Comments on: General Caldwell Asks For Suggestions On How to Retain Majors In the Army

By: Unsatisfied LG DACOM

Unsatisfied LG DACOM — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 06:39:16 +0000

The Army would also get back a fat and lazy field grade who is more worthless than before. There's enough of that, already.

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 06:00:29 +0000

MAJ Brown thanks for the link. It was an interesting read. I'm curious to what you think of my three option idea at the 10 & 20 year mark?

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 05:58:52 +0000

I came up with the furlough ideas because it would allow people to take a break from deployments but also either pursue their education goals or in the mid-career furlough option to do things as various as working an internship, join the Peace Corps, work on a religious mission, or just simply chill out at home.

Either way the Army is going to get a better educated, rested, and motivated soldier back once they come off the furlough. The Army wouldn't lose much money either because the GI bill would pay for educational expenses and if people choose to take the $50,000 bonus I think that would be off set by the Army reducing bonuses given to soldiers in lower pay grades. I think many soldiers would reenlist if they knew at the 10 year mark these options were available to them.

By: Unsatisfied LG DACOM

Unsatisfied LG DACOM — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 04:23:59 +0000

$50,000 sounds good to me. I just got $35,000 the other year for doing absolutely nothing out of the ordinary.

It's not like leaving is really an option. I already have over 10 years of mine and my family's life invested in this. It's a waste of all of our hardships over the past decade if I just quit and go home.

Besides, I'm dedicated to serving my country, just like millions of men before me. I have things better than they ever did. Should I quit because I have to sit in a cubicle? Should I quit because some O-6 dogs me out every once and a while?

I'll tell you, though. If I hear someone from DA or HRC talk crazy about the officer shortage being caused by Army transformation, and not by crazy attrition, then I will quit. They're liars and I can't stand it.

By: Marcus

Marcus — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 22:29:04 +0000

Mark,

And it wouldn’t hurt if they stopped treating them like field-grade second lieutenants that are less trustworthy than eff-ing privates.

By: Leon LaPorte

Leon LaPorte — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 20:28:06 +0000

Stop giving them DUI's.

By: Marcus

Marcus — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 19:34:14 +0000

80/90s,

There are bad apples serving in every grade–that's the way of things. For every bad officer in the universe there is an equally incompetent NCO standing there staring right back at him. It gets real easy to blackball an entire class of soldier due to a couple of clowns.

I can name every single jacked up officer and NCO I ever knew in twenty years of service. But I would be hard pressed to name all of the good ones. I suppose the idiots just sort of stick out.

By: 80/90s Troop

80/90s Troop — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 19:10:55 +0000

But then again, I have had some Majors that really needed to get out. For the good of the Army. I also had some very good Commanders. I remember BOTH of them from my twenty years. One was in Forth ID in Bosnia 1999. The other was at C Co. 52 AVN, 23RD SUPPORT GROUP, Camp Humphreys 1992.

Did not see any that needed to stay in at Ft Hood. They do something to Officers when they come to Hood. I think it is medical. Remove the "common sence" gland or something.

I learned to almost NEVER trust what a Major said. Many WO also. Those people need to learn to listen to their NCOs.

By: 80/90s Troop

80/90s Troop — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 18:55:17 +0000

Could not agree more. I got a pocket knife when I enlisted (needs of) in 99. I was at 14 years. Nothing was offered to stay in past 20, in 2005 while in Iraq, except the offer of two more years. F that.

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:51:31 +0000

By the way, there is something to be said about the way majors are treated and their duty positions. Sure, there may be more field grade positions due to transformation, but most of these are cubicle-based Office Space jobs (like mine has been for years). If we could allow majors to be headquarters company-level commanders or something like that, it would help greatly. A year or so of platoon leader time and a year or so of command isn't enough time doing the sorts of things Army guys want to do by wearing the green tab. Generals have the power to make this happen…just a big hand sweep in FMS to code all HHC-level commands as O4 slots would do the job.

Get us field grades out of the cubicles and into the field!