Stripes letter: Military has it backward (on active duty/NG tours of duty)

[lebkuchen]

Military has it backward

I have been in the military for 16 years and for eight of those I was active-duty Marine Corps. I served in operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. I am currently in Operation Iraqi Freedom doing a 12-month tour with the National Guard.

The active-duty military members are only spending 90-120 days in-country, while the National Guard is spending a year-plus here. Something is not right, the Guard should be used at home for disasters like the hurricanes that are happening.

We give up a lot in the Guard; we leave our families, our jobs, our community. I know our jobs are supposed to be protected, but doctors, dentists, lawyers who have private practices cannot afford to spend a year in-country.

This deployment has made my mind up to get out and end my career. Someone has it all backward, the Guard should be doing 90-120 day rotation in support of active military, not the other way around.

Sgt. William Thomas Smith
Camp Virginia, Kuwait

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=31860

[Atman]

1. BushCo is deliberately keeping NG out of the U.S.

as part of his effort to repeal Posse Comitatus.

NG is supposed to be made up of our friends and neighbors and siblings and locals, under the assumption that when something happens in a community, locals will know the people, know the area, and have a connection to it which will make them more prone to take ownership in its defense and rebuilding.

When BushCo finally declares Martial Law for whatever is up his sleeve, he want disconnected military there to do his bidding. Local NG troops are far less likely to fire on their neighbors and friends, far less likely to follow orders to raze the neighborhoods they grew up in.

This is all a very calculated move on BushCo's part, and the implications are extremely frightening.

[MADem]

2. This is Rummy and Dick's Total Force

They treat the poor Guard like draftees, and the active units like military professionals. It is becoming a two-tiered system, like it was in Viet Nam.