American Forces Press Service

 

Flooding resulted when more than six inches of rain dumped into the Wabash Valley on the evening of June 6 and well into the morning of June 7.

Guardsmen and equipment are moving to counties in southwestern Indiana, and officials are working with the county emergency management director to ensure they know the most efficient means of requesting Indiana National Guard support.

More than 900 soldiers and airmen from across the state have been activated, and more than 90 vehicles are being used.

Sand bag machines are prepositioned in Vincennes, Linton, and Terre Haute, and the Indiana Guard is moving two sand bag machines to Elnora. Guardsmen also are moving sand bags from Terre Haute to Elnora.

Officials said the Guard will work with the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to coordinate missions in support of the local responders in affected areas. Some 200 soldiers from 38th Infantry Division are in Elnora to assist with sand bagging operations.

The Guard has moved water trailers to Hope, Saint Bernice, Paragon, Nineveh, Hymara and Columbus.

Joint Task Force 81 is preparing to deploy from its headquarters here to southwestern Indiana. The unit will provide command and control to units deployed for the flood emergency. A command assessment team from the joint task force will help southern communities prepare for the water that is flowing toward them.

Guard officials said they're working with the Vigo County Emergency Management Office to determine the needs in that area, where 25 soldiers are helping local law enforcement agencies with presence patrols.

Officials also are working with Green County leaders to assess the city of Worthington, which has been cut off by flood waters. An Indiana National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter delivered food to Worthington on June 8.
 

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service

 

Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England hosted the event that added McGinnis' name to the roster of other Army Medal of Honor recipients. Army Secretary Pete Geren and Gen. Richard R. Cody, the Army's vice chief of staff, also attended the event at the library and conference center.

Medal of Honor recipients "are our nation's most-revered heroes," England said. "And every time a name is added, that individual's story enriches the significance of this award."

McGinnis was an exceptional, selfless soldier who gave his life so that his comrades could live, England said.

Then-Pfc. McGinnis died at age 19 in northeastern Baghdad on Dec. 4, 2006, while protecting his comrades from an enemy grenade that was thrown into his Humvee. McGinnis, who'd been riding topside in the vehicle's gunner hatch, dropped down and used his body to absorb the effects of the exploding grenade, thus saving four fellow soldiers: Sgt. 1st Class Cedric Thomas, Staff Sgt. Ian Newland, Sgt. Lyle Buehler, and Spc. Sean Lawson.

"From the Minutemen at Bunker Hill to our warriors in Iraq and Afghanistan, our history is filled with stories of individuals sacrificing their own lives to secure for us the profound gift of peace and freedom," England observed.

U.S. and allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy in northern France during World War II's D-Day on June 6, 1944, England recalled. The tens of thousands of servicemembers who participated in the successful amphibious landings helped to ensure the collapse of Nazi Germany and the return of freedom to Europe, he said.

"Their courage decisively changed the course of history," England said, adding that four U.S. troops earned the Medal of Honor for their actions on the Normandy beaches.

"Ross was securing those very freedoms for Americans and the people of Iraq when he made the ultimate sacrifice," England said.

Ross McGinnis "had decided that the lives of his friends were more important than his own," Geren observed. "Our duty to Ross and to the memory of Ross and our duty to his family is for all of us to live lives worthy of his sacrifice."

"His memory will live in this Army forever," Geren vowed.

McGinnis and his comrades braved insurgents' bombs and sniper fire almost every day in Baghdad, Cody said, "because they knew we must defeat al-Qaida in Iraq, to keep not only our country safe, but to provide the Iraqis a safe and secure environment so they could rebuild their country."

When McGinnis acted to protect his fellow soldiers from the grenade, he knew full well he would not survive the blast, Cody said.

"There is no greater act of personal courage, loyalty or selfless service than this," he said.

McGinnis' father and mother, Tom and Romayne McGinnis, attended the Pentagon event. Tom McGinnis spoke a few words.

"Ross is the reason that we're here. And, the reason that Ross is not here is because his Army buddies were more important than life itself," Tom said. "We appreciate all the memorials, the gifts (and) the special attention that we've been given since Ross died."

Tom said people's kind words have greatly helped him and his wife cope with the loss of their son. Yet, he added, it's important to remember U.S. servicemembers that are still serving at home and abroad.

"Our troops ... also need our support," McGinnis' father emphasized. "They put their lives on the line for us -- sometimes for four years, sometimes for two years, sometimes for 20 years.

"But, when they get home they also need our support."

President Bush presented the Medal of Honor to McGinnis' parents yesterday at a White House ceremony.

"The Medal of Honor is the nation's highest military distinction; it is given for valor beyond anything that duty could require or a superior could command," Bush said, before presenting the medal to McGinnis' parents during the East Room ceremony.

"America will never forget those who came forward to bear the battle," Bush vowed. "America will always honor the name of this brave soldier who gave all for his country."

McGinnis enlisted in the Army at age 17 on June 14, 2004. At the time of his death, McGinnis was a private first class assigned to 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, in Schweinfurt, Germany. McGinnis was promoted to specialist posthumously. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

McGinnis' family received their son's Silver Star and Purple Heart medals in December 2006 at a memorial service in their hometown of Knox, Pa., about 60 miles northeast of Pittsburgh.
 

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

 

In a question-and-answer session after addressing delegates of the annual Asian security conference known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, Gates addressed the notion that a failed U.S. policy toward Burma has contributed to the junta's refusal to allow in international aid.

Cyclone Nargis struck Burma on May 2. The cyclone hit at the Irrawaddy Delta region – a fertile rice-farming area barely above sea level. The storm – with winds of 135 miles per hour and a storm surge – has killed an estimated 134,000 Burmese. Vast portions of the delta washed away, and nearly a month later, large areas remain cut off from the rest of the country.

The extent of the disaster took a day to sink in, but almost immediately nations around the world offered for the estimated 2.5 million people affected. The Burmese junta at first refused all offers, but on May 6 Burma asked the United Nations for assistance. The Burmese government said it would accept food, medicines, water and other supplies, but would not allow foreign aid workers or foreign military personnel to operate inside the country.

An Italian flight finally was allowed to deliver supplies to Rangoon on May 9. The Burmese finally gave landing permission for a U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules airlifter to deliver supplies on May 14. U.S. Pacific Command chief Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating was aboard the first flight, and he met with military leaders at the airport and urged them to allow more flights to the stricken nation. He also offered the Burmese government helicopters to help them deliver the aid to cut-off towns and villages in the hardest-hit areas of the country.

The Burmese since have allowed five C-130 flights a day to go into Rangoon. Through May 28, 75 U.S. flights had delivered 670 metric tons of material – mostly water, rations, plastic sheeting, tents, hygiene packets, water purification equipment and the like.

At the same time, four U.S. ships led by the USS Essex steamed to Burmese waters and awaited permission to land tons of relief supplies. The Essex would have been able to use helicopters and air-cushioned boats to speed 41,000 five-gallon containers of pure water to people who desperately need it. The junta has refused to allow the ships to land the supplies.

It wasn't until May 21 that U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon convinced Burmese leaders to allow international aid workers into the country.

The junta's delay has killed tens of thousands of Burmese, Gates said. Defense officials said more delays will incur "second- and third-order effects" such as deaths from water-borne illnesses, malaria or exposure.

A questioner wanted to know why United States officials believe they can deal with North Korea, but not Burma. "For a productive dialogue to take place, it is necessary for both parties to feel a need to engage in that dialogue," Gates explained. "One of the reasons we are engaged with the North Koreans is that the North Koreans – under pressure – came to the table as part of the Six-Party Talks." The secretary praised China's role in getting the North Koreans to the talks, and stressed the U.S. engagement is not simply a bilateral exercise, but rather is part of a multilateral discussion.

"I think there has been little indication that Burma has any interest in engaging with the United States, and the reality is – as harsh as it may seem – many of those in this room have governments that have tried to engage or do engage with [the country's leaders] and have had zero influence in getting them to open up and accept international assistance for a suffering population," he said. "Governments who have engaged with Burma have had little or no influence in getting them to do the right thing by their own people."

The United States has tried to reason with the Burmese generals, Gates said. He cited Keating's face-to-face appeal when he accompanied the first U.S. relief mission, and added that the United States has reached out to the ruling junta "15 different times" in efforts to convince the generals to let the world community help the Burmese people.

"So it has not been us who have been deaf and dumb in response to the pleas of the international community," Gates said.

An editorial in an official, Burmese government-controlled newspaper said the cyclone victims could "stand by themselves" and criticized U.N. insistence on allowing in aid workers. "The people from Irrawaddy can survive on self-reliance without chocolate bars donated by foreign countries," the Kyemon newspaper editorial said.

Gates offered his condolences "to the many who have suffered, lost loved ones, and face incredible difficulties" as a result of the Burmese typhoon disaster and the powerful May 12 earthquake that killed thousands in China. He noted the solidarity among Pacific nation in responding to the crises.

"Amid the pain and suffering, it has been heartening to see so much international cooperation by so many in this room," Gates said. "Many governments are doing everything they can to help save lives and rebuild livelihoods."

U.S. Pacific Command officials here said the Burmese generals' attitudes do not look as if they will change. The U.S. ships steaming off the coast probably will have to depart the area within days, they said.
 

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service

 

Cyclone Nargis hit Burma on May 3, causing nearly 80,000 deaths and displacing hundreds of thousands. The United Nations has estimated that up to 2.5 million Burmese are in dire need of assistance, according to the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand.

Burma's ruling military committee, called a junta, has steadfastly refused to allow U.S. Navy ships to deliver tons of needed humanitarian supplies to Burmese ports or allow U.S. helicopters to fly in aid to devastated regions, Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, told reporters at a Pentagon news conference.

On May 12, the Burmese government began allowing U.S. military cargo aircraft to fly in humanitarian aid from Thailand to the Burmese airport in Rangoon. Since then, U.S. planes laden with food, water, blankets, mosquito netting and plastic sheeting have averaged about five flights into Rangoon each day, Keating noted. In this way, he said, about 1.4 million pounds of relief supplies have been delivered to Burma to date.

Current U.S. military flights to Rangoon are carrying goods provided by various nongovernmental aid organizations, Keating said, such as the United Nations, the World Food Program and other agencies.

"It doesn't matter to us whose stuff it is we are moving," Keating emphasized, noting the goal is to provide humanitarian aid to Burmese cyclone victims.

Upon reaching Rangoon, Keating explained, the U.S. military-transported relief goods are subsequently being distributed to the Burmese population by nongovernmental organizations and the Burmese government.

Marine Lt. Gen. John F. Goodman, commander of U.S. Marine forces in the Pacific region, remains in Thailand in charge of Task Force Operation Caring Response for Burma, Keating said.

Keating recalled his May 12 flight to Rangoon from Thailand aboard a U.S. Air Force C-130 transport plane, accompanied by U.S. State Department officials.

"I reassured the Burmese delegation of a couple of points," Keating recalled. "One, we were ready to provide relief assistance immediately. Two, we were capable of moving 250,000 pounds or so a day of relief material into Burma."

Keating also informed Burmese officials that U.S. military helicopters could move humanitarian supplies inland from Rangoon to hard-hit places like the Irrawaddy delta region.

"We would come in and be entirely self-sufficient," Keating said he told Burmese officials. The U.S. troops, the admiral added, would also depart Burma "every evening" if its government desired that.

Burmese officials were invited to ride aboard the U.S. helicopters as they delivered aid, Keating recalled. The Burmese officials also were urged to visit the U.S. flotilla that's laden with supplies and waits off the Burmese coast.

The Burmese officials in Rangoon responded that they couldn't grant the necessary permission and the question would have to be taken up with higher authorities, Keating recalled.

"We went to great lengths to try to assure them and reassure them that we had no military intentions" in Burma, Keating said. "We wanted to provide relief, and we were capable of doing that already."

Meanwhile, the USS Essex, USS Harpers Ferry, USS Mustin and USS Juneau still remain in the Bay of Bengal, about 50 nautical miles off Burma's coast, awaiting permission from the Burmese government to deliver humanitarian supplies.

The U.S. servicemembers in the naval flotilla "badly, desperately want to help" the Burmese people, Keating emphasized. But the U.S. Navy ships, he predicted, would not be posted off Burma indefinitely.

In contrast to the Burmese government, the Chinese government has readily accepted U.S. military-provided humanitarian aid for earthquake victims, Keating pointed out.

The People's Republic of China's Sichuan province was hit by a magnitude 7.9 earthquake on May 12 that's estimated to have killed more than 30,000 people.

Last weekend, the U.S. military dispatched two C-17 cargo jets to China laden with tens of thousands of pounds of relief supplies including generators, food, tents, water, and water-purification equipment provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Around that time, Keating recalled receiving permission to use the U.S.-China military hot line to talk with a senior Chinese air force general. The Chinese general, he said, was aware of the arrival of the U.S.-provided aid.

Two more U.S. military airplanes recently arrived in China, Keating noted, one carrying members of a Los Angeles Fire Department urban rescue team and the other delivering tents.

"Principally, there are millions of folks who are without shelter, and so one of the things that the Chinese tell us they need is tents," Keating explained.

The People's Republic of China forwarded more than $5 million in aid to the United States for Hurricane Katrina relief in September 2005.
 

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By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

 

Yesterday, four Air Force C-130 relief flights landed in Rangoon, and today five C-130s made the trip.

The aircraft delivered water, plastic sheeting, mosquito netting, hygiene kits, rice, rations, blankets and clean water containers, officials said.

To date, the Burmese military junta has allowed 26 American flights into the country, carrying more than 615,000 pounds of supplies.

The official Cyclone Nargis death toll now stands at 78,000, with another 56,000 Burmese missing. United Nations officials put the number of those affected at 2.5 million, including 1 million children.

Officials around the world worry that if the Burmese junta does not allow more aid to reach the Irrawaddy River delta, deaths from secondary effects – starvation, exposure, water-borne diseases – will skyrocket.

The United Nations sent John Holmes, its humanitarian affairs chief, to Burma in an effort to open the country up to more aid.

The United States is slated to send more aircraft into Rangoon tomorrow. U.S. ships remain off the coast of Burma, waiting for permission to go ashore. The USS Essex group, alone, carries 41,000 five-gallon containers of water and hundreds of pallets of supplies. The group also has the ability to land the supplies where they are needed most, DoD officials said.
 

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By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service

 

The proposal was sent to Capitol Hill on April 21. It reflects departmental desire to improve education and job opportunities for servicemembers and military spouses that President Bush cited in his Jan. 28 State of the Union speech.

The ability for servicemembers to transfer their Montgomery GI Bill education benefits to spouses exists now, but it's an either/or re-enlistment option, with most servicemembers choosing bonuses when they sign up for another "hitch," Bill Carr, deputy undersecretary of defense for military personnel policy, said during a conference call with military analysts. Army spouses routinely say that obtaining education benefits is one of their top concerns, Carr noted.

"The law (allows transferability in limited circumstances," Carr explained. "Specifically, you must have six years of service completed and agree to [serve] four more.

"But, that's not what limited it," he continued. "What limited it was that it was presented as an option along with other incentives."

The Pentagon's proposal, he noted, removes the limiting requirement for re-enlistment of at least four years.

Another proposed bill before Congress, Carr said, recommends that servicemembers and veterans receive education benefits similar to those included within the initial GI Bill that was used by nearly 8 million veterans after World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt introduced the GI Bill in 1944, which provided full tuition as well as a monthly living allowance for military veterans who opted to go to school after receiving honorable discharges.

But today is a different time and circumstance, Carr said. The rationale for the original GI Bill, he explained, was that the end of the war would release millions of veterans into a job market that couldn't absorb them. When war erupted in Europe in 1939, the United States had a 17-percent unemployment rate; its economy was still gripped by the Great Depression that had begun a decade earlier.

The current Pentagon-endorsed proposal on Capitol Hill recommends increasing the GI Bill tuition ceiling from about $1,100 a month to about $1,600, Carr said. That figure, he said, dovetails with current average college tuition costs.

According to recent studies of military manning requirements, the re-introduction of original GI Bill-type education benefits would scramble the Army's personnel system, Carr said, and cause an exodus from the ranks. The Army would lose 8,000 soldiers a year, he said, and it would have to invest an additional $100 million annually for retention incentives. Recruiting would have to be ramped up to make up for the anticipated shortfall, he added.

Re-introducing the old GI Bill "would have a sharp effect on retention and be a shock to the system," Carr emphasized, adding it would hurt Army re-enlistment rates, now at about 50 percent, when the Army is working to add 65,000 additional soldiers to the force.

The initial GI Bill was used when America had a conscripted military force that had many more members and a much-higher attrition rate, Carr pointed out. With today's volunteer force, it is necessary that "we should provide a fair education benefit and be attentive to retention," Carr said, noting extreme care should be taken to retain the noncommissioned officers who form the backbone of the military.

"If we provide the average national [college tuition cost] and then leave it to the veterans to make their choices, that's not unreasonable, given that we have a competing concern about sustaining seasoned NCOs to lead a larger military," Carr said.

Before World War II, college and home ownership were mostly unreachable for the average American. Because of the GI Bill, millions of veterans earned college degrees, thus preventing a flood of the post-war job market. Millions of World War II veterans also used their GI Bill benefits to buy houses with federally guaranteed mortgage loans.

By 1947, veterans accounted for nearly half of college admissions. By the time the original GI Bill ended in 1956, 7.8 million of 16 million World War II veterans had participated in an education or training program.

The Defense Department enrolls servicemembers to receive Montgomery GI Bill benefits, but the Department of Veterans Affairs implements and manages the program. The VA pays the tuition bills.

About 97 percent of today's servicemembers enroll for GI Bill benefits, and slightly more than 70 percent actually use them. That's the highest usage rate of any GI Bill in history.

"If we retain well, then we have a seasoned force, Carr observed, noting just one in eight servicemembers re-enlisted after their first hitch during the draft era. Today, nearly 50 percent of servicemembers re-enlist after their initial term of service, he noted.

"That matters, because that produces the experience profile that produces the experienced NCOs," Carr said. "And, with the weapon systems that we've bought, that's all that's going to work in keeping them maintained and operating."

In short, providing original-style GI Bill benefits for today's all-volunteer force would create "an exodus" of servicemembers and "a performance concern" across the military, Carr said.
 

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

 

Five C-130 Hercules transports delivered water, blankets, rations, mosquito netting and plastic sheeting yesterday. "We have to have permission every time we go in," the official, speaking on background, said. "U.S. officials have a verbal OK to bring in five more planeloads of relief supplies today, he added.

Military planners said they want the Burmese to accept six CH-53 helicopters to speed delivery of the supplies to those hardest hit by the cyclone deep in the Irrawaddy River delta. Burma has only a handful of helicopters, and military officials doubt the nation has the capability to deliver the supplies to those most in need.

The U.S. effort currently is limited to deliveries to the international airfield at Rangoon. The Hercules airlifters land, offload the supplies and then depart, the military official said. No Americans are on the ground to assist in assessing what the cyclone victims need and how best to get the supplies to them. U.S. military airfield specialists are standing by for the OK to help the Burmese manage the supplies that are flowing in.

Cyclone Nargis hit an area with 2 million people. A Burmese government spokesman said more than 35,000 people are dead and more than 30,000 are missing. United Nations estimates said the number killed could be more than 100,000.

The U.S. military is looking at options for setting up a helicopter forward operating base outside Burma, the official said. The base ideally would put U.S. choppers within easy range to deliver supplies to the southern Irrawaddy River delta. Officials said many areas in the delta are still under water and that there are no roads to many affected towns and villages. The helicopters would allow supplies to reach those people.

In addition, the USS Essex Expeditionary Strike Group is off the coast of Burma. Clean water is the biggest need now, and the Essex group has 14,000 5-gallon water bladders ready to deliver. The ship also has pallets of other supplies the crew could deliver quickly. "The capacity on those ships is incredible," the official said.

The U.S. ships are only part of a flotilla rushing to provide aid the Burmese government is reluctant to accept. British, French and Australian ships are converging on the area, the official said.

But delivering fresh water and other supplies is only the first piece of the relief effort the Burmese people need, the official said. As terrible as the loss of life already has been, "the disease and all the second- and third-order effects remain," he noted.
 

By Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith
Special to American Forces Press Service

 

By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service

 

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates learned of problems with the military's cremation process today, and he took immediate action, Morrell said. The department is launching an investigation into processes for handling remains of fallen warriors at the military's sole mortuary on Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.

"The families of the fallen have the secretary's deepest apology," Morrell said. "Those still serving have his commitment that all members of the armed forces will be treated with the dignity and respect that their sacrifice demands."

Morrell made the announcement at a Pentagon press conference held after senior leaders became aware of a complaint by a servicemember who works in the Pentagon about the cremation process. The servicemember complained after witnessing the cremation of a soldier's body which was returned this week from Iraq.

Because there is no cremation facility at the base, the Dover Port Mortuary contracted two local funeral homes to perform cremations. One of the mortuaries is not co-located with the funeral home and is in an industrial park in Kent County, Del. It has three incinerators, one marked for human remains, the other for pets, Morrell said.

While the facility is fully licensed, Gates believes the site and signs "are insensitive and entirely inappropriate for the dignified treatment of our fallen," Morrell said.

"There is no mission more important than the dignified return of our fallen heroes to their families and the Dover Air Force Base team has performed this mission with great care for a number of years," Morrell said.

With Gates' approval, Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne has directed the mortuary to stop contracting the off-site crematorium and use only those crematoriums that are co-located with licensed funeral homes, Morrell said. Also, there must now be a military presence during off-base processes of funeral home facilities, he said.

Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Duncan McNabb will follow up on all actions and coordinate with Army staff. David Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, will review DoD policies on handling the remains of service members. They will determine how many soldiers' bodies were handled by the crematorium, Morrell said. He noted that while "probably more often than not" servicemembers' remains are sent to their hometowns for cremations.

It is not unusual for crematoriums to serve both humans and pets, Morrell said. "My understanding is that it's common practice."

Morrell stressed that "we have absolutely no evidence whatsoever that any human remains were ever mistreated." While it is permissible to cremate fallen soldiers in a facility that also cremates pets, Gates believes it is inappropriate, he said.

The servicemember who complained "did what he should have done, which was to report it to us," said Lt. Gen. David Huntoon, director of Army staff.

"The senior leadership of all the services holds the mission of returning our fallen comrades of the highest order of importance," Huntoon said.

Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, director of Air Force staff, said the mortuary began contracting the facilities in 2001. Klotz said he will travel to Dover tomorrow to look into the matter. Because Dover is "a relatively small city," the mortuary is limited in its ability to contract cremation services, he said.
 

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

 

That's the challenge facing military leaders as they encourage their troops suffering from combat stress to seek mental health services, said Marine Lt. Gen. John Sattler, who's heading the new Joint Staff Wounded Warrior Integration Team.

Sattler, director of strategic plans and policy for the Joint Staff, said the military's uncomplaining, can-do spirit can make some troops resist seeking treatment for what Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates calls "the unseen scars of war."

"Sometimes our toughness can be our biggest obstacle in getting those injuries healed," Sattler said.

"If you ... have been hit in battle and have an external wound, you go forward and you receive medical treatment, and you are not ashamed in any way, shape or form to go get that treatment," he said. "But for some reason, [there's a] stigma associated with a nonphysical battle injury such as traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder.

"We have to make sure that our men and women know there is no stigma associated with seeking the same high degree of medical care to make sure those injures are also taken care of," he said.

The Joint Staff Wounded Warrior Integration Team is focusing much of its work on better understanding PTSD and TBI and their effects, and getting people with symptoms to step forward, Sattler said.

"As the research continues and the care becomes better, it is our responsibility to make sure we alleviate the stigma and ensure our men and women looking for that type of help are unashamed about it," he said.

Getting treatment is a sign of strength, not weakness, and improves a servicemember's duty performance, he said. "They are going to perform better, they will be better warriors – soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines – if they are completely healed inside as well as outside," he said.

Gates urged senior noncommissioned officers attending the Sergeants Major Academy for their help in getting troops who need it to seek combat-related mental-health care.

"All of you have a special role in encouraging troops to seek help for the unseen scars of war -- to let them know that doing so is a sign of strength and maturity," he said during his May 1 visit to Fort Bliss, Texas. "I urge you all to talk with those below you to find out where we can continue to improve.

"Those who have sacrificed for our nation deserve the best care they can get," he continued. "As I have said before, there is no higher priority for the Department of Defense, after the war itself, than caring for our wounded warriors

American Forces Press Service

 

Army Col. Steven Mains, director of the Center for Army Lesson Learned, and Milton Hileman, a senior military analyst, explained that there was a small but clear rise in the number of casualties early in a combat deployment, concentrated in the first 100 days.

"It's not a new phenomenon that ... we just figured out and nobody had ever seen before, but it's something we could clearly show was the case in Iraq," Mains said.
"And so it drove us to say, well, what do they know at day 250 that they really need to know during those first 100 days?"

After an extensive interview process with approximately 1700 soldiers, Mains and Hileman said that there were three key elements to surviving the first three months; avoiding complacency, good decisions made by junior leaders, and the efficient staff processes at the battalion and brigade level for commanders.

"When we interviewed the soldiers one on one, we asked them to respond back to us as if they were talking to a fellow soldier," Hileman said.

Overall, the soldiers said they need to stay alert and stay attuned to the environment in order to survive, Hileman said. Avoiding complacency was a reoccurring theme among the soldiers interviewed, he added.

"Soldiers said that complacency in one way or another contributed to every casualty they saw," Hileman said. "It was little things like not following (standard operating procedures), not having all of your kit when you went out the gate on a mission, leaders not doing their pre-combat inspections, and leaders not being adaptive in the way they plan their mission."

Mains explained the original idea was to write one handbook for soldiers, but based on what soldiers told them, it grew into another handbook for junior leaders.

"The decisions the junior leaders make clearly affect survivability and mission accomplishment," said Mains. "And of course, they're not used to making those decisions because they're new in theater as well."

Soldiers expect to have good leadership at every level, Hileman said.

Hileman explained that to a soldier good leadership means willingness to lead from the front and having tactical experience.

"They certainly expect their leaders to share that same level of risk that they shared everyday when they went out on a mission," said Hileman. "They expect their leaders to set standards and enforce the standards every day."

Furthermore, Hileman said the soldiers told him that when they identified a weak leader, they tended to create their own informal chain of command.

The soldiers were also asked if they had the right training, and more than 70 percent said their unit was trained and ready to go.

Mains said that while most military handbooks would publish approximately 20,000 copies, the "First Hundred Days" soldiers handbooks have published more than 200,000 copies.

"We know that four countries are translating it for their own soldiers," said Mains. "And the other two handbooks are really close behind that."

Mains also said the Army is going to publish a handbook focused on transition teams. Transition teams are "not quite as focused on going on patrol and staying alive as a junior soldier might be, but they need to come in quickly and gain rapport with ... the guy that they're advising," he said.

(Navy Seaman William Selby works for the New Media branch of American Forces Information Service.)
 

By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service

 

In a conference call with online journalists and "bloggers," Bill Carr, deputy undersecretary of defense for military personnel policy, said servicemembers who wear the uniform thanks to waivers are performing well.

"The vast majority of the conduct waivers are misdemeanors and a litany of three-or-more traffic offenses. And, with that, there are some felony arrests and a few felony convictions," Carr said.

The waivers he is referring to don't represent hardened criminals, he added, but rather people who participated in childhood pranks.

"But, in every case, if their community has joined behind them and offered their support, then the recruiter might, if we've got a strong candidate in terms of their other attributes, send it up for a waiver," he said.

Carr added that officials don't relax the standards in granting waivers, but do make exceptions based on solid judgment calls.

"Last year's [waivered enlistees] proved to perform; they retained as well as the non-waivered counterparts, and they wouldn't be retaining if they weren't performing," he said. "They are doing as well as the non-waiver crowd. Therefore, we are making correct bets on the risks that we take for someone that has done something that was that much of an aberration against what we expect of our teenagers."

If people with behavior or medical problems did make it to a training base, Carr noted, officials there would be quick to notice. "And, if it were creating a problem," he said, "my knowledge of the institution tells me that the training base isn't going to put up with it, and that practice in recruiting is going to change, and we would have heard about it."

Tattoos are an issue in military recruiting, Carr said, and he noted that all of the services have adopted the same standard for what types of tattoos are and aren't allowed.

"Show me the tattoo," Carr said. "I'm going to check it against a book of gangs, and in the event that you have [a gang-related tattoo], you almost certainly are going to be disqualified."

Though up to about a year ago, gang affiliation wasn't seen as a disqualification for entry into the Army, Carr said, the Army has uniformly adopted this policy with the other services. Another disqualification for entry into any of the branches of service is the presence of a tattoo that is affiliated with a hate group.

Carr acknowledged that the Army has allowed waivers for recruits who have tattoos on visible parts of their bodies, such as on their hands and neck. "You begin limiting your market based on the kind of body art that a particular generation would apply to themselves," he said.

However, Carr said, despite the use of waivers, the standards for who the services can accept remain the same.

"We insist that the services -- every one of them, every year -- draw 60 percent from the top half [of potential recruits], and most of them are exceeding it," he said. "Army's just about exactly at 60 percent. Our goal is a high-performing military."

(Navy Lt. Jenifer Cragg is assigned to the New Media branch of American Forces Information Service.)
 

American Forces Press Service

 

"We will reach out and touch every veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom to let them know we are here for them," said Veterans Affairs Secretary Dr. James B. Peake, a retired lieutenant general who served as Army surgeon general. "VA is committed to getting these veterans the help they need and deserve."

A contractor-operated "Combat Veteran Call Center" will telephone two distinct populations of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, officials said. In the first phase, calls will go to an estimated 17,000 veterans who were sick or injured while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan. VA will offer to appoint a care manager to work with them if they don't have one already. Care managers ensure veterans receive appropriate care and know about their VA benefits.

For five years after their discharge from the military, these combat veterans have special access to VA health care. The department screens combat veterans for signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. VA personnel have been deployed to the military's major medical centers to assist wounded service members and their families during the transition to civilian lives.

The new call center's second phase will target 550,000 Afghanistan and Iraq veterans who have been discharged from active duty but have not contacted VA for services. Once contacted, veterans will be informed about VA's benefits and services. The initial calls will be made by a private contractor, EDS, which specializes in technology services to improve business. If needed, VA employees will make follow-up calls, officials said.

"We will leave no stone unturned to reach these veterans," said Dr. Edward Huycke, chief of the Veterans Affairs – Defense Department coordination office

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

 

Army Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, Army Reserve chief, and Command Sgt. Maj. Leon Caffie, his top enlisted soldier, administered the re-enlistment oath, marking the Army Reserve's century of service.

Later in the day, they'll lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery to honor the contributions and sacrifices Army Reserve soldiers have made. Afterward, they will honor today's Army Reserve soldiers by planting a tree and dedicating a plaque at Arlington.

Stultz noted the service Army Reservists have contributed since it was founded April 23, 1908, as a small strategic force. He called today's Army Reserve is an operational, expeditionary and domestic force that's an essential part of the Army.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, the Army Reserve has mobilized more than 216,000 soldiers. Today, more than 26,000 Army reservists are deployed around the world, he said.

This weekend, Stultz will further honor the sacrifices they have made when he attends the funeral of Army Reserve Sgt. Matt Maupin. The 20-year-old soldier went missing outside Baghdad April 9, 2004, when his convoy came under attack. He had been listed as a prisoner of war after a videotape was released showing him in captivity.

The Army announced March 31 that Maupin's remains had been positively identified through DNA.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates expressed condolences to Maupin's family. "Every single one of these (deaths) is a tragedy, both for the individual and for their families, but this has been especially difficult for the Maupin family because of not knowing for almost exactly four years," Gates told reporters traveling with him the day of the announcement.

Maupin was a 20-year-old private first class when he was captured. He was a member of 724th Transportation Company, from Bartonville, Ill., but was assigned to the 88th Regional Readiness Command for the deployment. He was promoted to staff sergeant in August 2006, his third promotion since his capture.

Stultz expressed appreciation for the commitment, selfless service and personal courage Army reservists have demonstrated as they put their lives on hold – and on the line – to defend the United States and its freedoms.
 

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

 

A senior defense official said waivers sometimes are granted to people who commit "youthful pranks that went way too far," but not to dangerous criminals.

The military granted waivers to 903 felons in 2007, 511 of them for the Army and 350 for the Marine Corps, Bill Carr, acting deputy under secretary for military personnel policy, told American Forces Press Service. These numbers, up from 249 in the Army and 208 for the Marine Corps in 2006, constitute a tiny fraction of all incoming recruits -- one half of one percent, Carr said.

Contrary to what media reports imply, the waivers weren't granted to hardened criminals fresh out of prison, Carr said. Mostly they're granted to people who made mistakes when they were younger, but then straightened up to become responsible citizens, he said.

The military is extremely judicious in granting the waivers and limits the number granted each year. A general officer must approve all such applications. Those with "sinister crimes" are automatically eliminated. Only those who show they've turned around and have potential in the military get a chance to enlist.

"The military determines that they're worth betting on and gives them a second chance," Carr said.

In a tough recruiting environment, the practice serves the military too. Two-thirds of the American youth population is disqualified to enlist by today's military entrance standards, said Army Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington, a Pentagon spokesman. Medical conditions account for most of the disqualifications, and medical waivers make up the biggest percentage of waivers granted.

Of waivers granted to felons, most were to individuals involved in crimes against property. Typically, the offenses occurred years before the waivers were granted, Withington said.

One recruit described in news reports as a "bomber" actually was a young person who blew up a mailbox using a soda bottle full of gunpowder, Carr said. "It was more of a youthful prank than the sinister activity that some of the media suggest," he said. That offense occurred two years before the waiver was granted.

Another recruit had been convicted of involuntary manslaughter resulting from driving under the influence of alcohol three years before receiving the waiver. Several recruits had been convicted of sexual offenses, most involving consensual sex with a minor and typically years before the military waiver was granted.

Carr has a message to parents concerned about who their son or daughter joining the military may serve with.

"They should feel assured that we are very careful about who their children serve alongside," he said. "These are generally people of respectable character who made a terrible move in their youth, but have made a dramatic turnaround."
 

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

 

By Staff Sgt. W. Michael Houk, USA
Special to American Forces Press Service