Back In the Swing of Things

It only took about 7 months since my redeployment from Afghanistan, to “put rockets down-range”.   For those of you who do not know, my MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) in the Army is 13 M (Mike).  I am a MLRS / HIMARS Crewman, King of the Field Artillery. If you’re not sure what this is, you can Google it.  But the death dealing machine I command is known commonly as a HIMARS “Launcher”. By comparison, if you were to think of  tank and it’s ability to blow a hole in the wall of a building, what I do, and the vehicle I command has the capability of destroying an entire city block. Get a couple of us launchers together, and we can devastate an area larger than 1,000 meters by 1,000 meters.  Rocket and Missile Artillery… Damn it feels good to be back home.  

But back to what I was saying.

7 Months after returning from Afghanistan, I certify with my Driver and Gunner and become the first   Launcher in the Battalion to successfully fire rockets since the Battalions return from Afghanistan.  Not only that, but we also made the cover of the covenant AKO Webpage (Army Knowledge Online – a site for soldiers to manage career information and more!)

Might I say – it felt damn good to get back into things.  I can honestly say that I love my job as a 13M.  It seems a lot of people find our MOS to be boring, or whatever… but I can confidently say it is quite possibly to the most-ass MOS the Army has.  I seen and fired a lot of rockets in my time, and every time it is extremely impressive to watch and usually more impressive than the last. 

But what made this go around quite possibly the coolest, was that it was a combined live fire training exercise.  I’ve shot with some people cool units, everything from Korean Military, Special Forces, Rangers, and Navy Seals… but to be honest, they all kind of felt the same in the sense that we were not “physically” working with them from where I (in the launcher) shoot from.  Usually they were several thousand meters away, looking at a target through binoculars and calling us with a grid (“location”) to destroy a target.  While this time around this part of the equation remained, there were lots more guns on the ground with us, and … n the Air.

We were located next to a “cannon” unit.  Usually when you think of “Artillery”, cannons are what you think of.  So they were set up next to us with about 4 or 5 M777 Howitzer Cannons.  But the coolest part was the air was dominated by Kiowa Helicopters, and A-10 Warthogs; an anti-tank / close air support attack plane.  Daily, we would hear the sounds of the cannons ripping off shells like crazy. Then, about three-quarters through their firing… one, two, or three of our HIMARS launchers would receive a “Call for Fire” Mission, and a few seconds later – rockets would be flying through the air, silencing the cannons as the rockets burst through the sound barrier releasing an impressive sonic boom. 

Like I said… it never gets old.

Shortly after we would be done shooting, the Close Air Support of the A10’s would dive into the target unleashing all of the devils fury, before quickly turning out and skimming just a couple feet above the ground over our firing positions as if gesture a “hello”, “go team”, or “fuck yeah that was awesome!”.  At one point, an A-10 came so close to my launcher and banked hard left, that I could look up and recognize the pilot clearly… I pee’d myself it was so bad ass.

I am thankful for every opportunity I get to shoot rockets.  It’s defiantly something not very many people get to do in their time.  I have one more big “Hooah-Rah” as my First Sergeant put it, before I head off to my next big Army Life Chapter.. as I was nominated, and selected by the Army to be a Drill Sergeant.

Not Forgotten – SGT Kisseloff

Combat is a machine unlike anything 98% of the world population will ever experience.  I say machine because it has no life, no heart, no soul. Humans may more often than not be involved, but it’s too sickening to be considered anything man-made. It’s a machine of its own making. A beast.  And An unwelcomed one at that.  When you you’ve completed mission after mission avoiding mortar attacks, IED attacks, RPGs, small arms fire and more… you kind of develop a God like complex even though after mission after mission you tell yourself not to let it get to your head.  It’s almost an unavoidable feeling / sensation. But in less than a second, combat can make you feel quite literally like every single organ inside your body is being torn out slowly when “this firefight”, is the one that takes one of your buddies, a brother or sister in arms… and the only three things you can muster together are:
1.“why” 
2. “it should have been me”
3. “it’s not fair”

I cannot believe it’s already been a year since Sergeant (SGT) Denis D. Kisseloff was killed in Logar Province, Afghanistan.  I haven’t taken off his memorial bracelet since I received it a couple weeks after our loss.  It’s entirely too easy for me to get angry about some of the events that took place that day.  But May 13th isn’t a day to be angry, SGT Kisseloff was too much of a happy person, and anyone could tell this simply by looking at any photo of him.  It’s a day to remember, and honor the life of a Father, Brother, and Son.  I frequently think of the Kisseloff family, and his two children who lost their mother entirely too soon, and now father.  I pray for the family frequently, and ask that everyone reading this take at least a minute of silence for this man who laid down his life for our country.

You are not forgotten.

Don’t Call It A Comeback

So lots of people have been wondering where I’ve been. “Where are the entries”, and so on and so forth. Well, here is the deal. 

It is incredibly difficult for me to write about something, when I REALLY want to write about something else.  The new entry always ends up floating off topic and the whole thing ends up being a mess because I can’t help but reference / write about things I’m not supposed to.

So now some of you are confused.
In short,   there is some crap going on, that has been going on for oh say…  4 or 5 months, or a Year plus.  Depending on how you look on it.  Basically I’m not allowed to write about what’s going on until all the dust settles.  The last update I got indicates the dust will be settling within the next month or so.

Some you may notice that a few of my entries were also removed a little ways back. They are NOT DELETED!!!, I promise!  I assure you that once all this is done, the posting will be put back “online” and everyone will be able to enjoy them once again.

But in the mean time, I’ve got some other things I’m excited to write about, so stay tuned for new postings… and for the dust to settle!!!

VFW Article – Hounding the Taliban

I just found the digital version of the Article that spoke of the unit I was attached to in Afghanistan.  The article also talks about the Large scale ambush that I was part of, and even (although not by name) mentions my gunner.  Just thought I would share it with you.

“Hounding The Taliban”
The Article as a whole is good, and starts on page 20
The section about the Ambush starts on page 26, titled “We’ve Made Contact”

Enjoy the Read.
http://digitaledition.qwinc.com/publication/?i=60281&p=22

ALC – A Load of Crap

Many of you may have been asking yourselves, where has Martin been for a little over a month?  Well, I was in shitsville, Oklahoma.  Also better known as Fort Sill, Oklahoma attending Phase II of ALC (Advanced Leaders Course).  ALC is the second part of the NCOES (Non-Commissioned Officer Education System), and is divided into two phases (some jobs / MOS’s [military occupational skill] may have more phases than just the two, however mine just has the two).  With the first phase being frequently referred to as “common core”, it is standard across the Army regardless of MOS, and has now even changed over to an Online Course.  Similar to those Online Colleges.  Luckily for me, please excuse my sarcasm, ALC Phase II for 13M’s (MLRS / HIMARS Crewman) is in Fort Sill, Oklahoma… Home of the Field Artillery.   HOOAH!!!

Giving myself a pat on the back, I miraculously managed to pull off the accomplishment of receiving recognition as the Honor Graduate for my class.  In plain English, that means I was number two of the top three students in my class of 15 or 16 total students attending the course.

But you see, I’ve got a couple of issues with the course.  Now before we get stared, some military related individuals may be saying right about this point something along the lines of “well you should have said something during the end of course critique”.  But then again, if your military, you know how stubborn the military can be in general.  When someone says a task is to be accomplished a specific way, new ideas that are much more efficient are typically thrown aside and labeled as too radical, irrational, or not safe enough…. unless of course the new idea comes from someone with more rank, most defiantly not from students.  This example was seen during a midcourse critique where REAL ideas to make the course better, were blown off because … well… I don’t really know why. Too much work maybe? Who knows… moving on ….

My biggest problem with the course was that is was ridiculously too easy and basic.  The course is something an AIT student probably could have taught.  If not taught, then maybe attend and possibly even make honors.  Replace the A, in ALC with a B for BASIC and the course title would be more fitting.  I rattled my brain for several days after the course trying to figure out if I truly learned anything important pertaining to my job and position as a launcher chief.  I couldn’t. 

Throughout the course, given our recent deployment to Afghanistan, some students frequently referred to the course as a “refresher”.  I didn’t have a problem with that, I did have a problem with the school embracing the idea that the Advanced Leaders Course is a great refresher.  As stated by other students in the same class as I, the unit a student is being sent from should be held accountable when it comes to ‘refreshing’ the student, and making sure that the student is adequately prepared for the course so that the course can THEN take that students MOS related knowledge to the next level, so that he may in turn be a better leader and launcher chief.  Basically: prerequisites.  If the student isn’t ready when the course begins, I see no reason student shouldn’t be penalized or booted from the course for lack of basic MOS knowledge or understanding.

During a conversation amongst peers at the course, I asked questions regarding the level of familiarity in different job related tasks to include different non-standard task within our own MOS.  Things I expected to learn at something like ALC.  I wasn’t surprised when none of the students  raised their hands to state their familiarity in different areas (I think one student raises his hand…. once), and I again wasn’t surprised when it was something students had an interest in and wanted to learn.

What ever happened to challenging soldiers?
Or producing better combat leaders?
*sigh*

There is so much more I could go into, but I’ll leave this one short n’ sweet.

If this course is an example of the way the Army is moving…
I think we’re in trouble.

About To Take on Wiki-Leaks…

The controversy of the millennium.
This should be interesting.
I better take my time with this one.
It could be a while, but stay tuned.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell…Don’t Win.

As you know President Obama signed into effect the law that repeals the 17 year old law “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” that the DoD and it’s branches operate under. For those of you who are living in the stone age, the semi-former policy did / does not allow members serving in the military to serve openly gay. Basically this means that a homosexual person interested in serving his or her country, must keep their sexual preference a secret throughout the duration of their service.  If at any point their homosexual preference was uncovered through official channels / rank – they were to be investigated and inevitably discharged from the military…. How gay.

So where do I stand on the whole issue?  Pretty simple. Read: Wake Up America….

So after years of battling, it would appear that the gays have finally done it!!!

At least of course… it would appear that way on the surface…

Now of course this is my opinion, but I think I’m on the right track, and if I’m not then I suppose it’s a good thing.  What am I talking about?  Let’s break it down….

As with any legal document, let alone a law … or law that repeals another law… there is going to be fine print. And this is what I find humorous. This is where I love “the system”.  Basically, in short… for those of you not already tracking.  The law doesn’t actually go into effect until

“…Secretary Robert Gates, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mike Mullen and the President himself certify the military’s readiness.”

AND

“But before that certification, the Pentagon needs to come up with a plan for implementation to deal specifically with issues such as housing and benefits for same-sex partners, the rights of gays and lesbians (particularly in the area of enlistment or re-enlistment), and an education and training regimen for all service members.”

Can you say … LOOPHOLE !!!!

What’s actually been done here?
Well it’s fairly obvious.
1. President Obama just secured himself in the books of military history for repealing (some might say) one the most ridiculous and controversial laws in military history. Because you know, being the first Black President of the United States wasn’t enough of an accomplishment itself.

2. Made a whole bunch of people from the Gay Community Happy.  Now granted, it doesn’t take much to make a gay man giggle, but now that he really can stick it to the man… well… I’m sure it goes along way… but more importantly … it shuts the gay community up about the topic. The pentagon can now release a statement that says “Look homos. Look what we did for you! We got rid of the DADT!! Now shut up so we can get on with our lives”

3. And finally, lets be honest. If you really think that “…before that certification, the Pentagon needs to come up with a plan for implementation to deal specifically with issues such as housing and benefits for same-sex partners, the rights of gays and lesbians (particularly in the area of enlistment or re-enlistment), and an education and training regimen for all service members.”  means “we’ll get right on it” … well then you must be a moron.  It really means: “…ha! – You just got punk’d!, beeotch”

Last I checked, neither the pentagon or ranking military officials have ever really cared too much for making equality among soldiers with different sexual orientations a priority.  The military is all about adaptation… staying flexible… the Army says “This is how it is… now deal with it”.  So pardon me if I find it a little bit amusing that the military is slamming on the brakes and screaming “Whoa… hold on, we’re going to take our time with this one” … Realistically, it’s not like we haven’t seen this coming for oh… EVER, or thought it would never happen.  But now we’re going to slow down, come up with excuses, and pretend to make it about “safety” and “concern” and “education” for soldiers or whatever, when you’re just waiting a few years for a Republican to take office and make this “silly” thing go away.

But … my favorite part… the Pentagon and friends, before putting this repeal into effect… they’ve got to figure out (..hang on, let me make sure I get this right) … ahem… yes … “…the rights of gays and lesbians”

…. I feel this is an appropriate “In The Army Now” batman moment. HOLY FUCKING SHIT BATMAN!!!! 

There really is just too much to go off on regarding that particular sentence. “The rights of gays and lesbians”.  Oh please.  Suck my ass big wig retards. Do you not realize how stupid a single statement like the one above can make you look?

Looks like we’re going to have to add a “…Unless you’re Gay” amendment to the Bill of Rights.

FRG Got it Right

Well… Mostly….

The military (in this case the Army) has a bunch of programs for military families and service members. They all were put in to place with the best of intentions, but sometimes when it comes to utilization, they just seem underutilized given the amount of people available to utilize said options and resources. But in my mind, there would be one that sticks out as being used appropriately and most importantly; frequently. This would be the Family Readiness Group…or… FRG.

Now I couldn’t tell you how successful the program is at the “Big Army” Level, you know… the FRG Head Quarters, but I’m sure they could throw together a nice power point presentation that makes the FRG look like the most successful resource / “outreach” program in the history or modern America.  But who utilizes the program at “Big Army” Level? – That’s not what I am talking about here, the program is successful because of the lowest level of operation in the program.  The Unit (Company, Battery, Troop, ect…) level , with support from Battalion Level.

For those of you who do not know, the FRG (in short) is where wives / husbands of service members to include their children come together to support one another, their spouse, father or mother, and unit they belong long to.  This is accomplished by (traditionally) monthly meetings that provide information and sometimes even training on things like OPSEC (Operational Security) and how it correlates to the spouse of the service member: (Please Read: OPSEC is REAL!!).  The program has proved most valuable when soldiers are deployed.  It allows and provides a place for families left behind by deployed soldiers to come together, and are supported by those who can relate and understand EXACTLY what emotions they are going through.  They also are provided unique information on mission accomplishments since deployed, and even go so far as to make hundreds of welcome home baskets for all the soldiers in the unit, as well as setting up the Welcome Home Ceremony (even making tons of posters!)

The FRG does however have it’s downfalls. Rumors are nasty, and it’s well known that the FRG can turn into rumor spawning grounds of unseen proportions.  It can sometimes be so bad, and create such horrible environments, emotions, arguments, or situations, that some families do not want ANYTHING to do with the FRG… especially while their soldier is deployed.  (What else do you expect when you get a bunch of women together?… haha)

But seriously… overall I would say the FRG does more good then bad…. so long as your wife (now ex-wife) isn’t getting the position of “FRG Leader” because she’s dating your commander.

Ironically, the best FRG that I have seen in action was while I was serving in South Korea at Camp Casey. Although I now see that the FRG Leader (my then wife) had alternative motives to make the FRG a huge success, it really did have a HUGE positive impact on the single and married soldiers (… obviously) serving in South Korea with my unit.  Which ultimately is what the program is really about:  Supporting soldiers and families.  She and her FRG did so well in fact, that it was unarguably the most successful, active, and aggressive FRG not only on the Camp, but all of Area I, and maybe even the peninsula.  She was recognized on numerous occasions, and even awarded the Molly Pitcher Award.

There is no question that the spouses of the service members are what make the program a huge success, and it is great to see that these spouses are recognized not only by their loved ones… but by the special community they so endearingly support.

Following my recent redeployment from Afghanistan, there were a couple of wives who were recognized for their hard work and dedication in support of their solider and his unit during this last deployment, and received the Commanders Award for Public Service Medal.  They were deservingly recognized during the End of Tour Award Ceremony (and oh man,… don’t even get me started on that). Although I didn’t have any direct ties to the FRG back stateside while I was deployed, I heard all too often of the great things that were being done by the active members of the FRG back home, and it was nice to see they were recognized for their efforts, dedication, and love. (With minimal rumors I might add!)

( Above From Left to Right: Trista Nunley, Johanna Poore, and Rebecca White receive the Commanders Award for Public Service Medal from the 5th Battalion 3rd Field Artillery Commander for their dedication to the FRG during their spouses deployment to Afghanistan)

Although there were other wives who were not formally recognized, their dedication does not go unnoticed, and is appreciated by all soldiers of the First Round Battalion.

So all and all, the Family Readiness Group gets two thumbs up in my book, and a additional two big-toes for all their hard effort throughout the deployment.

What many people do not realize when soldiers deploy to the front lines of combat, their spouses are left behind to face front lines of their own. The difference is they are untrained, and if its their first time, inexperienced. Although the battle ground is familiar, the circumstances are drastically different. But these courageous women, and sometimes men, manage to find a soldier inside of them and face the fight head on, and more often then not… alone.

From time to time the program, and the people who make it a success, should be recognized. 
It’s nice to see that the Army gets this right from time to time.

So to the wives of the First Round Battalion
Thank You, and Good Job.

…That TV show “Army Wives” has got it all wrong.

My 1st Birthday

I was eating dinner and realized that is the birth-month of my Blog!!! In fact, the actual day (Nov 4th) has come and gone gone gone already!  I am pleasantly surprised with myself and the success that this blog has accrued. 

What started out as a place to do some venting and keep my family and friends up to date (and knowing I’m alive during deployment to Afghanistan) turned out to be something so much more.  Along the way I made some internet friends, reconnections, blogger friends, and followers from all around the world.

I can remember when I first started, I would be excited if I had reached 10 or 15 hits in a day, but as the daily hits per single blog increased, I nearly shit my pants the first day I broke 100, 150, and so on!!! In a 24hr period!! Keep in mind, I am not networked or advertised through other blogs or sites (well, until recently) so I would say that’s not too bad. Tags pull more weight then I ever thought they would.

So I would like to say thank you, to all those who have supported me along the way. I would like to say thank you to all those who leave comments, or have written me privately. I am glad that everyone enjoys my blog, and is entertained when reading, because I sure do have fun writing them!!!!

So here is to potentially another year or blogging, and to the hopeful new addition of two new sites, and maybe some networking! But most importantly: (I’ve always wanted to say this) I’d like to thank the FANS (and “Haters”)!!!, and my  Family and Friends!!!

This is all because of you.

I love you all!!!

Upcoming Events.

How Exciting.

Just a quick blurb to let everyone know how excited I am about some of the postings I have in store.

I am also surprisingly excited to launch Operation “Caught On Tape”. (See: About To Declare War)  A little side project I’ve been mentally prepping for roughing 8 months now that will hopefully be debuted in December.  JUST IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAYS!

Also will begin building a new Blog site, possibly two. But those are secret, and I will most likely not be affiliated (linked or otherwise mentioned again) to this Blog.

Turkey Day is right around the corner, marking the start of my Long Vacation – and some serious writing. 

So stay tuned folks. The end of 2010 rolling into 2011 is looking to be exciting!