Posted on 04/30/2005 4:10:56 PM PDT by A.A. Cunningham
Marine Gen. Peter Pace, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, talks to cadets at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., on April 27. He visited the academy to share advice and lessons he learned while in combat. Photo by Staff Sgt D. Myles Cullen, USAF
I think Pete Pace is going to make a great Commander of the JCOS, but sending any brand new second louie into combat without any training with his platoon is asking for trouble. It takes a few months to build up the trust and coordination needed to make an infantry platoon work right.
It also gives the platoon and the company CO time to see who's a natural, who will grow into the job, and the ones who just aren't cut out for the job.
In my time, I saw all three types. There were some you would run through a brick wall for the first day you met them. The next type were the ones who looked completely out of place, but grew into the job and became good officers. Then you had the ones that made people's fraglists. These were the incompetent and bullheaded ones who didn't have a clue and wouldn't listen to the platoon sergeant or anyone else.
The last classification all had the same thing in common: With stars in their eyes they thought they were the next Patton, when they would have gotten their arses kicked by the most incompetent Russian general.
I was in the navy. But I remember walking a shore patrol beat with the gold-stripe Chief Petty Officer of the sixth fleet. He said that if he had any advice to give to new officers, it was to listen to their noncoms. If they took advice from their LPOs, these gentlemen would bust their tail to make the officers look good.
That must have been an absolute humiliation for the US Army: to have its future leaders lectured on leadership by a Marine Corps general.
Pace might regret the publication of this piece during his confirmation hearings, a la Dems.
If those cadets are smart they'll heed General Paces' advice.
Hyperbole of the day.
Get real..
You didn't tell me he was there....I wanted his autograph.
What future grunt platoon leader wouldn't want to hear a future C,JCS talk about being a grunt platoon leader?
I was lucky enough to get two natural Second Louies and one, during our activation for Desert Shield/Storm, who grew up in a hurry. At first he looked hopeless. But with a little nudging from us non-coms, we got him pointed in the right direction. We never shipped overseas, but by the end of the activation, he was a good platoon leader.
Then there was the platoon leader they brought in for another platoon during my last summer camp for another platoon. I was the CO's Humvee driver and he told me to take this idiot back to the barracks while we were out in the field. He gave the louie a specific time to be back.
So I drive this guy in to the officer barracks at Fort Polk and he proceeds to spend an hour and 20 minutes of the 1:30 time limit we're supposed to be gone doing whatever. Then, we're supposed to pick up 4 guys who were doing sundry things at the CP and bring them back with us(btw: all these guys were in his platoon).
We get there, and the guys are waiting for chow. He orders them to load up and grabs them some MRE's. The Top gets into an argument with him that the chow truck will be back any minute. He doesn't care, he has to get the Humvee back in time. We haven't even gone a block when the chow truck passes us. I offer that we could turn around and give the guys a hotmeal. No!
We get back to our position in the field, and the guys in the back are thinking of various ways to stick a bayonet into this *sshole's back. We run into the XO, who had been one of the "natural" platoon leaders. The butterbar tells him his version, which was a complete lie, of what happened. The XO asked about the hot chow for his own platoon troops. The idiot said he'd gotten MRE's. The XO said it all, "That's **cking over your own troops."
Later, the XO took me aside and I told him what had happened. I respect that man to this day, but the idiot marked me that day. Fortunately, I ETS'd that same year, because he was determined to make my life a living hell if I stayed in the Guard. I got the last laugh though. In my final interview with the First Seargeant and CO, I ripped him to shreds and they both agreed with my argument.
... and why would that be? You think he just came uninvited? ggggeeeeezzzzzzz
And if that PO's some ring-knockers....good.
Humiliation? I don't think so, I think the word you're looking for is appreciation, appreciation for the fact that the new Chairman of the Joint Chiefs felt strong enough about the men under his command to relate a story of a moment of weakness as a platoon leader.
I'd follow this guy.
Having zero military experience, I'm not sure what you mean. But, my father-in-law was a Marine pilot and squadron leader, and a best friend did 2 tough Vietnam tours in the Army, after gutting it through West Point. I think they would both find this story encouraging evidence of the status of their respective services. I know I do.
Best wishes to Gen. Pace, and his audience of new officers!
My friend tells the story of how they were ambushed at night and his first reaction was to call in flares so he could see better. The sergeant said "You know those flares that are going to help us see better, Do you think the Viet Cong might see us better too?" my friend didn't ask for the flares.
Roger that, jwalsh07 -- I have followed this guy. Peter Pace is an outstanding officer and a very fine man. He will lead all of the services well, and will continue the Bush/Rumsfeld transformation of the Defense Department.
Like your story. You did well for yourself and your platoon/company- Thanks for your service.
Quadrant, first, the Military Academy invited General Pace to speak. Second, as the current Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and nominee to be the next Chairman, General Pace is not performing duty as a Marine, but rather as a joint service officer who reports to the Secretary of Defense, not the Marine Corps. It is no different than when Army Generals Shelton, Shalikashvili & Powell served as CJCS and gave talks at the Naval Academy, the Air Force Academy, Marine Platoon Commander's courses etc. All the old war-horses get trotted out for such occasions, regardless of service.
"Quadrunt"
humiliating??? You can't be serious. There is so much respect for a true warrior who has served, knows what they're talking about, and is willing to share his/her experience to the betterment of other servicemen/women/warriors.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.