Rider Pride said:
It is because our military has completely forgotten that training as you fight needs to be supported and defined by fighting as you train.
You will see more of this as we return to training.
And that's good. Way good! Here come the caveats though.
Training for a war, not the war. OK, we've done that one here. Good points and bad. No need to really rehash.
We need definable goals, while still being open minded enough to know when things aren't working, when new technology is developing and how to stay ahead of the curve.
We need a command structure that's grounded and open to change. Not simply for change sake, but because it's the right thing to do.
That command structure has to be supported by the schools, so that when things are identified they can be studied and implemented.
The implementation needs to be timely and proactive. Not studied for a couple of years, rolled around the development stages for a couple of more and then come out the other end looking not even remotely what the boots on the ground asked for, or totally out of date already.
Local leaders need to grow a pair and try things different. Try new ideas and not worry about offending some guy 500 miles away or spending a month asking for permission. "Better to beg forgiveness..........and all that.
OWNERSHIP! People have to take ownership of their ideas, do the background and predevelopment stuff, sell the idea, follow it up and make it work! Not pass it to some faceless committee half way across the country, who could care less what you think. We have to cut down on the time from idea to doctrine.
Experience. We have a ton of it after the last 12 years. The problem being, that every group that came back knew the latest and greatest, force fed it until the next group came home and everything changed. We've all seen certain individuals that tried to force unit training because they had just returned, even though they were already 6-12 months out of date.
The Cold War is over. We do a lot of things different, but some things never change. We can't disregard those lessons that have stood us in good stead for the last 40 + years. Old soldiers didn't get that way because they were stupid or outdated.
We have to get past our own egos. Just because you were somewhere that someone else wasn't, doesn't mean that either experience can be discounted. No one is better than the other. Everyone has something to share.
Most of all, we have to work within the system. If you wander the halls, chest puffed out, saying 'Do it this way, because I was there, boy', you'll get nowhere, but ignored. The system exists for a reason(s), not all good I'll grant, but it's there all the same. If you don't understand the system, work within it and make it work for you, your idea is just a subject for talk over beer at the Mess.
We have a shortage of middle leaders. The people for those positions will be pulled from those that may not be ready as they always were. It is incumbent on the senior leaders, nay, every leader no matter the level, to ensure that everyone has the best doctrine, policies and programs that we can possibly afford to giver them.
OK. That's got nothing to do with how you want to hold your rifle.
Or maybe it does
op: And you will probably get just as destroyed/laughed at/mocked at your unit if you show up on the first day with stuff to throw on your rifle. Relax and wait a little while and see what other people are doing before you go out and start buying bonus gucci gear.
