Better than ever...

I suppose you had to see for yourself to get to my Blog, unless it's been bookmarked as a favorite of yours before, but AEA now has a totally re-designed website look...the absolute best ever...and it was done in total by our magazine's Associate Editor, Beth O'Hara, who is officially now designated as the "person in charge" of anything "web" related. I just fired myself from that position, because Beth is way better than I am with website design. So, if you have yet to navigate around the site, give it a look here. And...THANKS Beth!

All for political gain...or loss

I hate it when politicians, radio talk show hosts and others who have never worn a uniform in defense of the United States use the military for their own personal gain...by pandering to us...about how much they support what we are doing, etc., all-the-while knowing we are just stepping stones to help them get to their planned destination.

Remembering...

There is much we too often overlook when Memorial Day comes around each year...given our desires to celebrate time away from work at the beach, on the lake, or in a backyard standing next to a BBQ grill loaded with hot dogs, or chicken, or burgars...with lots of other good old American food sitting nearby waiting to be enjoyed. There's more...much more...we need to think about.

While we rightly mainly focus on the sacrifices made in battle by those who served in uniform, we sometimes fail to recognize similar sacrifices made by family members of service men and women who served alongside their loved-one...in good times and bad.

So, over this holiday weekend as you raise a flag, or say a prayer, or recall those you knew who are no longer with us, taks a few moments to remember military spouses and children who were a part of it all too.

Role of the U.S. Military in the World

It is my view that Defense Secretary Robert Gates is correct when he says (recently as quoted on Army Times Online) that the need to reduce defense spending is going to cause the U.S. to re-evaluate it's role militarily in the world, and to eliminate some defense programs, and having a smaller force than what we've had for the past decade. I say it's about time this was discussed so openly at his level, and in the manner he's doing it. Personally,  think we're going to miss him after he leaves office.

Judgement

The Army Chief of Staff is looking hard at the quality of Army leadership in the force today, and in my view he's doing the right thing. In the past year, for example, we read about brigade and battalion commanders being relieved...some for performance, some for questionable judgement. We also see very high percentage rates of officers being promoted...much higher than in the past...a sign of the Army perhaps being more concerned with filling slots than with having the best at the top.

Then today, I read in the Army Times online about three brigade commanders in Korea who "performed a skit" at a social event, that was definitely edgy and perhaps crossed the line in relation to the Army's "don't ask, don't tell" policy elimination. Why a brigade commander feels they have to  try to be edgy or funny in front of an audience made up of other senior leaders is beyond me. Each was reprimanded and of course their careers are over...and that's not to say these guys did not have a future ahead of them in the Army, given they were all combat veterans with excellent performance records.

I'm not saying senior leaders in the Army have not done "edgy" things before, nor am I saying that it's all necessarily bad. I am saying that there is a place and a time to be edgy, and it's probably good advice to ask yourself first, how close to the line am I, and if the answer is "close", then maybe it's better to stop before you cross the line, by design or by accident.

Too easy to get promoted?

I read today that the Army Chief of Staff  (CSA) is concerned about high percentages of people being promoted in the force today...with little attention being given pertaining to selecting only the "best" to receive said promotion.  


He said, “We’re promoting 95 to 98 percent of captains to major, 93 or 95 percent of majors to lieutenant colonel,” Dempsey said. “We’re not really separating out the true high performers that we should aspire to have. We shouldn’t be satisfied that 98 percent of captains are being promoted to major, because 98 percent of captains don’t deserve to be promoted to major. Statistically, that’s an infeasible percentage. And we’ve got to do the same thing on the noncommissioned officer (NCO) side.”


The CSA wants to reverse this trend and rightly so. If this does not change soon, the Army is going to find itself with a lot of average performers running itself in the future. Not a good thing in my view.

I Love the Rain

There is a song that's been featured on a Chevy TV commercial recently, titled, "I Love the Rain", sung by a group called (interestingly enough) "The Real Tuesday Weld." The TV commercial shows a bunch of kids racing out the door of a home, with rain gear on, splashing their way to a new Chevy SUV sitting in the driveway, waiting to carry them all away somewhere. It's a catchy song, and you can view it on You Tube here. Anyway, what's my point?

This has been a wet (way understated) spring this year, especially in the Midwest and Mid Atlantic regions of the US. During breaks in the rain here in SW Virginia, I have so far this week: 1. cut way back some very large holly bushes along the front of our house...with the help of my cross-the-street neighbor, 2. attempted to mow our entire yard, being aced out in the back portion which is like mowing through a marshland in spots, 3. lowered the level of our swimming pool twice, and 4. observed with bug spray in hand, a slow invasion of insects around our house...small "red" bugs that like to bunch up on rotting wet vegetation, making it a rather simple task for me to kill them all in one or two sprays of insecticide.

In July and August we will probably be yearning for wet weather as yards grow brown and crispy, and listening to that song, "I Love the Rain" will bring back memories of the wet weather we've been experiencing recently. On a more serious side and before I close, however, my thoughts and prayers go out to all those along the Mississippi River who have been impacted by this year's record flooding. I'm sure the referenced song above will not be very humorous to them.

Hokie Grad Now Looking for a Job

We have a new Virginia Tech graduate in the family...Jennifer in the middle with her mother (our daughter) Leslie on the left and my wife Barb on the right, together in Jennifer's apartment just prior to her graduation May 14th with two Bachelor of Science Degrees...Biology and Chemistry. That's quite an achievement given the academic difficulty at Tech.

Jennifer's looking for a job in which to apply her knowledge, but fortunately is not actually unemployed at present, given that for the past several years she has worked at Krogers as a cashier and part-time manager. She also worked for the VT Chemistry lab as an assistant part time during her five-year quest for her degrees. I say this to point out that there are many young people like Jennifer today who not only work hard at gaining a higher level of education, but who are not reluctant to work even harder earning their way at the same time.

So, while I often lament the sad state of our youth today, there are shining examples of success out there. And...I'm not just saying that because I'm biased toward Jennifer as my granddaughter...I see many others like her as well.

In closing...anyone looking for a hard working Biology-Chemistry new Hokie graduate...email me. Granddaughter or not...it's a tough job market and I'll do my best to help her find a job. End of commercial message. :-)

Critters

Last fall, here in SW Virginia and all along the east coast, we were invaded by Stink Bugs...small, shield shaped, armor plated, insecticide resistant critters that do, in fact, stink, when pestered with or killed. According to the bug experts, they were looking for a place to "winter over", unfortunately inside houses...such as in the attic. Well, winter is over by a long shot and now these little pests are coming out of their hiding places, seeking a way to get back outside. Problem is...I am in their way.

Typically, I find and capture around ten of these bugs each day, usually while we are watching TV in the evening. My death method is to catch them with a small, wet piece of paper towel, and to then wrap them firmly in more paper towel before placing the bug package under the faucet in the kitchen sink...sending them to bugdom whatever that is, and then in the trash can they go.

From what I have read, there is no way for us to deal with these insects any better than what I have been doing. But, I have to admit they are becoming a giant pain in the butt. I'm hoping we will soon see an end to those critters who wintered over in our attic. My wife, being a non-bug person, is hoping even more than I am.

It's that time of year when...

It's that time of year when:

1. I miss reading about or watching sports on TV other than anything related to the NBA...unprofessional as it seems to have become over the years.
2. Weeds grow faster than I can keep up with in our flower beds and gardens.
3. Bugs begin to creep out from winter hiding places, which signals the beginning of my constant battle with those which serve no useful purpose...spiders are OK because they are on my side, as are small wasps which help control the enemy too.
4. It's 80 degrees one day and 60 the next...with severe thunderstorms and tornados lurking about.
5. We open up our swimming pool...with a seemingly never ending series of summer maintenance chores ahead.
6. I switch from wearing sweats for my AM 2-mile walk, to shorts and tee shirt.
7. Monthly expenditures on gas rise, due to weekly lawn mowing with my John Deere lawn tractor on our 2.5 acre yard.
8. And lastly, it's that time of year when I remember how excited I used to be in May when I was much younger, and had none of the thoughts listed above. Like...school was almost out and a wonderful summer was ahead with all sorts of youthful joys waiting for me to attack them with gusto.

The Royal Wedding...a look back

For me anyway, escaping in some small way from the terrible state of affairs in the world we live in today, is always enjoyable. Unfortunately, I can't really do that as much as I'd like. However, watching the wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton came as close to taking me "away" as I might hope to find. Call me as sentimentalist or whatever, but my "roots" are English/Welsh...my name being one of the most common in the UK...Morgan that is. So...call me British.

I've been to the UK several times and each trip there was unique in its own way. I am also very interested in the English Monarchy, although trying to learn English history can be a challenge, given its age. Heck, it's hard enough keeping track of our own history here in America.

I guess there's not much I don't like about the UK. Golf there is something not to be missed. A "pint" in a London pub is wonderful...not possible to have only one. Fish and Chips wrapped in a newspaper is the only way to eat that treat. And, meat pie is good too, but I'd never ask for what the ingredients are.

I've always said that I could live there (Wales would be my choice). But alas, it's not to be. I'll just have to go there in my mind, through the internet listening to live streaming music from BBC One or Jazz FM, reading books, and of course keeping close track of the Royals as they go about their business...especially the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge...Kate and William.

Honoring Our Fallen Engineers

Last week I was at Fort Leonard Wood. While there I visited, along with many others, the newly dedicated Engineer Memorial Wall, sited in the Engineer Grove near the Museum complex. The wall is composed of three large T-Walls, made from Missouri granite, with the names of all those engineers, military and civilian, who have, thus far, lost their lives in OEF, OIF. The wall is a "living" one, and those who lose their lives in the future will have their names added.

While nothing can ever fully comfort those who remain behind, with the loss of their loved one, this large eight-foot high wall provides a place of solitude in which to honor their sacrifice. I highly recommend you visit this wonderful memorial when you can.