barracks, headquarters, family support facilities, PX shopping center and superb sports complexes. And yet, I still saw some older troop barracks, most now empty due to units being deployed, and I wondered if there might be some of the same problems inside these buildings as has been just recently reported in the media, at Fort Bragg, NC. In that regard, I have one simple question. Where were the unit leaders and why were they not checking on the condition of the barrackes in which their Soldiers were housed? Maybe there's a good explanation, but so far I have yet to hear it. Anyway, Fort Leonard Wood looks pretty good when you drive around. Off post has also changed big time. Once there were lines of strip malls, "mom and pop" businesses, and typical places that always seem to pop up near a military installation. Today, there are major chain stores, large motels, chain restaurants, and new car dealerships by the dozens. All mostly built within the past five years or so. Any veteran who trained here during WWII, Korea or Vietnam would be amazed at how much the area has changed. Might be a neat trip to see it…that is if you can afford the price of gasoline.

On the road

Tomorrow, I'm off to Missouri to do some "reporting" for Army Engineer magazine. First stop is at Fort Leonard Wood, then off to St. Louis next Saturday for the annual 3-day Engineer Regimental Conference. I plan to post blog entries while I'm traveling, including photos, assuming I have good high speed internet connections, which I should. I'm especially excited to be able to write a story about the Army's new Counter Explosives Hazard Center at Fort Leonard Wood. New facilities, excellent training programs, etc. The story is scheduled for the July-August issue. Anyway, check back later this week to see if my "plans to post" actually come to reality.

Don't mess with me

Earlier this week I took a drive up along the Blue Ridge Parkway (unfortunately for the views, in the midst of low-hanging clouds and steady mist and light rain) with my wife and her visiting cousin from Michigan. I was the "guide". We made the best of it, and found a nice cafe in Floyd, Virginia where we had a super lunch. We also visited my favorite winery anywhere, Chateau Morrisette where I replenished my stock. Later, we drove south on the parkway toward North Carolina and the weather improved a bit, so we could stop and check out some old abandoned farms. One was still being used to raise cattle. This is where I saw one who looked at me with a steady eye that said, "don't mess with me, I'm eating". It was an enjoyable day and I got some nice photos in the process.

Springtime colors

This photo shows the range of "color" we have now in Southern Virginia. Dogwood trees this year are about as beautiful as I can remember. Not sure why, but they make me want to use my camera more and more. These are right across the street from our house.

Sec Def critical of U.S. Air Force?

Now, here's something I can easily agree with coming from the Pentagon. I read today that the Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, told officers undergoing training at the Air University on Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama that the Air Force needs to do a better job adapting to the needs of the Global War on Terror, especially in the form of unmanned drones utilized for targeting and intelligence. If I were in his position, I'd also add that the Air Force needs to come up with some creative methods to take some of the heat off the Army and Marines, by using more airmen in logistical and other ground support roles in Iraq and Afghanistan that could be executed by any service. In other words, think "joint". I hope the Sec. Def. makes some headway in this matter, it's long overdue in my opinion.

Feed the birds

My wife is a "bird feeder". She has all sorts of metal and plastic containers out back in the garden and other areas…all visible from the kitchen window over the sink. We go through enough thistle feed each month to take care of most yellow finches in a good portion of the entire Commonwealth of Virginia. At any given time, we have at least the number shown here (at just one of several stations), flitting about trying to secure their private space at the feeding slots. They go nuts if any other bird tries to move in. The downside to all this is the mess they make with seeds and husks dumped on the ground, which over a year can get several inches thick. Meaning your's truly has to keep a regular schedute scooping up the non-edible stuff. They also deposit their messy bird droppings on our fence which also requires my attention to remove, with the help of a high pressure washer. I don't really like the birds that much, but they are interesting to watch. More important, what I like or don't like in relation to my wife's bird population has zero impact. She feeds em, I clean up the mess.

What can I write on Friday?

It's not an easy task to post an entry to my Blog when the weather is nice, especially on a Friday. Lately the temperatures have been swinging up and down in dramatic fashion in southern Virginia, with a fifty (yes 50) degree swing yesterday with a low of 30 when I woke up to a high of 80 late in the day. Coat in the morning, shorts and sandals at night. I volunteered to help my neighbor erect a garden fence today, so as soon as I post this entry, I'm putting on some sun screen, work pants and shoes and go get dirty. So, that's about as creative as I can get here with my Blog today. Have a nice weekend!

Do you still have your dog tags?

I wonder how many veterans kept their dog tags after leaving service. I have mine (photo), hanging on the wall near my desk, so I see them every day. While I was in the Army, I learned from others ways to make wearing the tags easier and more comfortable. For example, as you can see in the photograph, I used the outside nylon shell of a single strand of parachute cord to cover the chain itself. Good way to keep neck hairs from getting painfully torn out. And, I bought rubber covers at the PX to keep them from rattling around when I moved. Sweat got underneath that cover, and I can still see today stains on the metal caused by body-salt and whatever grime I might have gotten into. Last Friday I received an email from the daughter of a WWII veteran who told me about a lost dog tag being found recently in France, that belonged to a guy who served with her father during the war. Unfortunately, the owner passed away in the 1970s but his brother (who was in the same unit) is still alive and is trying to secure the lost tag and bring it back home where it belongs. She sent me a photo of the tag, and I noted it listed the name, rank,  serial number and mailing address of the owner. Mine just has my name SSN, blood type and religion. We used to joke that at some point in time, the Army was going to embed a computer chip under our skin, that contained everything about us. Perhaps we're closer to that today than many of us older veterans realize.

Check this out

You may not read Army Times online, but whether or not you do, you might want to check out a link on their website called "Tales from the Sandbox". It's basically a blog written by a couple of their embedded reporters, and it has some interesting posts (some funny, some not so). It's worth a look. Go there from here.

The way ahead in Iraq

Last week I'm sure many of you watched the testimony of GEN Petraeus and AMB Crocker about their recommendations concerning the way ahead in Iraq, and indirectly Afghanistan. As war weary as we all are, especially anyone with multiple deployments including family members, I don't believe there are any "prudent" courses of action other than to proceed with what these two "on the ground" professionals believe is correct. Politicians can argue all they want about how we got to where we are, and proclaim "here's what I will do if elected". If any one actually believes a person, once elected, is going to disregard the recommendations of respected and experienced military and civilian advisors, and then proceed in a totally new direction, then I think they better think again. True, there might be changes in priorities and methods of moving forward, but most responsible politicians regardless of political party are Americans first and will do the right thing in that regard.

A unique aspect of American living

Yard sales. I suppose they happen in most neighborhoods in America, and probably more so  in places like where we live in rural Virginia. I don't think there's a Friday-Saturday morning during the spring and summer that some sort of yard sale isn't going. During my morning walks for the past several years I have learned to associate a particular neighbor's yard sale with their hand lettered sign posted near the entrance to the subdivision. It's almost like for some, yard sales are a home business. Why anyone would want to buy an old junked power lawn mower encrusted in rust and grime is beyond me. Today I saw an old riding mower with no seat that had to be from the 1960-70 timeframe, and unless a person collects such things, I can't see any use for it. The other thing that amuses me about stuff sold at yard sales is the number of plastic, child yard toys that never seem to attract any buyer. The same plastic gym set, for example, always seems to wind up at the front of one of my neighbor's yard sale displays week by week. To use a well-worn phrase, one man's junk is another man's treasure. That is certainly true where we live. 

Spring has sprung in SW Virginia

I took a few minutes this morning to shoot some of the tulips in our yard. Yellow, red, pink, orange…they all are in bloom. Reds seemed brighter than red, and as you can see here, so do the yellows. I like tulips, mainly because I don't have to perform any maintenance on them. They pop up, bloom, and then dry up to wait until next year. No weeding, no trimming, etc. I'm not that much into gardening, but I do enjoy the way things look during springtime, so I do my best to nurture what we have. Now, lets hope we don't get a late freeze and mess things up. 

Basic Training in for a change?

I read an interesting article today on Army Times web site (click here) about the Army working to change the way it trains Soldiers in basic. In sum, it says training will become "outcome-based". What's that, you say. The way I read it, it means that instead of having a "process-based" training program which now is focused on meeting specific objectives such as passing a PT test or qualifying with a weapon with designated "scores", trainers will still teach necessary skills, but will become more flexible in determining whether or not a Soldier has "met the standards". The article says leaders in training will ask themselves "do I want this Soldier to fight along side me during combat, or not." If the answer is "no", then the Soldier will be recycled in training to get more training. If the answer is "yes", well I guess we'll have to rely on whether or not the person asking the question in the first place understands themselves what the needs of combat really are. Perhaps the Army will require all trainers, especially Drill Sergeants, to have recent combat experience. Anyway, at first I agreed with the general direction in which the new program is apparently headed, with certain reservations here and there. My mind initially compared what the Army has traditionally been doing when training its Soldiers (process-based), with the Standards of Learning (SOL) mess we have in our public education system. "Teaching the test" so to speak. But then, we don't ask high school graduates to leave high school, and the next day go into real live combat. Thus, after more thought regarding the Army Times article, I think there is much room for further discussion before any formal changes are made. Such as running it by those doing the actual training at places like Fort Leonard Wood. By "those" I don't mean anyone above the rank of Captain or Sergeant First Class. And then take heed of what's said, and make appropriate adjustments in that regard. 

Adobe Photoshop Express

If you have photographs you'd like to share with others, check out Adobe's new "free" application, Photoshop Express. I've uploaded a few of my shots here, sort of as a "first try' at using the new online photo-sharing capability. Pretty simple to use, and lots of photo adjustment can be done with the program. It's a far cry from the things Photoshop itself can do, but for most people it will be just fine. Give it a try.

Wise Generals Speak Out

I am not at all a frequent viewer of C-SPAN, but last night while "flipping" through the channels to watch something other than some brainless variant of a reality show, I stopped on C-SPAN because it was showing yesterday's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, by three retired Army general officers, each of whom I regard highly, and one of whom I served alongside as a brigade commander. In sum, they each agreed that a major drawdown of U.S. forces in Iraq is inevitable sooner than later, mainly because the Army and Marine Corps can't sustain the present operations tempo much longer without doing serious long term damage to the force, and because any permanent resolution of civil and sectarian unrest in Iraq can only be achieved by the Iraq Army itself, assuming it is capable of doing so. MG (Ret) Bob Scales said, “The only point of contention is how precipitous will be the withdrawal and whether the schedule of withdrawal should be a matter of administration policy.” Given that Scales is a past commandant of the Army War College, when he speaks, I listen. Other general officers who voiced their opinions, mostly agreeing with each other, were GEN Barry McCaffrey and LTG Bill Odom. McCaffrey worked after retirement in the Clinton administration, and Odom served as President Reagan's director of the National Security Agency, so from a "political" standpoint there is a fair balance, although I don't believe either of them has any specific ties today to either party in relation to their predictions about the situation in Iraq. I believe all three generals are simply very concerned about the future of our Army, and the nation's ability to support contingency operations other than in Iraq. I was glued to the TV, and was not only impressed by what those testifying had to say, but was also encouraged by the questions asked by the committee members, democrat and republican. I learned much, but none of it made me feel that good about what lies ahead for the United States and our Army.

Dumb Idea

I read today in Army Times that the Department of Defense is proposing an “experiment” in which service members could take a break in their military careers of up to three years for personal or professional reasons. "The volunteers who take a career break would be required to serve two months of active duty for every one month of time off they were granted, so that someone who took a full three years off would have a six-year obligation. Soldiers returning to active duty after the “break” would be reappointed to the same job they previously held, or a similar one, and would have their full pay and benefits, including special and incentive pays and bonuses as long as they remain eligible." The idea has been discussed by defense and service personnel officials as a way to make military service "a little more like the private sector". And that reason alone is why I think it’s another dumb idea proposed by the senior civilian leadership in the Pentagon to turn the Army into something it’s not.