Community Organizing is a tough job, I threw my hat into the political ring as a young man. I ran as the Community Organizer of our little local ranching Community. No one ran against me and I won handily. I was quite impressed with my early success in politics and figured I was on the way up the political ladder. The position of Community Organizer had several responsibilities and people expected a lot from me in this unpaid political position. I rented out the community hall and made sure that all the burnt out light bulbs were replaced, I made sure there was toilet paper in the outhouse and that there were no drunks or animals sleeping in it, I attended the community pasture meetings and listened to the ranchers yell at each other, and I was in charge of the community grave yard.
The perks in this job were limited, actually they were so limited, I am not sure what they were. There were no female lobbyists trying to induce me into dubious deals with sex and money, there were no kick backs or lucrative deals; I actually had to take money out of my own pocket to keep things operating in the black and I usually swept and mopped the community hall myself because there was no money to hire anyone, what a job!
I caught a lot of flack once, I missed seeing a wasp nest when I was getting the outhouse ready at the community hall for a wedding and was treated to the sight of the bride running out of the outhouse screaming without her knickers or anything below the waist with a flock of wasps in hot pursuit. Now, I thought it was hilarious, but everyone was mad at me, like I had played a joke on the bride.
The final incident, that convinced me to throw in the towel was when we had three deaths and had to bury several people in the community graveyard at the same time. People usually had their family plots all paid for well in advance and they were planning on being planted next to loved ones while they sat out the long wait through eternity. It was my job to outline the individual plots and to make sure the backhoe dug up the right grave sites. Usually it was simple enough, I had a plot map and everything was going well until we had a hunter die that no one wanted, and then big Harold died and he was almost 500 pounds, and Ethel died, a tiny Basque woman.
The hunter was being guided by my native friend Bert, he was the only man I’d ever met with greener eyes than me and he stood six foot five, a height that I envied because of only being six foot two. I was in the base hunting camp when he rode up from a tent camp about five miles away. He said there was something wrong with his hunter, because he wouldn’t wake up. Apparently Bert peeked into the tent and yelled out his name, but the hunter wouldn’t get up. I asked if he might be dead. Bert said he didn’t know for sure, so I better ride over with him and check him out to see if he was dead. I said, “Bert, I have a hunter who expects to go hunting today, can’t you go inside and check to see if he is dead?”
Bert shook his head and said, “no, I no go in tents with dead men.”
I could see that this was going nowhere fast, so Bert and I rode over to his camp and I walked in and sure enough his hunter was deader than and Hell. This was going to mess up all my plans for the day. We laced Bert’s hunter on the back of a pack horse and headed back to base camp. I left my hunter with Bert, because there was no way in Hell he was going to pack a dead man out by himself. Natives are kind of funny about some things, dead people and Grizzlies are two of them.
I packed him out to my boss’s camp and he told me I had made a mistake, he said the RCMP would have wanted to look around to see if there was foul play. I told him there was no way Bert was going to babysit a corpse while waiting for the RCMP to show up, besides it would only be a few hours before a Grizzly showed up for dinner and Bert was deathly afraid of Grizzlies, he would just leave the hunter to be eaten and what would that accomplish. My boss agreed an told me to load him on the back of his truck and take him to the police shack in Fort St John and see what they wanted to do with him and then to drive to the Dawson Airport and wait for some hunters flying in late tonight.
I loaded the dead hunter on the back of my boss’s one ton flat deck and laced him down so that he didn’t bounce out on the dirt road. I drove him to town, checking my mirror occasionally to be sure I still had my passenger. I dropped him off at the cop shack and left for the Dawson Airport to get some new hunters, thinking I was done with the dead hunter.
We finished the hunting season and I got some nice tips and a pair of German binoculars from an appreciative hunter. I went home to start preparing for trapping season and cutting firewood.
I received a call from the cop shop telling me I needed to bury the hunter in the community graveyard, because no one back in the states was claiming the body. This was about the time that Harold Wypert died and Hilda the Basque passed away. Harold was huge, he weighed close to 500 pounds and Hilda probably didn’t weigh 100 pounds so they were certainly a contrasting pair and now they were going to be planted with the hunter that no one wanted.
Harold’s funeral was on Thursday and Hida’s was on Friday. I met the backhoe man before the funeral and showed him where to dig Harold’s grave. I had the hunter’s body in the back of my pickup and planned on asking the backhoe man to dig an extra grave since I had been paid by the province for a plot and the bill for digging the grave.
Now Harold was a Mormon and that is a special consideration to the events that followed. It only took the backhoe about twenty minutes to dig the grave, so the backhoe man and I waited about a half hour for the funeral procession to show up. A five ton truck seemed to be leading the procession and I thought that was a little odd, because there was no hearse. The five ton truck had a septic tank on the back and it pulled up right into our little cemetery right next to the grave. Harold’s grown son and daughter came over and explained that Harold’s grave wasn’t big enough.
I asked why not, because that was what he had paid for: they pointed at the septic tank and said that Harold was in the Septic tank. At first I thought Harold had died in the septic tank, but no not at all, they just don’t make a casket big enough for people like Harold. Now I don’t have a lot of experience with septic tanks, but the ones Ive seen have a wall in the middle and I couldn’t help but wonder how Harold had been stuffed into the tank.
I asked about what we were supposed to do about the fact that Harold’s family plot only had two feet left and he was obviously going to need at least four feet to have enough room for the septic tank and that put him into the grave site for Hilda slated for tomorrow.
His relatives got in my face and told me that it was my problem, that Harold was going to be buried in the plot he had paid for, a long time ago. I asked them why they didn’t cremate him and plant the urn and there would have been lots of room. They explained they were Mormons and they didn’t want to show up on judgement day incinerated. I was getting a little aggravated at this point and said, “You don’t want to show up in an urn, but it’s okay to arrive in a septic tank”, I walked away at that point, it was obvious the family wasn’t going to be of much help. Suddenly, I had an epiphany, I asked the backhoe man to dig the grave four feet wide and eleven foot deep. He said it would cost extra. I knew better than to ask the family to pay the extra cost at this point, so I told him I’d make up the difference.
I explained to the family, Harold owns the funeral plot right down to the center of the earth, so I was just going to bury him a little deeper and let him lease a little of Hilda’s plot down below the normal depth, since most residents don’t worry over the ground beneath their grave sites. Harold’s family thought it was a pretty good idea when I explained that he would be beneath the frost line and would be quite comfy in his Septic tank until judgement day. When the backhoe had finished, the wind was blowing and it was starting to snow. The mourners were wanting to get this debacle over with and I was more than ready to get it over with.
The five ton truck with the septic tank started his engine and tried to lift the septic tank with his boom, but his boom didn’t have the power to lift the tank and Harold at the same time. I told the family we were going to need to lift Harold out and place him on the ground so that they could put the tank in the ground and then put Harold back in the tank. The family told me in no uncertain terms that they would have me arrested if I tried such monkey business; I have never been arrested, so the thought of incarceration didn’t appeal to me.
It was now getting dark and the back hoe man was expecting to get paid for his time. I went to the Community Hall and called one of my customers that had a huge boom truck and asked him if he could help me out. He said his truck doesn’t move unless it’s a hundred dollars an hour from the time he turns the key. I told him to get down to the grave yard as quick as he could.
My customer showed up in his truck and lifted Harold and his cement casket off the truck and placed him in his new home effortlessly. I was now going to be out approximately $500 dollars for Harold’s casket to be planted and Hilda’s grave site wasn’t going to be the most tidy grave we ever had dug at the cemetery. Harold’s family and friends left once Harold was situated in his new double wide, so I put my money saving scheme into action.
Once the tank was covered up with a layer of dirt, I backed my truck up towards the grave. The backhoe man was supposed to let me know when I was close to the grave so that we could lower lower the hunter into the upper portion of Harold’s grave, since it wasn’t really being used.
Now those of you from the Northern climates know that plywood on a frosty steel truck bed will slide pretty good. The back hoe man waited to signal me to stop until the last second and when he raised his hand high and fast, I hit the brakes hard at the thought of backing right into the grave. The plywood economy model casket provided by the Province of British Columbia slid out of the truck, into the grave and broke all apart. As I looked down into the grave at the hunter dressed in his best hunting clothes and the coffin now in six different pieces, I was wondering if this situation could get much worse. I asked the backhoe man if he would go down in the hole and help me try to arrange the man and his coffin and he told me he didn’t touch dead people or even get close to them, but he would hold a light for me.
I dropped down into the hole while the back hoe man shined a flash light from up above. It’s no wonder the coffin came apart, it was made with quarter inch plywood and one inch finishing nails without glue and not that many nails. I pushed the hunter and the lumber to the far side of Harold’s grave and the back hoe man buried the hunter and left half of the grave open for Hilda in the morning.
I drove away and did some cowboy accounting for spending a day as the Community Organizer. After being reimbursed by the state for the hunter’s grave and paying my customer for the crane truck, I figured the day was only going to cost me three hundred dollars, not too bad for working all day. I found my self wondering about the possibility of the snow turning to rain in the middle of the night and washing away all the loose dirt over the hunter into Hilda’s grave and how shocked her family would be to find her sleeping next to a stranger without a casket for eternity.
The temperature stayed cold enough to snow the rest of the night and Hilda’s burial went well without incident, thank goodness for small miracles and small people. It all happened over 30 years ago and no one has complained about the crowded conditions, so I guess I made out pretty well to only lose $300 on the deal by cutting corners.
I didn’t run for Community Organizer during the next election cycle and I haven’t run for political office since those days of youthful glory. I will be the first to tell you that Community Service isn’t all that easy and being a Community Organizer is a difficult job, but it sure as Hell didn’t qualify me to be the president of the United States. I was elected to the position and that is a little more prestigious than just appointing yourself as the Community Organizer. It’s true no one ran against me, but that is beside the point. I was a bona fide elected official of the community.
Communities are fairly small groups, our community, while encompassing a fairly large area of about a thirty mile circle only included about 400 hundred people. Managing a group like this doesn’t prepare you to conduct international negotiations involving millions of people; actually, treating enemies and potential enemies like friends and neighbors who live a few miles away can be disastrous.
In the last week, here in America we had something happen that is remarkable in American history and the history of Community Organizers. A newly elected governor in Wisconsin tried to implement a law that would impose the fiscal changes that would save his state from bankruptcy and our president mounted an offensive against the Governor. This is the same president who has been trained in the affairs of Community Organizing. Although he has ample support financially from George Soros and does not need to back up his ideas with his own money, he must realize the importance of the community and its sovereignty, a community resents foreign influence in its internal affairs. In this case, the community is the state of Wisconsin, who elected Governor Walker on the platform of stopping the inevitable collapse of Wisconsin’s state economy. The president claimed that the Governor’s actions represented union busting and cried out havoc and let loose the thugs and dregs of the union movement on the Wisconsin State House in Madison. Using his group Organizing for America, his main force in coordinating his election in 2008 and its ample supply of cash provided by George Soros and the Democratic National Committee, the president bussed in tens of thousands of thug types to try and intimidate the Governor with Egyptian and Tunisian type shows of force. Teachers left their classrooms and marched their students down to the demonstration risking possible criminal charges and flaunting school procedures in the passion far their cause, which mainly consists of paying a percentage of their health and retirement benefit packages and giving up collective bargaining for everything, but wages.
To his credit, Governor Walker was not intimidated, while the teachers and public employees, with the support of President Obama, demonstrated their greed and insensitivity to the plight of the rest of the people in Wisconsin who are going broke while their state teeters above the abyss of economic collapse and once again our president has confirmed the naivete of a Community Organizer when it comes to matters of the economy and of the lunacy of Socialist monetary theory.
Balancing the community budget was something I managed to do by reaching into my own pocket to pay for the shortfall, President Obama and his greedy army of Lesser Elites feel they have the right to reach into our pockets to maintain the lifestyle of an entitled group of Elites, the fact that the rest of the country is broke and scared is not their concern.
President Obama sets examples by taking a Naval fleet with him to India and by telling us we might not be able to take our vacations while his family skis in Vail, of course they are Elites and this is to be expected. The Democratic lawmakers in Wisconsin flee the state to avoid responsibility and while shirking their duty and this is considered normal in this world of Third World Politics that we are being asked to adopt; after all, the poisoned apple of Obama sycophancy is right there in front of you, all you need to do is sell out your principles and get on the Obama Freight Train to economic insolvency to become an Obama Lesser Elite and live in comparative luxury while the rest of America suffers.
Both Obama and I know elections have consequences; the difference is, I was willing to cover my foul ups and try to limit the damage; Obama is just relegating responsibility to future generations while he tries to Redistribute Wealth from those who actually work for a living to those who just have a job or don’t work. What is his ultimate goal? Is it to help the down trodden or consolidate power and promote himself and his dubious ideas of an open Socialist society.
While Obama views Walkers attempts at financial responsibility as an “assault on unions” he unleashes an assault on Governor Walker. Walker has been restrained in his reactions to the assaults on his modest proposals to restore Wisconsin’s prosperity, considering the $3.6 billion dollar short fall that Wisconsin faces. Obama would consider that to be insignificant, especially compared to the plight of his precious public service unions who are his main voting support; even though George Soros has lots of money he can only vote once. Obama also has the advantage of being able to print more money, an option that Governor Walker doesn’t have.
In a few weeks, there will be a line up of states that will need to cut back on the elitist lifestyles of public service employees to avoid state bankruptcy and Obama’s Community Organizing skills will be tested. The fact that he is willing to use his own thugs to fight legally elected state governments and their laws is stepping into the Rubicon and may be setting up legal challenges in the near future on whether the president should be fighting state governments when their are so many important matters on an international level taking place around the world.
A professional horseman for over 50 years, Skook continues to work with horses. Skook has finished an historical novel, Fifty Thousand Years, that traces a mitochondrial line of DNA from 50,000 years ago to the present. The story follows a line of courageous women, from the Ice Ages to the present, as they meet the challenges of survival with grit and creativity. These are not women who whimper of being victims, they meet the challenges of survival as women who use their abilities without excuses or remorse, these women are winners, they are our ancestors.
Fifty Thousand Years is available in paperback and e-book, it is getting great reviews. You can purchase a copy here; Visit me on Facebook.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Dylantheauthor
As this ordeal in Wisconsin plays out, we are all learning more about the ”in’s and out’s” of it.
For instance, I thought it was simply liberals all hanging together that brought out some doctors to write sickness excuses for unionized teachers who skip class to demonstrate.
But the truth is quite different.
Gov. Walker seeks to end most collective bargaining privileges for state employees, including public school teachers.
And he has good reason.
Doing so can save millions of dollars for each school district where the teachers forced a medical insurer that is a union-front as their only medical insurance.
WEA Trust, an insurance company established by and closely associated with the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the largest teachers union in the state.
WEA Trust offers very expensive health coverage to schools.
Most of the districts with the most expensive health premiums in the state are clients of WEA Trust.
Most of the districts with the lowest premiums do business with other insurance carriers.
Today many Wisconsin school boards consider themselves stuck with expensive WEA Trust health coverage.
Gov. Scott Walker’s current legislative proposal would give school boards the opportunity to freely shop for insurance and save millions of tax dollars for instructional purposes.
In fact, Gov. Walker recently cited WEA Trust as the #1 reason for collective bargaining reform.
WEA Trust, under the umbrella of WEAC, stands to lose millions if the reform is passed.
It is NOT about the children.
They are a bottom priority, not a top one.
(Many points taken from Insurance Scam Driving Wisconsin Union Debate)
Nice going Nan, so this is the corruption that Obama and the teachers want to preserve with sanctimonious pleading, these union officials should be worried about jail as these things continue to be exposed. It’s For the children, Yea, Right! They want to line their pockets and elect more corrupt politicians with someone else’s money paying for it.
I hope Walker cleans out this rat’s nest called public education in Wisconsin.
The media does not know what they are doing.
The fallout from all of this will affect them too.
They will be bit in the butt and not understand that they brought it on themselves.
Anything that happens to the American people will happen to the media.
They think they are above this, but they will be the first to go.
The media needs to wake up and scream the truth now.
Report the truth, or we all suffer.
The liberals in the media will not understand this, or even care.
Keep your power dry.
I’m only six foot so thankfully I qualify for a regular coffin and not a septic tank. Your life as a “community organizer” probably ended because you never learned to lie your way out of a bad situation and lie your way into a good situation, if you were to invest some money into a good quality teleprompter you may have had better success.
That’ll teach you to try and do a good deed. 😉
Buried in a septic tank. That would be fitting for most politicians.
He wasn’t buried in a septic tank because he was too tall, he was is a septic tank because he was so fat. Personally, I’d be a little dismayed to think of spending eternity in a tank meant to hold a thousand gallons of ….; but we all have different ideas on things.
A teleprompter wouldn’t have helped me much Zac, I never really needed to deliver speeches, my talking was always face to face with one to three people. Unlike Obama, I actually had responsibilities and had to work and make things come together. He can spout off empty phrases that sound impressive until you realize he has just talked for twenty minutes without saying anything, back at the Community Hall or the grave yard, empty phrases might earn you a knuckle sandwich.
If you are in charge of the outhouse, you better damn well make sure it has toilet paper and no wasps. That’s the difference between being a Community Organizer for real and parading around reading a teleprompter and posing to display arrogance and complete confidence in your incompetence and overwhelming Narcissism.
Skook, you should have told them an outhouse without wasps cost extra…as would the toilet paper. Hmmm. I guess my time in Illinois rubbed off on me more than I thought.
Burying politicians in septic tanks can also be economical and a way to cut back or austerity in government spending, they aren’t that expensive for what you get and we could stuff four or five in the same tank. That way they could continue telling lies to each other until the end of time. Never a dull moment when your buddies are in the tank with you.
@Skookum:
I figured it would a be a good idea since the inside of a septic tank is their natural habitat. The space savings may allow us to avoid having to bury people vertically
Well I still don’t have to be buried in a septic tank, I only weigh 184lb. I’m about halfway between a sumo wrestler and a starving ethiopian, Some women think I’m handsome, most just think I’m funny(looking).
It could be a liberal think tank.
Skookum, Obama was a community organizer in the big city. He had much bigger fish to fry than you did. You had a little cemetary problem? Well he worked to house dozens of families, pal. There’s no comparison.
Gaze upon the results of big-time organizing and weep:
http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2008/07/photo-gallery-results-of-obamas.html
Just look at that craftsmanship.
Zac, you should worry more about living than dying. Eat well and learn to cook, you will live better, eating out is expensive and will keep you sick with colds. Being somewhere in the middle between a starving Ethiopian and a Sumo leaves a wide stretch, but 184 sounds like a good weight. I went to Parris Island at 198 of muscle and bone and when I graduated, I weighed 154 of bone and less muscle, but I think the Army feeds you better. The best food we had was at Coronado watching the Seals train, I don’t remember why I was there, but I was there and I remember the grub. Go to boot camp fit and strong and it is fun, go there weak and sickly and you will be in a world of hurt. I had a ball at boot camp. My Senior DI used to yell at the cooks to give me all the food I could eat because I was losing so much weight, but it didn’t help, my body was used to much better feed. Concentrate on marksmanship, a good marksman is admired and envied all over the world. Don’t worry about women, get a couple or three stripes on your arm and you will need to beat them away with a stick, other than that I don’t have any other advice about the military. OT and many others know far more about the modern military than me and none of them will give you bad advice.
Wm, it is sad to visualize people trying to live under those conditions.
Then when you consider the graft and corruption that Obama and his cronies were carving up to live in luxury while the people he supposedly cares so much about live in squalor it is truly amazing that so many actually look up to this fraud of a man.
This man is a disgrace and if he weren’t so well connected in a corrupt state, he might be in prison instead of the White House.
Puts a different light on why and how he went to Harvard for a Law Degree and no one remembers him and all his grades are sealed. Yea, right! that’s because it has all been a fraud committed against the American people by a Chicago con man and his puppeteers.
Well, thanks for the advice.
SKOOKUM very good read!!!, sorry but at some points, more than one ,I start to laugh for
a while, I though it was so funny, It was the few words you added, and I could not compose
myself, being in a burial cemetary, would have me adopt the still face, but no
,It was impossible,as usual you move your reader as you wish, north or south or west or east, bye
@ WM
I lived near Chicago and worked in the city quite a bit from 99′-05′. Those areas, even with being the quickest way to get from one job to the next, were the ones everyone avoided traveling through. It was a stark reminder of why you cannot give someone responsibility over something without any accountability towards it’s welfare.
Bees, don’t feel bad, you were supposed to laugh. We tend to take death way too seriously anyway. It’s true we all feel bad when someone dies, but in reality it is just another phase of life that we all must deal with at some point. If we can learn to laugh at life, we are much healthier. I am glad you enjoyed the story and your English comprehension is improving to be able to catch the subtle or dry humor embedded in the essay. Sadly many English speakers will miss the humor. Thank you, Bees.
Considering the dismal performance of politicians of late, maybe instead of burying them in septic tanks, we might HOUSE them in septic tanks.
Just a thought.
@ Skookum
(That tends to echo my view on the subject.)
On Community Organizers, We have a Surplus.
On Statesmen, We have a Shortage.
On Patriots, We Never have Enough.
On Politicians, A Dime a Dozen but Still Over Priced at That and Over Rated at Face Value.
As a footnote, Paula Poundstone, quotes about Death:
“The wages of sin are death, but by the time taxes are taken out, it’s just sort of a tired feeling.”
Some thoughts:
Shouldn’t a GPS system be used to track The Wisconson Senatorial Fleebaggers? Bail bondsmen?
Most of the South Chicago public redevelopment money just disappeared? Can you imagine the Chicago Olympics spearheaded by Jarrett, Blag, and get out of jail free Rezco?
How did Hitler get the Unions on his side? That one I know. Make them into Nazis with his DAS or Nazi Labor Front. Give them power. The banks-piece of the action. The Army-Get rid of Prussian generals, swear the Hitler oath and swell all ranks. Heavy industry-favoritism, bribes,and piece of the action. Socialism leads to tyranny and in this example- cookooland eugenics.
@Wm T Sherman:
Skook had to figure out how to bury some people.
Obama had to figure out how to make people like that vote.
@oil guy from alberta: They fled to a state with a Democratic Governor so that they would be safe from arrest.
Skookums stories attract an intelligent crowd of people at FA. I am presently surprised.
The community organizer running the country right now is in a lot of S***, because his polls are starting to “tank”.
Skook, another fine story. I never ran for public office. Thought about running for mayor of our little town he on the front range of Colorado, but the stray dog problem might be too much of a burden. The deer keep eating the shrubry and the turkeys keep scratching up my garden. We get these cars that speed through town at about 35 mph. I think being mayor would be too much responsibility. It likely would cost me more than $500/month. I really enjoyed your tale of your political career. I could hardly stop laughing!
Zac,
I was a little older than you when I enlisted. Basic training was kind of fun for me as a farm boy. If I were you, I would start running at least 2 miles several times a week, doing as many push ups and sit ups as you can do. Skook is right about marksmanship. If you have not muchlately, find a place and shoot your .22 at 25 meters for tight groups. One thing to remomber. The drill sgts are always looking to pick on someone. First impressions are important. Anyone slow to drop for push ups or other activities will be noticed. You have a good attitude. You will do well!
No doubt in my mind that Skookum would better serve the Oval Office than what sits in there right now. I realize that’s not saying much as Skookum deserves to be compared to a much better quality of man.
More about Grove Parc:
This is a nine page article, but these excerpts from page one can give you an idea of the then and now Obama Operation.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/06/27/grim_proving_ground_for_obamas_housing_policy/
Now we are seeing aggression that was supposed to have been tamed by the Tuscon speech, being as though the aggression is from the left, my guess is that Obama doesn’t feel the need to give us a refresher on civility.
And do we wonder why it takes Obama so long to go to the teleprompter an issue bland statements about the violence overseas? Could it be that he is a bit desensitized to violence, it takes awhile before “something ain’t quite right here” penetrates his thick skull? Could that be why his new best friend forever doesn’t ring any alarm bells? Two to three visits per week, phone calls everyday……two harmless fluffballs just busy busy organizing:
http://www.nlpc.org/stories/2010/09/07/why-are-media-ignoring-trumkas-background
@Randy: Thank you for the advice. I’m confident in my ability to do accomplish what I need to do but still have reason to stay humble. I expect a huge challenge as I advance and welcome it. How long have you been in the military?
Zac, hi, as you must have notice here at FA, the superb class our group have and are today , displaying their true knowledge to who want to hear it, without the BS, other show, and also to the thousands of silent readers , that are intelligent enough to think for them self and judge with a sound mind, THAT you display here to us and them, thank you for being here, and I must add, that only the great are able to show HUMBLENESS at their chosen time, AND I notice that quality on too,
@ilovebeeswarzone: Thank you bees, I much appreciate the compliments. FA is the most intelligent blog that I have seen on the internet; its because of the informed people like yourself who make it that way, people whom continually question authority and are representatives of truth and justice.
@Zac: I retired with over 31 years. OT2 is the experienced one. He is the guy you need to listen to after the basic training ordeal is over. He got into the special ops areas and intel. They are valuable skills in the GWOT. That is why they will not let him retire.
@Randy: Its really sad that most of the generation that saw those towers collapse decided to do nothing. Everyone got mad, but maybe when some of us saw that, got a little more mad than others… I don’t really know. I’m sure a few of us knew we were gonna kick some @ss one day when we get older though.
My dad had a great deal of influence on my level of patriotism, he taught me to respect the veterans and my countrymen. He is an awesome guy. I have a great deal of respect for what you have done for your country, just so as you know sir.
@ Zac, I was 4 days off from Retirement on 9.11.01 and tore up My papers in front of the 10th ID Mountain Division Chief of Staff. I got orders to report to Ft. Bragg ASAP and that is history.
One Month later I was getting ready for OEF and We jumped into Kandahar and that is history.
Now I can’t wait to get Home, put that Army stuff in the back of my closet and sit deep in the saddle at my place and let the Young Dogs do the Hunting. Then, by God, it’s Your Turn! You can make History!
@Old Trooper2: Most people got amnesia after we got attacked, Glad to know that the old troopers that came before me didn’t, and in doing so set that bar high. You have already done more than your fair share, and you don’t complain about it, your an example to us all. It is my turn to make history now, and I have great footsteps to follow in.
@ Zac, Do what Your Courage will carry through and what Your Conscience will allow. I just followed those with My Values and that served Me well. We can never have enough Patriots. You will do well if You never ask anyone to do less that You are willing to do and Lead the Way for them. You Lead from the Front. I reckon that will work well for You. It always did for Me.
@Old Trooper2: Thanks for the advice sir.
Oil Guy From ALBERTA, hi, yes, very true, HOW HE GOT THE UNION ON HIS SIDE ,
make them into NAZI and give them power,
I say, also send them first to WAR, to die for him, and his mentaly desease CAUSE,
they should know that first hand,from the militarys even the young one studyed the previous
first reason for WAR to begin, they should wake up and change their goals which will end in destruction
bye
@Skookum:
I knew you were nuts…lol. I was in pretty good shape when I arrived at MCRD but it was still the hardest 11 weeks of my life. After completing it I was very proud, but can’t say I really had fun. Now the following four years were a blast.
@Zac: Zac,
It wasn’t just your generation that didn’t step up to the plate after 9/11. If you look at how fast support for the war effort dropped it was quite telling and it spanned all generations. All most folks had to do was to support the troops and they couldn’t even do that for any length of time. You can take pride in knowing that the ones from your generation who did step up to the plate did so very admirably. I was quite impressed with the younger troops who were serving. Being an all volunteer force I commend you guys for stepping up to the plate when it would be easier to stay home and pretend nothing happened or worse yet, become an armchair general and bash the troops.
As for your BCT, you should be fortunate enough to have Afghanistan and Iraq Vets as your DI’s and training NCO’s. They can give you a perspective that others can’t. If you decide to make a career of it, OT2’s advice in #34 is good leadership in a nutshell. Listen to your NCO’s! Good luck and keep us posted on your endeavors.
another vet, I’m sure you where commanding, at some times back,
good comment as usual, bye
ilovebeeswarzone,
Actually I was an NCO spending the last 4 years as a 1st Sgt. Appreciate the compliment.
Curt: I was lucky in those days, I could run forever, do push ups and squad thrust without stopping, and I swung the pugil stick like it was a hydraulic ram, my opponents from the other platoons went down and out, my DIs loved it, because they cashed a lot of gambles betting on me. I was the only one who could trade jokes and wisecracks with my Senior DI: no one else would have even considered the possibility.
One evening, all the DIs in the series were gathered around me, they were placing bets on an upcoming pugil stick contest the next day between me and another recruit in the series. My Senior DI got mad at this other DI and told me to put my bayonet on my M14 and to run it through the other DI. I locked the bayonet on and brought my rifle to port arms, I looked at him to make sure I heard him right and he yelled out “Do it, dammit”. I made a move for the other DI and he ran out of the barn and on to the street with me in hot pursuit. I made sure I didn’t catch him. The DIs were laughing like mad men and yelled for me to come back to the barn: the other DI didn’t come back for hours.
Those were the days, Yes I had a ball. You must remember, most of the DIs back then were WWII and Korean vets and they were a fun group.
My fellow Marines I did 12 weeks of P.L.C. at Quantico treated lower than a boot Pvt.Guys busting out all over.Completion, along with graduation from Basic School the highlights of my life.Come on in if you dare Zac.
Semper Fi
@another vet: Hey! I have a ton of respect for veterans like you that haven’t forgotten; thank you for that. Appreciate your wisdom, and your advice. I will defiantly keep you posted.
@richard wheeler: Thanks for the support, marine, and supporting your country. I never turn down a challenge
-Semper fi.
@ Zac…
This after 8 Weeks of Basic, 9 Weeks of AIT, 3 Weeks of Parachute School…
Then for Me 3 Years with the Ranger Regiment, 2 Years with the 82nd AIRBORNE and back to Ft. Benning for Officer Basic.
https://www.benning.army.mil/infantry/199th/ocs/
(After That the SF Q Course http://www.baseops.net/militarybooks/specialforces-qualification.html)
OCS was a cake walk by comparison.
Well that says it all. Yes I’m sure OCS is pretty easy compared to what I’m getting myself into. I bet that florida swamp water is a little chilly. To be honest I thought the graduation rate would be lower than 50%. That’s all ok with me though, I’m good to beat the odds.
@ Zac, They will Challenge You Mentally and Physically. A 50% Drop Rate is common. Most Drop before Florida in the Mountain Cycle. Some folks trust a Parachute but not rappelling with a rope or the Air assault from a Helo by rope. It is just the commute to work but it is Mental there.
Do what Your Courage will carry You through and it is just a job.
I see, jumping out of the helicopter turns some guys away; makes sense. You know, I’m the kind of guy who likes to do things that are dangerous. I’m not gonna say I would have “fun” in ranger school, but I know I can make it through the assessment and selection.
Can i wear glasses in ranger school?
@ Zac, Corrective Lenses, YES. Oakley Designer Cool Dude shades…No.
Exiting a perfectly Good Aircraft in Flight is the most FUN you can have with Your Clothes on.
It is a Group Activity though…
@ Zac… One Stick to the DZ at Bragg
I don’t own any “cool dude shades” but I may find it difficult going through ranger school using telepathy to find my way.
That looks like a great time to me!