Army: Nicer drill sergeants more effective (Good God! Alert)

MSNBC ^ | 10/12/06 | AP

[reagan_fanatic]

Welcome to the new Army -

Drill Sergeant: "Listen up newbies - it is the duty of basic training to try understand why the enemy is angry with us and feel his pain!"

Recuit: "Drill Sergeant Sir, I have to go to the bathroom!"

Drill Sergeant: "What did I say about talking out of turn, newbie?? You just earned a five minute time-out. Now move it!!"

(sounds of recruit sobbing as he runs away...)

[BobS]

If Rumsfeld doesn't fire some more Clinton generals, Bush should fire him.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Why presume that reducing the number of wash outs is good?

Why presume that an increase in recruitment is good?

It depends on who is being retained instead of washed out, just as it depends on who is being recruited.

[Eagle Eye]

From Post # 33:

I’m not impressed with leaders who think they have to abuse their Soldiers to train them to standard. I’m not impressed with leaders who think the lack of abuse makes basic training soft,” he said. “We were all in the last hard class – get over it. We do things differently now, and we’re producing Soldiers every bit as good as we ever have.” “I’ve had it up to here with people who say basic training isn’t what it used to be, as if that’s a bad thing,” Power said. “We don’t need to use profanity. We don’t need to demoralize these guys who have volunteered to be here, knowing full well they’re joining an Army at war.

This is what I have to say to all the Know Nothings already responding on this thread.

Most never wore a uniform; those that did probably never trained troops.

But gol darned if they ain't experts!

[Eagle Eye]

Excellent post, almost deserves a thread of its own after this other crap getting posted at least twice.

[tumblindice]

Close order drill, Leonard makes a mistake.
"Private Pyle, what are you trying to do to
my beloved Corps?"
"I'm sorry, sir," Leonard says.
"You are dumb Private Pile but do you expect
me to believe you don't know right from left?"
"No, sir."
"Then you did it on purpose. You want to be
different."
"No, sir." The trace of a grin appears at
the corners of his mouth.
"You think I'm stupid."
"No, sir."
"Then why are you grinning at me?"
"I'm not grinning, sir!"
Gerheim hits Leonard on the right side of his
face, a hard stunning clap. Pain takes the grin
away.
"What side was that?"
"Right ride, sir!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, sir!"
He slaps him just as hard on the left side.
"And what side was that?"
"Left, sir," Leonard says blinking with
pain.
"Don't fuck with me again, scumbag."
"Yes, sir!"
The close order drill continues.

Fluff my pillow, Sarge?

[stm]

One of the greatest keys to surviving bootcamp is knowing that all the screaming and yelling is not personal but rather is intended to strengthen the recruit, teach them attention to detail, discipline and performance under pressure. Call me old school but this kindler, gentler military nonsense is total bulls**t. I guess two wars in the infantry have jaded me. I want to share a foxhole with a soldier not a pantywaist who can't think under pressure or is afraid to drop the hammer on the enemy.

I never bought into that propagandized crap that our military's role is deterrence. It's role is to kill the enemy, blow up his stuff and keep yourself and your fellow soldiers alive in the process.

[ElkGroveDan]

[umgud]

I did basic training back in the late 60's. I remember that there was only one person meaner than my drill sgt. That was the mess sgt.

[Gay State Conservative]

Potential (Male) Recruit "I'd like to join the Army please."
British Army Recruiter "I see. Short service or long service commission, sir?"
Recruit "As long as possible please."
Recruiter "Right well I'll just take a few particulars and then there'll be a few forms to sign, and of course we'll need references and then a full medical examination by the ...
Recruit "Yes. Yes, yes I see. (diffidently) I was just wondering whether it would be possible for me to join... the women's army?"
Recruiter "The Women's Royal Army Corps, sir?"
Recruit "Yes. I was just thinking, you know, if it was possible for me to have my choice ... I'd prefer to be in the Women's Royal Amy Corps."
Recruiter "Well, I'm afraid that the people that recruit here normally go straight into the Scots Guards."
Recruit "Which is all... men... I suppose?"
Recruiter "Yes it is."
Recruit "Yes. Are there any regiments which are more effeminate than others?"
Recruiter "Well, no sir. I mean, apart from the Marines, they're all dead butch."
Recruit "You see, what I really wanted was a regiment where I could be really quiet and have more time to myself to work with fabrics, and creating new concepts in interior design."
Recruiter "Working with fabrics and experimenting with interior design!"
Recruit "Yes."
Recruiter "Oh well you want the Durham Light Infantry then, sir."
Recruit "Oh."
Recruiter "Oh yes. That's the only regiment that's really doing something new with interior design, with colour, texture, line and that."
Recruit "I see."
Recruiter "Oh yes, I mean their use of colour with fabrics is fantastic. I saw their pattern book the other day - beautiful, beautiful. Savage tans, great slabs of black set against aggressive orange. It really makes you want to shout out, this is good! This is real!"
Recruiter "Really?"
Recruiter "Oh yes. I mean the Inniskillin Fusiliers and the Anglian Regiment are all right if you're interested in the art nouveau William Morris revival bit, but if you really want a regiment of the line that is really saying something about interior decor, then you've got to go for the Durham Light Infantry."

[Arrowhead1952]

&%*$#%^& PC basic training. When I went thru basic in the 70s, I remember the Drill SGT yelling at us the first day.

For the next eight weeks,
I'll be your mother,
your father,
your brother,
your sister,
your aunts and uncles.

You WILL listen to ME.

Do you HEAR me?

[lesser_satan]

bump

[stm]

An absolute classic

[Junior]

There is a difference between not screaming and being soft on the recruits. Anyone with half a brain can see that.

[verum ago]

GET DOWN AND GIVE ME that flower, wouldn't you?

[BobS]

"If current crop of troops are an example, then the results are pretty good..."

And it better stay that way. When any job gets hard, people want reliable people working with them. Affirmative action, diversity, politically correct enlistees are going to be left far behind to get killed by their own ineptness and indecisiveness. Nobody will want to be near them because they can get you killed if it gets to that point.

[Al Gator]

I'm not one of the know nothing you mention.

I was taught that basic was intended to DELIBERATELY stress you to the max, to take away any feeling of complacency and laziness you had about life and the way things were suppose to be. To beat you over the head and teach you "we didn't promise you a rose garden lad". To pull the rug out from under your life. Then, when you were ready to jump out of your skin, you found that the guy next to you was even worse off. And helping him helped you. And at that point, unit cohesion began to develop as you got a new outlook on life. And all the yelling and screaming and rack kicking and pushups and runs with pieces at present arms, and racking out at 11:30 to get rolled out at 02:30 to do it again, lost its terror, and you just became a GI. Government Issue, one each. Half assed ready for all the trials and tribulations that the enemy was definitely going to inflict on you.


Some things never change. Our army today is one of the best ever. But feminizing it will, over time, destroy it.

Just my opinion.

[TXnMA]

Any old-timer here who, sometime in the first week of Basic, didn't want to go AWOL just to go back and kill his recruiter -- raise your hand!

<LOL!!!>

[Eagle Eye]

Anyone with half a brain can see that.

I hate to argue with you but this thread and another one are full of half wits who can't see it.

[Osage Orange]

My pop was a D.I. in the USMC.......

I'd guess he would probably laugh at this........