-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ARTICLE 04 – Feedback: Readers Respond to Hack’s Columns ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Clinton Destroyed the Armed Forces I am retired Army master sergeant with 33 years of service including six years with Special Forces. I really enjoyed David Hackworth’s informed comments regarding “De-Clintonizing” our armed forces (“It’s Time to Set the U.S. Army Straight,” Nov. 21). I had served every Commander-in-Chief since President Lyndon Johnson. I felt outrage about the changes to the Army brought about by President Bill Clinton. I retired in 1997 – I could have been boarded for sergeant major and stuck around for a few more years, but the grief I experienced over what that man did to my Army made me cynical and angry. Clinton used our armed forces to implement his sick programs regarding gays and other useless social experiments. He destroyed an effective Reserve and Guard force by reducing the numbers of good units to dangerous levels and, in many cases, changing their mission. He relegated the status of American fighting men to second-class citizens in terms of pay, housing and benefits. He took away our sense of pride in serving with useless guidelines on political correctness. -- John G. Saittis New Army Leadership Needed In response to David Hackworth’s column, one of the first things I would do as president would be to fire [Army Chief of Staff] Gen. [Eric] Shinseki. He singlehandedly demoralized every Ranger, and every other right-thinking soldier, with his beret decision. He is also the premier “perfumed prince” who is able to harm our entire Army by promoting fellow “perfumed princes.” It only takes a few well-placed “princes” to undo all the good done by good soldiers. The last eight years is an excellent example: I recently watched a special on the Discovery Channel about the Rangers. It stated that the Rangers were the only U.S. Army troops taught hand-to-hand combat. If they did not already know it, we just told all potential enemies our troops are not fighters. As a matter of fact, if today's soldier gets in an old-fashioned fistfight he may be discharged as a disciplinary problem. Maybe I am off the mark, but I think the Army should bring back the “Spirit of the Bayonet,” and hand-to-hand combat training for all soldiers. These programs would not only be an addition to unit PT programs, but designed to enhance the “warrior spirit.” -- William F. Sauerwein, First Sgt. USA (Ret.) An Army Plagued with Mistrust I read with interest David Hackworth’s column in the DefenseWatch archives on current leaders unwilling to allow soldiers to load ammo (“Let’s Lock and Load Now,” Oct. 17). On Sept. 11, U.S. posts went on Threatcon Delta expecting terrorist attacks. My post is shared by conventional Army and Special Forces units. Guards were ordered to draw weapons, but only the guards from the SF unit actually had combat loads of ammo. When the post commander found out troops were packing, he ordered magazines to be kept at SOG’s post. This is another example of the ‘CYA’ mentality in the conventional Army. Officers don’t trust NCOs – much less soldiers – to soldier. Also, weapons training from fixed foxholes at pop-up targets is unrealistic. The average soldier (non-combat arms) will fire 114 live rounds a year during semi-annual weapons qualification. Actual fire on the move training, walking with loaded guns, isn’t conducted. Soldiers are uncomfortable with weapons since they aren’t trained enough. -- A Concerned Sgt. 1st Class USA Table of Contents ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ARTICLE 5 – Editorial Comment: Shabby Treatment Of Navy Hero ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Editor’s Note: The following editorial appeared on the editorial page of The Washington Times on November 25, 2001. Just when you thought bureaucratic stupidity and robotic adherence to “the rules” couldn't possibly get any more ludicrous, the rude awakening cometh. Two days before Thanksgiving, The Washington Times reported that the Navy has denied a pension to the widow of Lt. John Russell, who helped rescue the USS Cole in Yemen last October after Osama bin Laden's thugs did their dirty work. Lt. Russell, age 41, suffered a fatal heart attack while helping another Naval officer trim trees in a Jacksonville, Fla., back yard on Nov. 11. Three days later - on the afternoon of his wake - Lt. Russell's widow, Mary, was told that she would not be receiving his lifetime pension of approximately $1,500 a month. “It makes me very angry,” said Mrs. Russell, who is now left alone to raise the couple's 10- and 14-year-old boys. “He gave up his youth for the Navy. And I sacrificed a lot waiting for him to come home.” Lt. Russell, a 20-year Navy veteran, enlisted on Aug. 14, 1981, under an arrangement permitting him to report for duty on Dec. 14 of that year, which is considered the official start of his service. This means that at the time of his death, he was a mere 33 days short of qualifying for his Navy pension. Late last year, he was on the USS Tarawa in the Arabian Sea when a bin Laden suicide attack was staged against the USS Cole, which was moored in the Yemeni port of Aden. Seventeen American sailors perished in that attack. Upon arriving at the scene, Lt. Russell commandeered a Yemeni tugboat and maneuvered it over to the crippled Cole. As Islamic radicals jeered at him from the nearby shore, Lt. Russell maneuvered the ship to safety. His former commanding officer, Capt. Mike Miller, now works for President Bush in the White House. When he learned of the pension problem, Capt. Miller started making phone calls to all the appropriate folks in the Navy bureaucracy. Time and time again, he has been told that nothing can be done for Lt. Russell's widow and their two children. Meanwhile, Lt. Richard Tucker, the “benefits coordinator” assigned to the Russell family case, is working furiously to assemble a package of benefits from the Veterans Administration and the Social Security Administration. But there is absolutely no other way to put it: The treatment visited upon Mrs. Russell and her sons is nothing less than shabby, disgraceful and outrageous. Lt. Russell was and is an authentic hero who put his life on the line for his fellow sailors and his country. It's time for Mr. Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to take immediate action to ensure that the Russell family gets the full amount of his pension. © 2001 The Washington Times; reprinted with permission. Table of Contents ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ARTICLE 06 – Feedback: Let’s Bring Back the Draft ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was drafted into the Army in 1954. Combat training was the hardest work I have ever done before or since. I weighed 135 lbs. when drafted, and 152 lbs. of bone and muscle two months later. I don't believe very many women could have did what I did and I am not a large or especially strong man. I firmly believe that the draft ( for men) would be good for the national good. I would not have enlisted, but after being drafted I was ready to do my duty. I would have done anything the country needed me for. I believe young men would have a greater appreciation of what it means to serve. Other services benefit indirectly from the draft. One young man that I knew opened his mailbox and found a draft notice. He closed the box, went down and joined the Air Force. I opened my mailbox and was drafted shortly thereafter. I was home in two years, while he was gone for four years. -- Lloyd Markell Table of Contents ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ARTICLE 07 – Ambush in Afghanistan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Editor’s Note: This is probably a true story. A large group of Taliban soldiers are moving down a road when they hear a voice call from behind a sand dune. “One U.S. Special Forces soldier is better than ten Taliban.” The Taliban commander quickly sends 10 of his best soldiers over the dune whereupon a gun battle breaks and continues for a few minutes, then silence. The voice then calls out “One U.S. Special Forces soldier is better than one hundred Taliban.” Furious, the Taliban commander sends his next best 100 troops over the dune and instantly a huge gunfight commences. After 10 minutes of battle, again silence. The American voice calls out again “One U.S. Special Forces soldier is better than one thousand Taliban.” The enraged Taliban Commander musters one thousand fighters and sends them across the dune. Cannons, rockets and machine-guns ring out as a huge battle is fought. Then silence. Eventually one wounded Taliban fighter crawls back over the dune and with his dying words tells his commander, “Don't send any more men, it's a trap. There's actually two of them.” Table of Contents ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ARTICLE 08 – Medal of Honor Recipient – ASHLEY, EUGENE, JR. SFC USA ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rank and organization: Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, Company C, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces. Place and date: Near Lang Vei, Republic of Vietnam, 6th and 7th February 1968. Entered service at: New York, N.Y. Born: 12 October 1931, Wilmington, N.C. Citation: Sfc. Ashley, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving with Detachment A-101, Company C. Sfc. Ashley was the senior special forces advisor of a hastily organized assault force whose mission was to rescue entrapped U.S. special forces advisors at Camp Lang Vei. During the initial attack on the special forces camp by North Vietnamese army forces, Sfc. Ashley supported the camp with high explosive and illumination mortar rounds. When communications were lost with the main camp, he assumed the additional responsibility of directing air strikes and artillery support. Sfc. Ashley organized and equipped a small assault force composed of local friendly personnel. During the ensuing battle, Sfc. Ashley led a total of five vigorous assaults against the enemy, continuously exposing himself to a voluminous hail of enemy grenades, machine gun and automatic weapons fire. Throughout these assaults, he was plagued by numerous booby-trapped satchel charges in all bunkers on his avenue of approach. During his fifth and final assault, he adjusted air strikes nearly on top of his assault element, forcing the enemy to withdraw and resulting in friendly control of the summit of the hill. While exposing himself to intense enemy fire, he was seriously wounded by machine gun fire but continued his mission without regard for his personal safety. After the fifth assault he lost consciousness and was carried from the summit by his comrades only to suffer a fatal wound when an enemy artillery round landed in the area. Sfc. Ashley displayed extraordinary heroism in risking his life in an attempt to save the lives of his entrapped comrades and commanding officer. His total disregard for his personal safety while exposed to enemy observation and automatic weapons fire was an inspiration to all men committed to the assault. The resolute valor with which he led five gallant charges placed critical diversionary pressure on the attacking enemy and his valiant efforts carved a channel in the overpowering enemy forces and weapons positions through which the survivors of Camp Lang Vei eventually escaped to freedom. Sfc. Ashley's bravery at the cost of his life was in the highest traditions of the military service, and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army. Editor’s Note: If you know of any MOH recipient who is hospitalized or has passed away recently, please email MOH Correspondent James H. 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