Ft. McCoy, Wisconsin has gone thru a lot of changes. There’s a brand new PX here that’s pretty good and we get some time off during the day to scoot up there. It’s much better than the World War II building that used to house it. Many of the buildings have been renovated and lots of money has been invested here. The BRAC hearings at the Pentagon have named this a growth Fort so it’s pretty nice to see the changes after all the years of neglect. I believe the growth here will be at the expense of Ft. Snelling in Minneapolis, but time will tell if the politicians approve that plan.
I’m the S4 for the 19th MMC. Back in April when I first came on board, I let them know I’d be interested in keeping busy so they gave me this job. The S4 is responsible for supply, logistic and transportation, so I’m constantly on the go coordinating for meals, clothing, equipment and getting people to where they’re supposed to be for our train up to Iraq. I also have to attend all the training, so it’s very busy. Last night we were issued ACU’s, the new Army Combat Uniform with the digital pattern. I would say that I could post a picture of them, but my posting skills so far have been non-existent. I’m going to need some intense training to get them up to standard. (Jessica?) [Jessica says - sure - or just send them via e-mail and I will post till then] My camera is full of Germany and Camp Ripley pictures so there’s still hope. The new Army uniform is very cool and very functional. I like them a lot.
Last name starting with A-L went to Combatives last night. Its four days long, two hours each day. (The other training is boring; you wouldn’t be interested in it.) The instructor is a local police officer that runs a martial arts studio so it was he and his team. The students are down in the sand pit where they got to mix it up. There were no serious injuries the first night. We heard lots of good stories though, lots of swearing and grunting and learning how to be aggressive at close quarters. Some people took offense at the language the instructors were using, so I guess when they’re being attacked by insurgents and they’re offended, they can write them up on a report or something. My turn is coming up, I can’t wait to get my butt kicked. I’ll bet Norm would approve of this training…
I had a really great time in Germany and I came away very excited. I got back about a week and a half ago and had 4 days off before this iteration started at Ft. McCoy. I’ll be here McCoy for another 5-6 weeks and then it’s off to the beach.
My job changed in Germany, we’ll see if I get to keep it. I was originally slated to be a logistics liaison to a BCT out in the field.
(Ok, disclaimer first: Everything I say here you can find on
www.globalsecurity.org or other public web sites. When I couldn’t find the kind of information I was looking for, I would go there to get what I needed. I was amazed what’s out there.)
The BCT (Brigade Combat Team) that the Army is standing up consists of self-contained Units of Action, brigade sized. The Army is transforming our Divisional structure into UA’s to make them more mobile and responsive. I was originally slated to be a UA liaison to one of the units out in the field, but there was no liaison “play” in the exercise in Germany. I was placed in the ISF cell for the exercise. The ISF, (Iraqi Security Forces) are the Iraqi Divisions that the U.S. and coalition forces are standing up. That’s our exit strategy. Once they’re self-reliant, we can go home. Once they can provide a credible force to manage the insurgency and protect their borders and people, we’ll be finished. Will it work? In theory it does. But we’ll have to follow the newspapers to see how that plays out.
So, after spending over 2 weeks learning 300 acronyms and going thru 1500 Power Point slides, I became the resident expert on ISF and did a lot of briefings to different areas. I learned a lot, but only the tip of the iceberg. If I get to continue doing this in-country, I’ll have the unique experience of watching an Army being built. Hence, the question: is that a good thing? It’s not my question to answer, but it does lead to many different avenues of thought.
I had a great 4-day visit with all my family while I was home, it was so nice to see everyone. I was blown away when my nephew Adam came up to visit us from Atlanta, he’s turned into a strapping young man with a good head on his shoulders, we were all very impressed. We even got to run together one morning and I was appreciative he didn’t make me look too bad. I’d love to see Megan again as well as Doug and Maureen; I hope all is well with them. I got to see my new Grand-Nephew Sean in Des Moines and visit with his Mom, Amy. I really think Damon outdid himself with Amy; she is the epitome of grace and invited us into her home after a very difficult delivery with little notice. I can’t tell you how proud I was to hold Sean; he’s going to have a very loving family. I’ll be sending gold, frankincense and myrrh from the Middle East and please don’t be offended by that, those are traditional gifts to more than one famous child…
More later, thanks to all the people that read the site. I know a lot of people haven’t registered and probably won’t be posting but I can see the numbers and how many visit and want to thank you for all the kind wishes you send our way. There’s no need to send anything yet, we still have access to lots of creature comforts like running water and indoor plumbing. I think we’re going out to the live-fire vehicle convoy range next week, that should be fun…
