To respond topic of the number of CA National Guard's Men who are in Iraq, my father's unit is attached to the 1st Battalion, 185th Armor. This unit is made up up soliers from three different states- Washington, California, and I think the other is Missouri.
The figure of activated CA Guardsmen is entirely accurate, and comes directly from the office of Maj Gen Eres. For argument's sake, let's just go with the fact that multiple Guard units from separate states are being deployed in the same package... this still does not increase the number of CA guardsmen activated. Of that original figure of 3,187, less than a third were sent to Iraq on this deployment.
My mom meant that all of the reservists together make up 65% of our military force. These are the soldiers who do one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer.
Even if we take into account the Reserves, the total number of weekend warriors comprises 40% of the military's end strength.
Thats what happens when you are a high ranking officer.
Your father is not an officer. He's what's referred to as a Senior Non-Commissioned Officer. There's a huge difference there. Your father is a high ranking enlisted member, but an officer he is not. An officer is someone who holds the pay grade of O-1 though O-10. An O-1, fresh out of college and with no military experience whatsoever, outranks your father.
Second highest doesn't account for anything.
Realistically... Not as much in the Guard/Reserves as it does on Active Duty. To keep retention from being a problem, Guard and Reserve units are top-heavy with rank. This is unavoidable, since no one's going to re-enlist if it is impossible for them to advance beyond E-3, for instance. Rank in the Guard/Reserves is more often determined by what slot you're occupying. The promotion system of the Guard and Reserve, by necessity, is much different than that of the Active Duty force.
"By Spring some 40 percent of the roughly 110,000 U.S. soldiers heading into Iraq will be from the National Guard and Reserves."
This statement does nothing to support any claim you have made.
I sure hope that newspaper has the info correct becasue I would hate to think that the only person who knows about what is happening in Iraq is the moderator on a repitile forum. Where did you get your info?
The statistics I've provided are direct from the DoD and the Adjutant General of the CANG.
FYI kid, I've been there and done that. My knowledge on this subject comes from firsthand experience. I've spent more time in the Middle East, along with various other places, than anyone would care to. This "moderator on a reptile forum" does it for a living.
When you've actually donned the uniform and obtained some appreciable experience, then you can come back and share your knowledge of the military. Then, and only then, will you actually have a clue.
Regardless, I wish your father a speedy and safe return from his deployment.
Now then. let's bring this back on topic (with a few drifts off-topic), shall we...
We both know how to care for snakes as long as they are alive
It would seem otherwise, since the snake died in Anthony's care after arriving alive and healthy.
Since we all seem to love scenarios so much, I think I will offer up another one. A child, roughly 17 years old walks into a liquor store. He walks up to the counter with a six-pack. The clerk believes him to be 21 and sells him the beer. As the child is getting into his car with his beer, a cop comes over. The cop asks, "How old are you?" and he tells the cop his real age. Would the clerk be in trouble for selling him the beer? Is it his fault? He assumed his age and did not check for an I.D. The clerk as we all know, would be punished.
Of course, that scenario needs to be modified to fit this circumstance. So let's just add in there that the kid used a fake ID to purchase his beer, but had the clerk give his purchase to an adult. The adult then keeps the beer in the trunk of his car for several days, allowing it to get skunked. The snot-nosed kid, now disappointed with his skunked beer, returns to the store demanding his money back.
Also, I would like to address the Reptibid TOS from another angle. It states, "If you do not meet these requirements, you are not eligible to use these auction services." However, I did not use the auction services. I spoke with Scott via e-mail and bought it through that. Not once did I place a bid. Therefore, I did not use the "auction services".
This quote and your silly little game of semantics goes a long way to demonstrate a lack of integrity.
When did this become about how I live?
Ask your mother, because she's the one who brought it up.
Someone even called my mom a liar about how much she makes and next they will be asking for a copy of her paystub.
I believe I put an end to that. Anyone who goes on that tangent again will get a warning for off-topic posting, and the post will be subject to deletion.
I even had some idiot say that my dad could not be in Iraq because he is only in the National Guard.
Point that one out to me, and I'll be more than happy to review it and see if it warrants a warning. As you can see, I have little patience for misinformation being posted about the US Armed Forces.
Some one when on about what an NCO is and how it is an honoray title. The army sure uses it a lot maybe they need to remove it from their vocabulary and remove it from the manuals. This could be your crusade to correct the army on the correct teminolgy and proper usage.
You were the one who claimed your father is an officer. It was corrected with an explanation of what a NCO actually is. If you'd like to study up on it further, the base library should have a good selection of PME literature.
(to be continued...)
