-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! ARTICLE 8 Air Force: Family Support Doesn’t Live Up To The Advertisements Ed.: Are we truly taking care of the troops? If this happens to a guy with 18 years in service, what do the younger troops experience? By a Tired Airman His is about a subject that hurts me so deeply as to make me question my trust in the military organization as a whole. It is directed at the Air Force, specifically, Offutt Air Force Base. I've been in this man’s Air Force for almost 18 years, and have been married to my wife for over 13 years. About 7 of those years I have spent away doing my duty in areas all over the world. And up to this point, I have been extremely proud of watching some of my troops perform beyond anyone's expectations on a daily basis in areas like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Hungary, Korea, and others... Yet, over the past six years I've had a very serious problem on how Offutt AFB is treating my family while I'm away. To give you some ideas, our home has flooded three times in the last three years. Yet, no one, not even our insurance company, is willing to pay for any damages to our personal items. This is due in part to a home that is built under code, too deep in the ground, and is landscaped incorrectly, towards the foundation instead of away. Our damages in this home over the last three years have exceeded over $20,000 and we have basically been stonewalled by the military and told that we were the more negligent for allowing our home to flood, and our items to be damaged. Yet, our housing office refuses to move us to other quarters because flooding and mold in the home are insufficient reasons to request a move. My three children have had to be treated for mold exposure, and yet even with this documentation, Offutt housing feels that "Mold is not a health issue". This, coupled with our children being repeatedly misdiagnosed by military physicians, and my wife being subjected to humiliating exams, my wife sought civilian employment that would give her better medical insurance on the outside. Every time I take measures to bring this to the attention of the very people who profess they are there to help, the IG, Services, Commanders, First Sergeants, and even Chaplains, I get basically the same "Party Line" answer. It seems that when someone is asked to stand up for the very things they profess they support, they scatter like leaves in the wind, leaving the military member standing alone to face the onslaught. I've been watching this for years, and becoming more educated in the process. And I'm beginning to believe that the more I see, the less I want to be part of this military anymore. It is thoroughly disturbing, that after all the hard work we've put in, and all the time we've given up with the ones we love most, to have to watch how our military support systems only exist in the minds of those who profess it? To give you an idea how bad this really is: Between 1996 and 1997, there were a total of 66 suicides in the Air Force. Twelve (12) were on Offutt AFB. When families were asked for the reason why, most said "Lack of Unit support". But when Offutt Leaders were questioned as to why these deaths were taking place, they're answer was "Lack of Family Support"... Pretty frightening isn't it... Well, don't get me wrong. I am extremely proud to say I volunteered and gave 20 years to the service of my country. A country I love so much that when I hear the sound of Taps, or the National Anthem playing, it still brings tears of pride and joy to my eyes. I just don't know if I could ask my children to do the same after seeing what I've seen in today's military. Not as a career anyway... ARTICLE 9 The Sergeant’s Corner Surveys Can Only Be An Additional Tool Ed: Surveys seem to run rampant in the field. But…do they accomplish more than take up valuable time? By a Concerned Air Force NonCom When I first entered the USAF in 1986, I can scarcely remember any "surveys" that we were "encouraged" to fill out. As time went on, manning began to drop, shifts began to increase, and funding began to run short, the surveys, commanders calls, enlisted calls, mandatory squadron "parties", etc., began to increase, as you folks are only too well aware of. So, thinking this was unusual, I queried my dad (MSgt, USAF RET 1954-1978). I was right... Recently, a survey (fall of 99) that some of your USAF readership will remember came out. It was a Chief Of Staff, USAF directed survey. Unlike our myriad of other surveys that we could (gasp, write that man an LOR) readily place in the circular file, this one was by Internet, wanted your SSN #, rank, location, and duty title. It was, a "social climate" survey. God help those that didn't complete this 1 1/2 hour survey. Meanwhile your phones are ringing off the hook, planes are launching, and an irate SNCO is pissed at you for daring to pass on your two cents worth regarding the stupidity of this survey. We actually were told that our pay, benefits, and housing quality dropped because "you guys failed to completed these surveys that tell us what you need". I say "BULLSHIT". You cannot possibly tell me that there are not enough officers or SNCOs who work out here with us in the field, that cannot funnel our concerns to the wing king, whom I'm sure makes enough trips to MAJCOM and HQUSAF to pass on our pains. I firmly believe the reason the surveys are pushed so hard is that certain officers and SNCOs do not, or will not, take the time to interact with their folks in the field. Yes, you're busy, well so too are we. Get out of your office, out of the squadron, and VISIT your people. Not during duty hours, try the weekends, 12 hour nightshifts, down-days and holidays that my airmen work. Commanders calls and mandatory fun are not the fix; getting out frequently and mingling with your folks (and LISTENING to them) so that you have a PRESENCE is... If we see you genuinely care, then maybe our leadership above you will too. You said it best SFTT, "Leadership by E-Mail"... ARTICLE 10 Air Force / Air National Guard recruiting is a broken system Ed.: This recruiter makes an excellent point -- we should be looking for the right talent, not the proper cultural mix. Combat isn’t an equal opportunity employer! By a Concerned AF Recruiter Periodically we receive the latest "Propaganda" in the form of "The Diversity Digest." The gist of this rag is that quality be damned, we are going to fill our quotas for minorities and females. I am a pilot and couldn't give a damn what color you are, as long as you can do the job and hack the mission. The Air Force / Air National Guard sees their priorities a little differently though. One day we will pay for those ill-focused priorities with a lot of needless deaths and crashed planes. I wasn't aware that I signed up for a great big social experiment -- I thought I was signing up to defend my country. Silly me. *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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