National Guard Unit Split on Border Plan

[cal04]

In the Rio Grande Valley, an area known for both blended cultures and intense U.S. patriotism, National Guard soldiers recently back from Afghanistanare taking stock of President Bush's plan to use their ranks to patrol the Mexican border. Bush has promised that 6,000 National Guard troops would help out to secure the border. The deployment would last two years, with no clear end date, according to a Pentagonmemo obtained Friday by The Associated Press.

"This is one battalion that can always be counted on," said Maj. Albert Lara. "Military service is a big tradition in Hispanic communities." But not all his soldiers were as eager to get right back to work building triple-layer fencing and handling other logistical duties. "Today's a last day for a very long time," 24-year-old Spc. Joe Pena said, his companions nodding in shared relief on Friday when they marked the official end of their yearlong deployment. "We're not looking to wear this uniform much longer." Pena says he disagrees with having the National Guard patrolling the border.

"It's not the right thing to patrol the border, 'cause that's not what they're for," he said. "You're taking people from high-stress areas; you're putting them somewhere they don't belong. People are going to be getting killed. It could be detrimental." But Lara said the Guard is ready for such duty. "Our training prepares us to do a lot of things, whatever the case may be. We've proved we can adapt," he said. "That's what makes us better than active duty — we bring our civilian skills. Yes, we have a military mind, but we also have a civilian mind."

The Pentagon's one-page "initial guidance" memo to Guard leaders in border states does not address the cost of the mission or when soldiers would be deployed. But high-ranking officials in the California National Guard said they were told Friday that deployments would not begin before early June. While the document says troops would remain under governors' command, it also indicates a high degree of federal control. It states that the National Guard Bureau's Army and Air Directories "will serve as the states' focal points for force-planning, training, organizing and equipping their forces."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060520/ap_on_re_us/immigration_national_guard

[Rose Siding]

1. The major must know that the Pentagon isn't considering

his Guards' civilian skills or "minds". It isn't their style.

snip>
Being a National Guard Unit, we have several soldiers who are skilled electricians or carpenters outside of the Army. When the window units arrived, these soldiers begain installing the window unit by converting them to run on European standard current. After one A/C unit made it in, we were stopped from installing any more since it was technically a contract job that needed to be handled by contractors. As Alpha company left Al Asad, the contract work still had not been completed. I wonder if those A/C units are still sitting in the floor.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/reportingforduty/2006/05/kbr.html

Will the contractors be building the fence or will the Guard?

[NYC]

2. According to what you said,

neither one will build the wall, but the contractor will get paid for it.

[OKthatsIT]

3. The Guard's suppose to stay in their own state

This is just more 'boundary chaos' for us. Taking our Guard away, leaving each state vulnerable, if a disaster hits. One step closer to psyopsing US to softening Posse Comitatus.