Bunker Mulligan "Let us endeavor so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry." ~Mark Twain

These guys need to be nailed to the wall: US military in torture scandal.

Professionals in the military don’t tolerate anything like this. Of course, the perpetrators are “victims”:

His lawyer, Gary Myers, told the Guardian that Sgt Frederick had not had the opportunity to read the Geneva Conventions before being put on guard duty, a task he was not trained to perform.

This is Kerry’s defense for his accusations and admissions for action in Vietnam. It doesn’t hold water. American soldiers are taught often and well their responsibilities and rights under the Geneva Convention. And simple human decency should preclude any such acts.

What is it I keep saying about Iraq?

Give the Kurds their own country!

Hack is back, with Thin skins bleed easily.

As I said the other day, the focus on military spending needs to be on personnel and personal equipment, not big-ticket items. That is Hack’s point, as well. I don’t agree that we need more armored Humvees, but some kind of light armored vehicle–you, know, what the Stryker was supposed to be. Instead, our troops move about in Bradleys (tracked) or Humvees (unarmored).

A tracked vehicle just isn’t as nimble as one with wheels, and that’s what’s needed in street fights. Putting armor on the Humvee adds weight it wasn’t designed to handle. But there is no better choice than that–right now.

Unfortunately, our folks in the Pentagon are wedded to wars and possible wars past.

The entire military needs to be restructured, and the decisions need to be made by junior officers and NCOs–the ones doing the fighting. They need to be empowered to bring their own experiences into the process, not through “lessons learned” reports, but in defining the structure. “Lessons learned” are read through the lens of other experiences when generals try to analyze them. Don’t bother.

Get the young people involved, and give them ownership. A lack of years of experience oftens yields benefits far beyond those expected in any profession. And it doesn’t come with the intellectual baggage of habits from schools and commanders and wars of long ago.

After reading some of the things posted at IndyMedia regarding Pat Tillman’s death, I wish I could take some of those folks on a trip like the one described on the Blackfive site: Taking Chance Home.

Honor is alive and well in America. It’s a shame some can’t see it through their biased blinders.

I don’t think we need a draft. Some do. I think our military is probably large enough, although some restructuring is in order. The focus needs to be on people and personal equipment rather than the big ticket items. This issue can generate a lot of bile, so I think a little perspective is in order.

In the late ’60s and early ’70s, THE DRAFT was not a big issue among young men except those making a career studying philosophy. And most of those came from higher income families. THE DRAFT was seen as a possible interruption in your life if you had no intention of joining the military. The fear most had wasn’t going to Vietnam and getting killed or wounded, it was a fear of having to endure basic training and possibly crawling around in the mud with snakes and other critters.

If you wanted to go to college and get a degree, get into medical school or law school, that interruption could cause you some valuable time. For the rest of us, THE DRAFT wasn’t something we thought much about. When you turned 18, you registered and got your card. As long as it said “1S”, you were a student who had no concerns at all unless THE DRAFT ran out of people with “1A” status.

Now, all of that is from memory, so maybe it is in error. But I remember it that way. Getting a draft card gave you legal access to beer, so it was a big deal. I knew nobody who tried to get into the National Guard in order to avoid THE DRAFT. I did know guys who enlisted immediately after graduating from high school.

What I’m really trying to convey is that being drafted wasn’t high on our fear list. STDs were. Well, not enough to really matter.

And I don’t think THE DRAFT would be any more frightening to today’s young men and women. I just don’t think it’s necessary, nor do I believe it could be enforced. Anyone with a high-priced attorney could beat the rap.

After President Carter signed an Executive Order granting amnesty to those who left the country during the Vietnam War, reinstating THE DRAFT would be virtually impossible. We could build it, but they probably wouldn’t come. Just as it would be difficult to convict anyone of treason after letting obvious traitors run free, prosecuting draft dodgers would be problematic.

Vietnam. The war that just keeps on giving.

People think the Pentagon directs all military action for US Forces around the world. They don’t. What they do is make decisions to buy things like this:

When I first entered the Air Force, our utility uniform was olive drab fatigues with blue and silver stripes, blue nametags with white lettering, and colored unit patches. Someone decided we weren’t tactical enough and decided all insignia needed to be “subdued.” We got stripes which were dark blue on olive drab, and patches with all kinds of muted colors.

AF Special Ops decided we should wear the same kind of uniform as our Army team members, so we went to woodland BDUs. Everyone in the Air Force eventually got BDUs.

The camo wasn’t to help us blend in with our surroundings. It was to help us blend in with other units. But now, both the Navy and Air Force are considering what you see above.

What in the world drove that decision? If Air Force personnel need camo, why make it blue? Doesn’t that defeat the purpose unless they’re going to low-crawl through bluebonnets in the Texas spring? Will all the aircraft now get a similar paint job? And the support equipment? On top of that, it has the Eastern European look to it.

If blue is important, they would be better off returning to the original fatigue design. Missile crews wore blue utilities, and we all thought they looked pretty nice. Certainly nicer than this. And far more functional.

They got a second lieutenant to model for the photo because all the NCOs told them to shove it!

Sometimes I wonder why I bother to listen to NPR on the way to work. I enjoy Bob Edwards and his early-morning manner, but this is his last week. I’m not sure I’ll continue listening when he leaves.

Today, a report on the military and individual support of the war in Iraq. The reporter spoke with several soldiers, including some wounded in action. All were supportive. He said you must dig deep to find someone who isn’t. He then made a comment about the split being along the lines of “professionals” being the ones against it. The term, when spoken in that way, always makes me think someone really means “intelligent and educated”. He interviewed an Army dentist who was against the war because “Bush wasn’t elected by the majority in this country, and it’s all about oil.”

Now tell me again, who’s intelligent and educated?

The reporter also made the point that a very rigorous and well-developed training program in the military produces soldiers who want to go fight because that’s what their comrades are doing.

In the military, officers and NCOs attend various levels of Professional Military Education, PME. At each point, they are challenged to develop their thinking abilities with problem-solving exercises, and learn more history and philosophy of military service. These courses are in addition to job-specific training courses. When I was enlisted, I had standard basic training, but I also attended NCO Leadership School, and introductory course focused on junior NCO issues. I was scheduled to attend the NCO Academy several times, but job requirements kept me from going. Once the workload relaxed, I was on my way to school for my commission. As the Senior Enlisted Advisor told me when I said I now had time to go, “We don’t want any officers knowing this stuff!” He said it with a grin.

Had I continued, I would have eventually gone to Senior NCO Academy.

The officer corps had a similar, though more intense progression. After commissioning, which itself devoted a lot of time to similar issues, officers would attend Squadron Officer School (9 weeks), Air Command and Staff College (6 months), and Air War College (1 year) if selected. Most took correspondence versions prior to being selected. All services have equivalent schools, and people can cross over to attend those from another service if selected. This is common at the Intermediate and Senior courses.

The definition of professionalism is discussed at every level. And what it comes down to is a combination of education, training, and conformity to a code of ethics. Respect among the general population is also a common theme. Debate on whether the military is a profession can sometimes get heated. Personally, I believe it is. A typical officer will have a college degree, and eventually get at least a masters. He will attend numerous professional development courses lasting from a week to a month throughout his career. He will also attend the PME schools, and/or complete them through seminars on post. This is all in addition to job-specific training which goes on continually. The education level of officers in the military is higher than that of lawyers and most doctors. Many enlisted men and women also have college degrees. Some get graduate degrees. The military values education.

They also live by a code of ethics which holds them responsible in their private, as well as professional lives. No other group of professionals except the clergy has that burden. If a doctor crosses the line, his profession may scorn him. If a military professional does the same, he gets a federal conviction and possible jail time.

The military is nowhere near as autocratic as civilians believe. Soldiers don’t jump just because someone tells them to. They jump because they have come to trust the judgement of the person in charge. That comes with time. And it comes from interaction where everyone shares thoughts and opinions openly. It comes from leaders who expect subordinates to make decisions. Arguments occur all the time, but not in a time-critical situation. At that time, everyone knows who the boss is, and what he wants done. Period.

That is the well-developed training program the reporter didn’t understand. And it’s one the dentist has never been through. Medical officers are exempt from all this. Most are civilians in uniform. And most understand and accept that. Some actually volunteer to go through some of the training. They earn the respect of fellow soldiers that others don’t.

The NPR reporter thought this opinion split was odd. I know it to be inherent. But if you want to divide opinions along between professionals and non-professionals, I know which group better deserves the title.