First let me thank you for your service to our country.
Second, let me thank you for taking the time to explain this at length. I have looked online in the past for exactly this kind of analysis but never found it and I resorted to reading between the lines.
In any case, while I know your explanation doesn't satisfy all cases, I think I got a good grasp of how it worked in most cases. Thank you very much for taking the time to satisfy my mostly academic interest.
Re: The temporary promotions: I don't think most civilians know much about them, and the only reason I am aware of them was that my dad has mentioned them to me in the past.
He was drafted in July 1945, so as they say, he was a "lucky fella, mr smith," coming in just as the war was ending. He was an MP and I don't think he ever left stateside. In any case, he either spoke of the experience of some of the people he knew in the service or some friends of his who wound up in Korea, but he had mentioned the temporary promotions and I thought the whole concept was a royal ripoff.
My dad smiled and said "well, you're in the army, now!"
Again thanks for your service and taking the time to explain this to me.
I was a very reluctant soldier. The alternatives were few. For what it was worth, you are welcome. I am a different and better person for having served. The day I got out is still one of the happiest in my memory.
HitmanNY said: "...he had mentioned the temporary promotions and I thought the whole concept was a royal ripoff. "
Armies through thousands of years have probably learned to cope with having to swell the ranks during war time only to shrink when peace breaks out.
When I first received promotion orders which read, "promotion to temporary grade ...", I thought that there might have been some probationary period involved or something like that. Later, I just ignored the wording. Only in later years did it seem to make sense. I wonder what "permanent" rank some of the NCOs I served with held. For all I know, some of them might have been PFCs as well.