By Here is an update on the possibility of a curfew change coming to United States Forces Korea (USFK):
U.S. Forces Korea commander Gen. B.B. Bell is still deliberating whether to change curfew restrictions for troops stationed in South Korea, USFK spokesman Col. Franklin Childress said Monday.
Bell said in January that he planned to ease curfew restrictions for higher-ranking servicemembers within two months, possibly by starting a tiered curfew system that would let them stay out later than lower-ranking troops.
Childress said Bell spoke recently with senior leaders about the curfew but will announce changes only through his officers “because that’s the right thing to do.”
“He is going to talk through the chain of command, who will talk to the servicemembers,” Childress said. [Stars & Stripes]
General Bell first started discussing changing the curfew back in January and yet no decision has been made. I agree with the incremental change to the curfew, but I also think the curfew should not be changed if the USFK leadership is just going to change it back again after one incident.
I also strongly believe that as part of the Camp Humphreys relocation the curfew should be discontinued altogether for all ranks.
5:58 pm on April 2nd, 2008 1
[...] Click here to read more. Click here to return to Korea Click here to return to MySpace News. [...]
4:38 am on April 2nd, 2008 2
I'm willing to bet that Gen Bell will put this on the back burner and let the incoming Commander deal with it after the Change of Command.
All in the name of Force Protection
6:50 am on April 2nd, 2008 3
"If I get 'em talking about a possible curfew change, there will be less talk of black marketing scams, slot machines, housing rip-offs, suspect contracts for relocation, shady Koreans lurking around on post/base, etc."
Curfew is a non-issue.
Everybody that is Anybody already flees the over-controlled, non-fun, expensive-hooker-filled GI bar areas and heads out to Real Korea where the locals can be irritated and USFK can be quietly discredited until sunrise… and girls are ~$70 a throw (or $40 if you believe Osan security police-posted Internet videos).
GI Average is culturally insensitive but basically good… hence fewer grandmother rapes and taxi smackdowns than might be expected… even with reduced standards in enlistment.
Maybe it IS time to lift curfew officially… as it was done, de facto, long ago.
10:12 am on April 2nd, 2008 4
Modify curfew? Oh, Hell fcuk no. Make some statements to the press and kick the idea around on the monthly AFN radio show and maybe get some "working group" together to think about it, but this is definitely one of those things that gets passed down from DEROS to DEROS without action, "pending further study."
Don't feel bad…we've still got the previous CG's brainchild policies in full effect up here as well. I've got three cracked ribs right now because of the battle buddy card.
1:34 pm on April 2nd, 2008 5
Mark,
I told you stop messing with my "Juicy"
HAHA!
2:05 pm on April 2nd, 2008 6
Let the CG do whatever he wants. Let's just stop calling it force protection and be frank. Let's call it the clean OER program or I-don't-trust-the-adults-under-my-supervision-and-I'll-treat -them-like-children program.
It was force protection shortly after 9/11, and if it still was, we'd have the guard force patrolling the walls. This curfew has become a punishment for adults that serve our country. And speaking of force protection, let's take away their vehicles because that may cause an incident. Let's take away alcohol, because that may cause an alcohol related incident. Smoking because of health; running because of shin-splints, etc.
I've said it before. GI, I support your idea of the First Sergeant handing out passes to the good ones and keeping the bad ones on lockdown. If they mess up, take away their pass. It's so easy. Then again, this is the military and if they want to keep the GI's on post at all times, well, then do it, and be consistent!
This is a bit off topic, but how about giving the GI's some personal responsibility? GI's are supposed to be trained in proper firearm handling. Before they go to the desert, they have to receive training on clearing and firearm handling – hunh??! Reservist and NG, fine. But active duty should be able to handle their weapons without putting the barrel into the ground. How about, during exercises, they are handed our blanks and have their weapon ready, as if to simulate real war. If the rounds go off, we know who needs that extra training, instead of disabling our service members and removing something that should be second nature to them.
Don't use the pointy scissors, use the dull round ones.
2:37 pm on April 2nd, 2008 7
The Force Protection concerns are simply a lie, plain and simple. It is about off post incidents, and nothing else. Units need to be responsible for disciplining soldiers, and hopefully we can move past the childishness of the curfew in Korea.
3:35 pm on April 2nd, 2008 8
…caught in the spam trap, GI.
6:44 pm on April 2nd, 2008 9
I really miss the days of staying out all night
8:13 pm on April 2nd, 2008 10
Matt, your juicy just cost me a cool grand.
8:31 pm on April 2nd, 2008 11
3:00 am on April 3rd, 2008 12
sesame seed, hopefully the 1SG handing out Warrior Passes or something equivalent the current talked about change in curfew will lead to. I think a small scale change in curfew will have to happpen first to test the waters before a larger curfew modification happens.
3:48 am on April 3rd, 2008 13
The funny thing is that most of the fights that the GI's get into are mostly with each other. The funniest is that its mostly MP's that fight other MP's!
6:15 pm on June 1st, 2008 14
Hahahahha!
General Bell: "Ya… I was just fcukin' with y'all."
I guess it got the drones buzzing about gettin' to drink after midnight instead of wondering why "leadership" lets them discretely have ratty $300 poontang from their Korean golf buddies' juicy clubs but make sure the quality cheap stuff is off-limits and, in some cases, actively patrolled.
6:16 pm on June 1st, 2008 15
Ooops…
…forgot the link:
stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=55249
1:09 pm on October 20th, 2008 16
[...] … http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2007/08/27/shipp_news/... • Found on Yahoo! Search USFK Curfew Change Update Apr 2, 2008 … B.B. Bell is still deliberating whether to change curfew restrictions for troops [...]