Tag Archives: fort hood

Photos of the Day – Marne Troops Commence Beat-down

Posted on July 23, 2011 by CJ| Leave a comment

Yesterday, I was able to spend my lunch at the Abrams Gym here on Ft. Hood and watch a bit of the All-Army Combatives Tournament taking place this week. While I’m obviously hoping for a III Corps win as a III Corps Soldier, I can’t help but still feel a bit of loyalty to the Division with which I fought to take out Saddam Hussein in 2003, the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) – The Marne Division! You can also follow the Division’s success at the tournament and in everything they do on Twitter (@3rd_Infantry) and see more updated photos and stories about the great things that Marne Soldiers are doing.

Here are a few photos from SPC Crystal Bradley showing 3rd ID Soldiers fighting their way to the top. Additionally, you can watch the tournament finals live this afternoon at around 1630 CST (1730 EST) here.


Spc. Brian L. Wilson (top), Company G, 203rd Forward Support Company, 3rd Infantry Division, fights hard for dominancy during a match in the All-Army Combatives Tournament Semi-Finals July 22, 2011, held at Fort Hood, Texas.


This is one of the matches I got to watch. It was a great fight and quite entertaining to watch as they were all over the mat, knocking over chairs and stuff. Spc. Nathaniel D. Freeman, Company C, 1st Battalion, 3rd Brigade Support Troops Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, fights his way through a match.


Pfc. Hanlin Liu (ground), Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 69th Armored Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, places a leg-lock on his opponent during a match in the All-Army Combatives Tournament Semi-Finals.

Good luck in the finals!

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Rock The Hood

Posted on November 11, 2010 by CJ| 1 Comment

On Saturday, November 6, 2010, Fort Hood hosted an event to commemorate the one year anniversary of the horrible tragedy that occurred at the hands of an extremist Islamic radical. All sorts of bands converged on the post to give troops and the military community a good time and signal an opportunity to move on.

Chris Cagle was the only country music artist that played on the main stage. During his performance, two civilian numbskulls decided to get testy with each other and Chris had to pause his show to deal with the rabble rousers. At the time, I tweeted what was going on. One of those in attendance actually got it on video.

Later, Chris asked the audience to observe a moment of silence for those that lost their lives there a year earlier and for the families still grieving. It was a difficult thing to ask and he couldn’t even finish his words before succumbing to emotion.

Perhaps my favorite parts – other than seeing my favorite new band, 7 Years Today – was an intro that Cassie from Flyleaf did to their song, “Arise.” I felt as if she were speaking directly to me and felt a groundswell of emotion inside me. Listen to her address an audience of troops at Fort Hood:

Here are the lyrics to the song:

Tell the swine
We will make it out alive
Theres a note in the pages of a book
So sleep tonight
Well sleep dreamlessly this time
When we awake well know that everythings alright

Sing to me about the end of the world
End of these hammers and needles for you

Hold on to the world we all remember fighting for
There’s still strength left in us yet
Hold on to the world we all remember dying for
There’s still hope left in it yet

There’s snow on your face
And your razor blade
The twilight is bruised
And there you lie

Sing to me about the end of the world
End of these hammers and needles for you
Well cry tonight
And in the morning we are new
Stand in the sun
We’ll dry your eyes

Hold on to the world we all remember fighting for
There’s still strength left in us yet
Hold on to the world we all remember dying for
There’s still hope left in it yet

Sing, sing
Arise

Arise and be
All that you dreamed
All that you dreamed

(Hold on to the world we all remember fighting for)
Arise and be
All that you dreamed
All that you dreamed
(Hold on to the world we all remember fighting for)
Arise and be
All that you dreamed
All that you dreamed
(Hold on to the world we all remember fighting for)
Arise and be
All that you dreamed
All that you dreamed
Arise and be
All that you dreamed
All that you dreamed

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WND Fort Hood Piece Inaccurate

Posted on October 6, 2010 by CJ| 1 Comment

Blackfive posted a story last week that linked to a World Net Daily piece titled “Fort Hood soldiers told to list private weapons.” This piece is completely inaccurate.

The story quotes “a Soldier” who reported that he and other Soldiers were placed on a watchlist. I would offer that this Soldier’s testimony is most likely pure conjecture and speculation. I want to put out the truth of what is happening on Fort Hood and why, keeping in mind that this is MY personal opinion based on experience here at Fort Hood.

Two weekends ago, the Army as a whole lost five Soldiers to suicide, four of which were at Ft. Hood. This is a disturbing trend that brought the total number of Ft. Hood suicides to a record14 for the year (with an additional six unconfirmed). Naturally, leaders are concerned about these statistics and scrambling to figure out the hows and whys of what is happening.

Senior leaders visited the homes of our troops to gauge their living environment and identify any potential factors that add stress to normal military life. Is the Soldier having financial issues? Does he/she live in a high crime or loud neighborhood? Does the Soldier have adequate transportation? Enough food? Able to wash clothes? Etc. One Senior NCO discovered while visiting a Soldier’s home that he was washing his clothes in a bucket because he didn’t have a functional washing machine. That NCO then gave the Soldier a spare washing machine he wasn’t using. That is taking care of Soldiers.

In gauging stresses, one needs to also evaluate risks. If a Soldier is suffering from the normal Army stress of daily business, comes home to a bunch of bills he cannot pay and a neighborhood that has nothing better to do than party all night, it stands to reason that the Soldier may be a higher risk for depression, anger, and/or suicidal tendencies. If that Soldier also has weapons in the home, the ability to harm oneself is increases the risk. As leaders, we need to know those things.

The only requirement we had with respect to weapons was merely to find out if our Soldiers possessed them, whether on or off post. There was no requirement to ask how many, what type, location, or serial number. We only needed a simple yes or no answer to the question, “do you own guns?”

I would be an idiot if I said that this intent was uniformly interpreted at every level of command. No doubt, there are some lower level leaders that took this directive a few steps too far and did demand more specific information that I believe is outside the scope of their authority. I personally believe it is none of the Army’s business what kinds of guns I own, how many, or where they’re kept. Obviously, the Army wants its Soldiers to do things legally and stresses that we should at least follow local laws for possessing and storing weapons if living off post.

Suicide prevention is a driving factor in many decisions being made locally. We are doing everything we can to figure out the causes and try to stem any future such events. To those ends, some leaders get overzealous in their efforts and infringe on Soldiers’ individual rights guaranteed under the constitution they swore to serve. Contrary to some beliefs, we didn’t surrender those when we put on this uniform.

The Army is not infringing on anyone’s right to own weapons and any “watchlist” created is NOT a postwide directive. At least not that I have seen and I serve in a directly subordinate to III Corps, so I don’t have all those filters of intent.

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Fort Hood Interim Recommendations Released; Subpoenas Coming?

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Marcus the Redshirt| Leave a comment

The DoD released the interim recommendations yesterday in a press release.

(1) Expand the pilot program to fully deploy eGuardian as the DoD-wide force protection threat reporting system to handle suspicious incident activities. The eGuardian system, which is FBI-owned and maintained, will safeguard civil liberties, while enabling information sharing among Federal, State, local, and tribal law enforcement partners, including interagency fusion centers.

(2) Complete the deployment of the Law Enforcement Defense Data Exchange system (D-DEx) allowing all DoD law enforcement agencies to share criminal investigation as well as other law enforcement data as appropriate. D-DEx  will be a consolidated database to enable organizations across the Department  to query, retrieve, and post criminal investigation and law enforcement data in a single repository.

(3) Establish the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Americas’ Security Affairs as the DoD lead for the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force program.

(4) Strengthen DoD’s antiterrorism training program by incorporating lessons learned from the Fort Hood incident, Department of Homeland Security best practices on workplace violence, and civilian law enforcement active shooter awareness training.

Now what is interesting about the release of the recommendations isn’t necessarily the recommendations themselves, but the timing of the release along with this charge and threat by Senator Joe Lieberman.

Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) accused the Obama administration of stalling a congressional investigation into the Fort Hood shootings and threatened to start issuing subpoenas.

I heard about rumblings coming from Congress a couple of months ago. The word then was just as it is now; the Administration isn’t playing very nice. I quite frankly don’t blame Senator Lieberman for being frustrated and threatening to use his subpoena powers.

Normally I would support the military completing it’s investigation and asking Congress to just stand by until the prosecution was complete, but I trust Lieberman. He has been tough during the War on Terror and hasn’t backed down to the Democrats. He will ensure that the men and women killed and injured receive justice.

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National Military Saves Week

Posted on February 24, 2010 by CJ| 2 Comments

I had no idea this existed, but it couldn’t have come at a more convenient time. Last week, we got our tax refund (which is already spent) and paid off some bills. We are now almost completely debt free and it feels good. This week is National Military Saves Week. I’ll let LTG Robert Cone tell you what it is, but first I want to tell you how we’ve managed to get out of debt.

When I first joined the Army, my TAKE HOME pay was a little less than $300 every two weeks. With this nearly $600 each month, I had to pay a car payment, insurance, gas, and food. My wife and I were newly married and she became pregnant immediately. With a baby on the way, all we had to live off of was ramen and spaghetti for a LONG time.

We made a bunch of stupid decisions beginning with the decision to purchase a brand new vehicle (Suzuki Esteem) instead of finding a cheap used one. When our family grew, we tried to trade into a bigger car (Suzuki Esteem Wagon) but owed more money than it was worth and ended up added that cost to the new vehicle. Things went downhill from there. We (meaning me most of the time) ended up charging a lot of stuff and digging ourselves into debt. Fingerhut owned us and Sears wouldn’t stop calling.

After about five years of almost unmanageable debt, I started working with our creditors to get out of debt. We began by convincing the credit card companies it was in their best interest to lower our interest rates so we could pay the cards off as opposed to just filing bankruptcy. Filing, of course, would have ruined my security clearance and there was no way I was going to do that but they didn’t know that.

Once rates were lowered, we targeted our smallest bill and made minimum payments on everything else until that bill was paid off. Then, we took the money we WERE paying each month on that bill and applied it to the next bill ON TOP OF the minimum payment. Once that one was paid off, we rolled that monthly payment to the next and so on. We got to a point where we were literally paying $600 a month on ONE bill with a minimum payment of about $20. The snowball effect of such a tactic is amazing!

On top of this, we continued to pay our tithing, which according to biblical scripture is 10%. We did so regardless of our financial situation and I believe we were blessed because of it. We are now almost completely debt free from unsecured debt. We still – for just a few more months – owe on our cars and still have house payments, of course. It’s taken us less than five years to get rid of more than ten years of debt this way.

Now to the point of National Military Saves Week. This is from LTG Robert Cone, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general.

As Soldiers, you work very hard for your money, and most of the time it never seems like you have enough. How many times have you looked around at the end of each month and asked yourself where did it go? Every month you pay your utility bills, car payments, insurance premiums, rent or home mortgage and credit cards bills, BUT are you paying yourself?

If you’ve ever been to a financial planning seminar the advice they always tell you up front is to “pay yourself first.”

Next week, February 21-28, is “National Military Saves Week.” Military Saves is a national campaign to persuade, motivate and encourage military families to save money every month, and to convince leaders and organizations to be aggressive in promoting automatic savings.

One of the main secrets to accumulating wealth, and more importantly financial stability and security in the long term, is consistent action over time. These actions include setting financial goals; creating, and sticking to, a budget; consolidating and paying down debt; and saving and/or investing your hard earned money.

One of the easiest and best ways to save money is to set up an automatic bank draft. By having a set amount of money deposited into a savings account each month you are effectively “paying yourself first.” Start out small and be realistic with your needs and goals. Look for ways to cut back on your spending and take personal responsibility for your financial future.

You can start right now by taking the Saver Pledge: “I will help myself by saving money, reducing debt, and building wealth over time. I will help my family and my country by encouraging other Americans to build wealth, not debt.”

There are a whole host of resources available here on Fort Hood to help you on your way to financial readiness and future wealth. From your unit command financial noncommissioned officer to the Personal Financial Assistance Center, located in the Resiliency Campus, professionals are standing by to help.

The Army Community Service Financial Readiness Branch offers classes about credit, savings, investing, home buying, banking, budgeting/debt management, insurance and consumer awareness/identity theft.

Financial readiness is a personal obligation for every Soldier. You cannot effectively focus on your mission if you are worried about finances and debt. Take charge of your fiscal future by taking advantage of these resources and developing healthy money management habits and routines.

I personally encourage all of you to begin saving this week and make it a lifelong commitment. Good luck on your quest to build wealth, eliminate debt, and achieve financial independence.

Pay Yourself First. Phantom Warriors!

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Fort Hood: Day Two

Posted on January 28, 2010 by CJ| Leave a comment

I know I’m severely late with this since I’ve been here now almost three weeks. But, I’ve been busy and then I lost my notes sheet with all the great information from the welcome brief with LTG Robert Cone. As you know, I served under LTG Cone when he was a “mere” Brigadier (one-star for the ill-informed) General at the National Training Center. I was excited to read last year that he was taking over III Corps and Fort Hood, one of the many reasons I chose to come here.

Every week, III Corps Commanding General and Command Sergeant Major (or their representative), LTG Cone and CSM Coleman, host a welcome briefing for all incoming troops. It’s a mandatory briefing to “graduate” from post in-processing to unit in-processing. After the briefing, representatives from the units that the troops will be assigned to meet and greet them over a free luncheon. There are also various representatives from post and community programs, including the Association of the United States Army. Good thing they were there because my membership was set to expire at the end of this month. I just went ahead and paid for the lifetime membership so I don’t have to worry about that problem again.

LTG Cone is about to lead III Corps in assuming the Iraq mission. Prior to leaving, he left the incoming Soldiers with some great words of advice as well as his leadership philosophy. As long as I’ve known LTG Cone, he’s been a Soldier’s General. It is his earnest belief that “Soldiers are the most important asset at Fort Hood.” And it shows based off his policies. According to the Phantom Warrior Standard book that is required to be carried by every Fort Hood troop, leaders must work very hard to release their troops within a certain time each day. The schedule is imposed to “allow service members to be home with their families by 1800 for a family dinner.” On Thursdays, the day ends no later than 1500 and exceptions to the policy must be directly coordinated with the Senior Commander of III Corps and Ft. Hood. Just one of many policies meant to alleviate the stresses on families during the high OPTEMPO this post is accustomed to.

LTG Cone told the audience that the greatest strength of the Army is Soldiers, not Generals and Colonels. “It’s Privates, Sergeants, Lieutenants and Captains” that make the Army great, he said. He urged the leaders (and emphasized that EVERYONE in the room can be a leader) to create a command climate where leaders can lead. All too often in our Army, lower level NCOs and Officers are so micromanaged that they are unsure of their own individual leadership abilities as they get promoted. This leads to more micromanagement and the stifling of ingenuity and innovation in leadership styles.

Directing his comments towards NCOs, the CG noted that training is job #1 in our Army. “We need to sweat in peacetime so we don’t bleed at war,” he asserted. He cautioned against wasting Soldiers’ time with useless training or no training at all. “When we waste Soldiers time, it says they aren’t important,” Cone said.

This is so true. Leaders at all levels to ensure that if a Soldier is going to get out of bed at 0500 or 0600 to do the work of this great nation, they should look forward to a busy day learning to stay alive, perfect their job skill, engage in meaningful counsel, and be afforded opportunities to excel and progress. Busy work doesn’t provide Soldiers with “purpose, direction, and motivation” – the definition of leadership. There is always room for training troops on Warrior Tasks and require minimum preparation and resources. Time management was another area stressed during the briefing by LTG Cone.

I’ve always said that if someone leaves a post thinking it sucked, it’s pretty much their own fault. I personally think that Fort Irwin is one of the best installations in the Army – a hidden jewel in the desert! But, a lot of people don’t feel that way and it’s because they didn’t make the most of their time there. I can’t count how many times I went to Vegas, only about 90 minutes away. I visited Hoover Dam, Victorville, Big Bear Lake, Los Angeles, Hollywood, Death Valley and other places within a short drive from post. Even closer, there are numerous off road areas for those that like to ride dirt bikes and four wheelers. I don’t gamble, but always found something fun (and cheap) to do in Vegas. Most people who didn’t like Irwin were hermits and rarely left post.

At Fort Hood and in the surrounding community, there are over 160 programs that focus on easing stress for the troops. There are numerous educational opportunities (there’s even a Texas A&M campus nearby) on post and within a short distance from the gates of Fort Hood. There are survivor outreach programs that focus on the families members of our fallen heroes to ensure they are not forgotten. I can’t tell you how many clubs, pools, gyms, theaters and other diversion I found within the limits of post. For Wounded Warriors, there is a Warrior Transition Unit to help them in their recovery that also provides opportunities for them to get out and reintegrate into society. And the community is awesome. The surrounding towns are very supportive of the troops, offering discounts and other benefits to those who serve. There is also a “resiliency campus,” but I’m not going to dwell on that right now because I want to write a post specifically about what they have to offer. But, it’s there to help Soldiers deal with the effects of combat, to include PTS, PTSD, and other mental health issues. LTG Cone said that the Army sends us out to combat and everyone is affected at some level. “It’s our job to fix you,” he said staring as many Soldiers in the eye as possible.

Taking a somber tone, the CG spoke about depression, suicide, and anger issues. He urged everyone in the room to take care of the people to their left and right. But he also told us that we have to look inside. “No one can help you if you aren’t willing to help yourself,” he counseled. The stigma is gone and there’s nothing weak about seeking help for combat related mental health issues. If you recognize that your buddy needs help, LTG Cone said to “step up and tell them to get help.” Then, go with them to ensure they know they are not alone. If you think that your buddy is contemplating suicide, don’t let him/her make that decision. Be the nosy buddy and take action. Show them you care and their life in important.

I don’t want to go on and on, but I wanted to mention something Command Sergeant Major Coleman, III Corps and Fort Hood Command Sergeant Major, said. It’s a very profound statement and when followed affects every aspect of a Soldiers life. “Do what is right and is what is right all the time,” he said. As Soldiers, we take care of each other. We lift each other up and watch each other’s backs. There’s a definition I like to attribute to discipline: “Discipline is doing what’s right when no one else is watching.” CSM Coleman pretty said that, so I know I’m not too far off base.

We are at war and when troops aren’t doing what’s right, it affects mission readiness and deployability. It takes other Soldiers away from their missions to pick up the slack, which makes us all more vulnerable. But, when a Soldier does as CSM Coleman stated and “does what is right and what is right ALL the time” we don’t have to worry about that. Accidents will happen and calamity will strike, but not as often when we’re prepared and not participating in risky behavior.

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Fort Hood: Day Three

Posted on January 22, 2010 by CJ| 2 Comments

Yeah, I know – I missed day two. I meant to write that yesterday, but I left my laptop in my car and it was late and I didn’t want to get dressed to walk out and get it. Then, today I have my laptop but left my notes in the car. Since yesterday was the welcome brief by Fort Hood and III Corps Commanding General, LTG Robert Cone, and Fort Hood and III Corps Command Sergeant Major, CSM Arthur Coleman, I wanted to touch on some of the things they mentioned. They made a lot of good points and have some great quotes. So, since once again it’s late and I don’t want to get dressed to go out and get them, I’m skipping to day three. Tomorrow, I will write about day two!

Fort Hood has a fairly efficient in-processing system. Leaders that are Sergeant First Class and above are able to in-process on their own. The checklist has what needs to be done on certain days. Today, I did medical, dental, and finance. All of this is located in the Copeland Center which is the in-processing hub of Fort Hood. Practically everything is centrally located here.

Prior to leaving Redstone Arsenal, they gave me a half dozen immunizations in order to clear. It was a nightmare. As I in-processed immunizations here, I smugly replied that this should be quick since I just got all my shots up to day a month ago. WRONG! I need the typhoid vaccination. I swear, any day now I’m going to be utterly impervious to even death with all these shots. Then I had to get an HIV test and something else. They all blur after awhile.

After immunizations was self help. This is where you speak with a medical counselor about the over-the-counter medications that are available at the pharmacy. This is a benefit that I don’t think most civilians know about. In the Army (at most duty stations), I can walk into the pharmacy and ask for a bottle of Acetaminophen (Tylenol) and not pay a dime for it. I can also get things like Pepto Bismol, Sudafed, and other OTC drugs. Naturally, there is a monthly limit, but someone who gets a lot of headaches can understand the cost benefit of this. I wonder if even the Soldiers really take advantage of this as I frequently see them buying them at the PX.

Next up was Dental. Emily hates my beautifully hygienic mouth. She says it’s not fair that I have such nice teeth and never needed braces. The dentist agreed and sent me on my way, explaining that I needed to come in June for my regularly scheduled six month cleaning. This is another benefit that we get as Soldiers – free every six month dental cleanings, plus all the floss and toothbrushes we need (completely off topic, but we also get free condoms and they come in every size – even flavored!). At Redstone Arsenal, they even have the waterless, pre-pasted single use toothbrushes you could grab (one per visit). I put them in my car for times when I’m in a hurry and forgot to brush my teeth. Teeth looking fine, I walked out smiling to my next location – Tricare.

I don’t know why so many people complain about military health care. The only problems I’ve had were with individuals and only rarely with the system. When we relocated the family, there was confusion among Tricare representatives. Where the family went, they weren’t covered under the normal active duty Prime plan. They had to go on Standard. To get them on Standard, I had to dis-enroll from the Prime, which was in another region. Because our health care is contracted out, each region does things a little differently. One was telling me that if we dis-enrolled from Prime, we couldn’t re-enroll for another year while the other was saying that if you dis-enroll because Prime isn’t offered, that there is no time limit. Well, we dis-enrolled and sure enough Emily got a letter saying she wouldn’t be allowed to re-enroll for a year. So, I had to clear that up with the representative and we should be good to go. Time will tell, but hopefully we never have to test it!

By this time, it was lunch time. I ran to the Military Clothing store on post because I needed a new beret. You see, when we moved, the packers packed up my uniform which had my beret in the pocket. I didn’t know that until I tried to find my uniform the next day. I still had my spare beret packet away with my other uniforms and ended up using that piece of junk that hung virtually to my shoulders. I went in and bought one of those nifty pre-formed and pre-shaved berets so I didn’t have to worry about the hassle. It sucked! The thing kept poofing out like a french pastry chef. I’m very image conscious as a senior NCO and don’t like looking like a dirtbag. I went back today and got a standard beret that worked 100 times better than the more expensive one I bought a few days earlier! I also had to get a new Combat Action Badge (CAB) since mine was on the uniform that is probably packed with my soap-on-a-rope.

Let me digress for a moment and complain about the ACU for a minute. EVERYTHING related to this uniform is too expensive. The patches cost twice as much as the old patches. The uniform costs more than the old one. The rank costs more. And the badges cost a HELL OF A LOT MORE than the sew-on badges from the old uniforms. I had to pay $7.10 for a Sta-Black CAB because we can’t sew on the subdued badges with this uniform. And there is no such thing as an AAFES brand like the old days that was cheaper than the Sta-Bright or Sta-Black brands in there now. $7 for something that probably cost $.40 to make. A sew-on patch would have cost about $1.25. Buy one for each uniform and you’re still saving $2! They say that it’s cheaper this way because you don’t have to pay for sewing. I SEWED MY OWN PATCHES ON!! Even still, it would cost another $1.50 to sew each badge on, bringing the total for four uniforms to $11. If I lose my CAB (or it gets packed), I pay $14 for just two badges. I will never lose a sew on badge!! So, by sewing on patches, I’ve saved $3 and that’s if I only need/use ONE badge. I feel for those Airborne, Air Assault, Air Hooah guys that have to buy multiple badges. Sometimes it pays to be a frog-hoppin’ leg! Digression over…

I had some transportation stuff to take care of and they didn’t do the Do-It-Yourself (DITY) moves until 1300. But, on a base as large as Fort Hood, a LOT of people are in need of taking care of transportation stuff. So, I grabbed my grapefruit and knife that I bought at Military Clothing (my old National Training Center retention knife broke) and plopped myself in line next to transportation door at about 11:40. I was second in line! I was able to file my DITY move paperwork to get reimbursed for what I carried from Alabama.

After that, I had some extra time, so I went to III Corps Headquarters to speak with the Public Affairs peeps to let them know I was on station. I always try to foster relationships with the PAOs and let them know I’m here so they aren’t surprised if it comes up. It also gets me on the media distribution list for happenings on post that I can attend and write about. I like to stay active in my post and inform you people about the great way our Army is taking care of troops. I also get forewarning of celebrities coming to spend time with our Soldiers so I can give them credit for using their fame on our behalf. I also wanted to try and schedule an interview for the radio show with LTG Cone. LTC Cone was my CG back at Fort Irwin when he only had one star. He reenlisted me indefinitely into the Army is a GREAT leader. I’m privileged to serve under him again and my Day Two post will explain why in more detail.

The day was almost over, so I headed over to my new unit. We’re still trying to flush out where I belong until all the other E8′s scheduled to leave are identified and positions open up. Looks like right now I’m sort of excess. There is a unit that asked for me by name and I tried locating them today but didn’t have enough time before the day ended.

I came home, prepped for our awesome show tonight, and the rest you know! If you missed the show, you must download and listen. We had some awesome guests and the audio was finally fixed, except for the birds squawking from time to time. After the show, I talked to some of the kids (Anissa isn’t talking to me because I won’t put up with her attitude) and chatted online with Emily for awhile. She finally got her 2-year phone upgrade and I was helping her get songs on it for ringtones.

And that’s day three at Fort Hood. For the record, I’m not doing this every day! I’m just writing about the in-processing process.

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Fort Hood: Day One

Posted on January 19, 2010 by CJ| 2 Comments

So, my in-processing of Fort Hood officially commenced today. If there’s one unsexy part of the military, it’s the monotony of in-processing. At Fort Hood, most of the process is automated and centralized. We all sit in a big, stuffy room listening to lecture after lecture about post services. Granted that most people there were first termers who had just joined the Army (more on that later) and done for their benefit, but I always try to find something I can get out of each briefing.

The briefing that stood out the most today was the briefing from the Preventive Medicine Clinic. We got to learn all about STDs today. So much so that I’m not sure I ever want to have sex ever again! To her credit, the briefer didn’t make light of the subject matter. When talking about the friction caused by bumping uglies while wearing a thin, latex condom she didn’t skip a beat and ignored the snickers in the room without so much as a giggle herself.

She brought along with her one of the most graphic slideshows I’ve ever seen on the subject. EVER! I’ve seen more diseased genitals than I ever care to see again. For good measure, a few were even thrown in of STDs transmitted through, um, same sex “relations.” If anyone is interested, I can attempt to obtain a copy of it after my eyes have recovered and the bile has been washed from my mouth. It’s amazing how some of these things migrate to various places on the body from head to toe.

In-processing is a long procession of filling out paper and getting handouts that will most likely end up in the trash within minutes of release. Briefers are filed in like cattle at an auction one after another in an orchestrated dance of long-winded presentations about the great programs the Army offers (and I mean that sincerely).

My favorite is always the finance portion because that’s where I get paid for traveling between duty stations and get reimbursed for hotel expenses and mileage. I learned long ago that the only advance one should take on a military move is the Dislocation Allowance. It doesn’t varied is a benefit of military service. It’s expensive to pick up one’s household and relocate it to another place. You have to pay for deposits on everything from gas and water to cable and rental deposits. The DLA helps offset those costs.

During every move I ALWAYS do a partial Do It Yourself (DITY) move. Every Soldier has to carry some baggage and Army gear from duty station to duty station. Setting up a partial DITY at the losing unit ensures that the Soldier gets paid for the added weight being transported in his vehicle. I don’t let the Army pack my guns, motorcycle or some collectibles. They simply mean too much to me to risk being ruined. Soldiers are able to get an advance on the estimated weight of these shipments, but if you’re wrong you end up dishing out a LOT of money to pay the Army back. So, I just wait until I get to my new unit and then file the paperwork to get reimbursed. It’s more accurate that way and I am guaranteed not to get charged for anything.

As I said earlier, many of the Soldiers in-processing are coming to Fort Hood after just graduating from boot camp and their advanced MOS training. It’s encouraging to see these young, fresh-faced patriots that volunteered to defend our Constitution and the American way of life. As I sat there spacing out during some of the briefings, I couldn’t help but silently thank each and every young man and woman sitting there in the same uniform I have worn for the past 15 years (setting aside that I’m wearing a different uniform than I wore 15 years ago) and that they joined knowing they may get sent to combat. It was encouraging to see that some of our youth aren’t as selfish as we like to label them.

I made an effort to talk to as many as I could, especially the ones that looks like a deer in headlights. I explained that sometimes being in the Army will suck but that they can find humor and joy in EVERY assignment if they just keep that mindset. I helped them fill out their forms when they seemed confused by a surprisingly rushed presenter. All of them were eager to get to work doing what they had just been trained to do. And I felt honored to be among them.

Tomorrow, we get briefed by the Fort Hood commanding general, LTG Robert Cone, and Command Sergeant Major, CSM Coleman. I’m interested to see if they talk at all about the terrorist shooting here a few weeks ago. I’m curious as to why I can’t keep a weapon in my car during the day, even if I register it on post. It seems to me that the lack of weapons readily available is what enabled Hasan to successfully kill and injure so many Soldiers. I may try to set up an appointment with LTG Cone for an official interview or invite him to our show to talk on this subject. I’ve also heard rumors that leaders here refuse to call Hasan a terrorist, but I haven’t encountered that attitude yet.

Post policy prohibits me from defending myself on my way to or from post outside the gates because I can’t legally carry a weapon in my car during the drive. I have a 30 minute minimum commute each day from Temple to Fort Hood and anyone wishing to do harm to a Soldier knows that if he’s coming from post, he’s supposed to be unarmed. I’m not saying that LTG Cone or Fort Hood policy is necessarily wrong or that I disagree with it, I’d just like to know the logic behind it especially considering recent events. Of course, it may be that their hands are tied since the law passed during the Clinton years to disarm troops on military installations (the irony is astounding). I’ve seen images and read history books where Officers and NCOs always wore a sidearm on them on post.

Anyway, I’m excited about being on one of the largest and most historic military installations that is home to some of the best units in the Army. And I can’t wait to get to work myself!

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Words of Wisdom

Posted on December 26, 2009 by CJ| Leave a comment

Last year around this time, we interviewed LTG Jerry Boykin. Having worked under Boykin, I know the kind of man he is. He’s inspirational and someone I’d follow anywhere. Thankfully, I know a few general officers that fit that bill.

Boykin is now speaking out about the Nidal Hasan case in which the Army dropped the ball on removing an Islamic extremist from within the ranks while attempting to shut me down and a man like Boykin was forced out of uniform for talking about Christianity and denouncing extremism. His frankness was labeled “Islamaphobia” by the MSM, including the New York Times and spelled the end of his career.

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