More on Pitts and other stuff to rant on

Read this MSNBC article on Mr. Pitts, the 278th, and the armor controversy.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6210240/

An excert from Pitt's email to his colleagues is very telling on why he really wanted that question put to Sec. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

I have been trying to get this story out for weeks — as soon as I found out I would be on an unarmored truck — and my paper published two stories on it.

Mr. Pitts I guess was fearful for his own hide. So he corrals a Spc to be his stalking horse to ambush the SecDef since the metting was supposed to be between Rumsfeld and the troops. Then he goes on to say his paper has already published two articles on the matter. Furhter on he talks about him finally getting national press attention on it.

Gee what an altruistic fellow that Mr. Pitts is, not.

Does the US Army need to unass itself over the up-armor, yes. But this is not a perfect world and getting supplies forward has always been more an art than a science. They have uparmored literally thousands of vehicles while still maintaining counter insurgency operations and resupply missions. The Army still has a few veterans who remember VietNam where the VietCong would convert unexploded 105mm shells into mines. Where M113 drivers drove from on top of their tracks using long poles to drive, just to avoid such mines piercing the aluminium floor. But institutional memory is fleeting, especially after the decade of Reagan's facing down the Red Menace followed by Gulf War I where the Coalition avoided this mess by declaring victory and going home and finally Clinton's Peace Dividend that gutted the Army[Active&Reserve&Guard] while over-deploying it to Bosnia-Hercegovina. It does not help there is also a mindset in the Active Army that looks down on the Reserve and Guard units, Total Force amongst Active Duty is still more mouth and than deed. Once again Gulf War I can be partially blamed for this since the one time they tried to activate a Round Out Brigade, by the time that unit was ready the combat operations were over. Why is that? Because that unit was woefully unready and it was activated to please some politicians. Reserve&Guard units gearing up for deployment are still beset by problems of Active treating them as step kids[lockdowns of units for individual infractions] and in return the Guardsmen are repaying them in kind[by calling their families complaining who in turn call the local paper]. It does not help foister unity of attitude because of Active's failure to plan the Guard units are sentenced to condemmed barracks on post while deploying or when returning.

There is much still to do. And I wish the US Army would start acting like professionals and instead of a dysfunctional family. There are murdering thugs who need to be removed from the gene pool before those thugs remove Sally and Missy and Betty from the gene pool. Now go out there and fight as a team!