Officer of Engineers

I'm reading AMERICAN SOLDIER now and it doesn't read that way to me. It could be Franks giving a positive spin on things.

Several things for sure. Gen Franks is not a believer in the Powell doctrine. It lacks the finess that Gen Franks prefers. And Gen Franks have a very low opinion of the CNN generals.

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Chimo

Bluesman

Oh my GAWD. I just read that article, and it's a laffer. We're bogged down? We're out of munitions? The Iraqis aren't scared? The only way out is back?


Okay, if that doesn't confirm that this guy is an idiot, nothing does. Hirsh shouldn't be writing for phone book ads, much less for any responsible news outlet.

__________________
"The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it, and if one finds the prospect of a long war intolerable, it is natural to disbelieve in the possibility of victory."
- George Orwell

Bluesman

General Franks is about the closest thing to a military genius that we've had since Robert E. Lee. He planned and executed a brilliant campaign in Afghanistan (aka 'The Graveyard of Empires' ), and with changes in the plan in Iraq WHILE it was being executed (and it was a major change, too - the 4th ID wasn't even available, and that northern front was opened with SF and an airborne brigade), he STILL was absolutely excellent.

Tommy Franks is a terrific soldier, leader and strategist. A man of tremendous charisma, integrity and intelligence. He has no equal that can be perceived at this time.

Blademaster

Against a foe who couldn't be trusted to tie his own shoes properly.

As one NATO officer told the Israelis, "I figured out your secret key ingredient in the success you had. You were fighting against Arabs."

Officer of Engineers

On this, I agree with the Sgt-Maj, even as an exercise, this would be a tough do. Alot of it got to do with the technology available. The real time info of exactly where everything was and targetting priorities that could be shifted was without parallel.

Bluesman

Tiny correction, sir - I'm a Master Sergeant. I'm a senior NCO, but I'm at the bottom of that tier. I still have yet to make Senior Master Sergeant, and then my goal is to make the top enlisted grade of Chief Master Sergeant (equivalent to Sergeant Major in the Army, or Demi-God in the Heavenly Host); still two grades away yet.

Blademaster

How long have you been in the Marines? In what capacity? If you retire as Sergeant Major, what does it mean in terms of pay and benefits?

Officer of Engineers

My apologies, Master Sergeant. That rank doesn't appear on my chart in the CF. After 19 years, you would've made Company Sergeant-Major (either Warrant Officer or Master Warrant Officer) on your way to Regimental Sergeant-Major (Chief Warrant Officer).

Blademaster

Sir, I have a friend who is interested in joining the US military. He is an FIU (Florida International Univ.) grad with a Masters in industrial engineering.

He told me that he is consider joining the Reserves. I told him that there won't be much for him b/c he has no military experience and the Reserves won't likely take anybody with zero military experience. I told him to go for full time active.

I told him that the Air Force or Navy would be happy to take him on b/c he already has a Masters in engineering which is very rare. But the thing is that he's not a US citizen so he can't be an officer. He can join as an enlisted. Because of his engineering background which he has some work experience, he can easily be promoted to E-5 rank within 1 or 2 years after clearing physical training courses.

I told him that he can become an US citizen thus an officer after serving 4 years as enlisted.

Am I right on any of these counts?

Officer of Engineers

You have to ask American service members here for that info. However, the DoD website should have all the info you need.

Lucien LaCroix

I am not certain about whether or not he must be a U.S. citizen to become a commissioned officer (I finished my career as a Senior Master Sergeant (E-8)). I know that enlisted personnel holding other than U.S. citizenship were required to obtain American citizenship prior to reenlistment after their first term, but that rule may not be applicable to those desiring to hold commissioned officer status.

His best bet would be to simply check with a recruiter of whatever branch of the service he desires to enter. I do know that military personnel are given a fast-track with regard to achieving U.S. citizenship, so it may be possible for him to achieve that goal quicker than the normal timeline (five years for civilians). Assuming that is true, he probably wouldn't have to spend even four years as an enlisted man.

One thing is certain, the military would, indeed, be very happy about having someone with a Masters Degree in an engineering field join their ranks.

FIU...I thought about taking courses there when I was stationed at Homestead AFB (before Hurricane Andrew leveled it).

__________________
"If I see further than other men, it is because I stand upon the shoulders of giants."

Bluesman

Oh, I'm not a Marine. I'm Air Force (and so's my wife; Lt. Bluesman is a nurse.)

I actually don't qualify to be a Marine - my head won't fit in the jar. (I used that one around my wife's fraternal grandfather, a WWII leatherneck - and i almost didn't get out of his house alive! That 82-year-old Brooklyn boy won't take a Marine joke...as I wish SOMEbody had told me beforehand. )

I'm an intelligence analyst, currently representing National Security Agency here at Special Operations Command. About the best job I can think of right now...

As far as retirement bennies for a Chief Master Sergeant (Sergeant Major equivalent) go, I'd have to look it all up, but you can get an idea about all that on any number of websites, including the official USAF website.

Bluesman

Air Force promotions are notoriously slow, and I'm not nearly as smart as my peer group. My career has not set the world on fire, but I'm happy with it, just the same. I'm still progressing and still having fun.

The earliest one can make Chief (our top enlisted grade) is 16 years, and I've only known one guy that did that. He deserved it; I've never met anybody that was that high-speed/low-drag. Super Trooper, man.

Generally, one makes Master @ 18 years. I was right on time, so I'm not behind the curve, but, I hope to sneak a year off time-to-climb to Senior and Chief. If I do, I'll make it @ 21 and 25, respectively.

Lucien LaCroix

How times change. When I was on active duty, the average TOS for Master was around 13.5 years, with 19 years for E-8 and 22.5 for E-9.

One of the consquences of becoming an increasingly smaller--and more competitive--service, I guess.

Julie

Thank you. My article is written by one that is bias....okay...here are some excerpts from a different source, and the link is provided:

Rumsfeld criticized over armor issue
"Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle Sunday pointed to poor planning to explain what they viewed as the lack of appropriate armor to protect U.S. soldiers in Iraq, with some showing less and less confidence in Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld."

"The armor issue came up last week when a soldier in Kuwait, awaiting deployment for Iraq, asked the secretary during a large question-and-answer session why soldiers had to dig in trash heaps for armor to protect their vehicles.

Rumsfeld replied that he was unaware of the problem and that "you go to war with the Army you have, not the Army you might want or wish to have." He said shortages of armor did not stem from a lack of money but were "a matter of physics." The manufacturers of add-on armor are producing it as fast as humanly possible, he said.

That apparently is not the case, however: two armor-producing companies quickly came forward to say they were not working at capacity and were awaiting orders from the Pentagon. The Army struck a deal with one of those companies on Friday."

http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/...ain/index.html