Behind The Military Recruiting Stats
July 15th, 2008
I come across a number of blogs that each month post the U. S. military service’s recruiting attainments and offer some commentary about what the numbers may mean and why the numbers may not be garnering more press than they do. Yes, it is always great news when the recruiting services achieve their assigned missions but what do the monthly press release numbers actually reflect? The simple answer is they are the number of people shipped (accessed) to active duty (both prior and no-prior service accessions) for that month, the people that start drawing an (Read the rest of the story…)
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MEPS Drug and Alcohol Testing (DAT) Program
July 9th, 2008
We have heard it all of our lives, stay away from drugs, just say no and hundreds of other comments and phrases meant to make us aware that using drugs and abusing alcohol can have a huge negative impact of your life. Many of the reasons are health related - use and abuse of drugs and alcohol can lead to deep psychiatric problems and damaged organs not to mention the fractured relationships and self esteem issues your bound to encounter.
It is sometimes mentioned, but rarely accentuated, that your use and abuse of drugs and alcohol can have a profound negative effect on your future - lets take a close look at how it might effect the Navy. (Read the rest of the story…)
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Air Force or Navy?
July 7th, 2008
Having served in Navy Recruiting for many years the question about which service is the better service to join would often come up. When I worked in Panama City, Fl the question on most minds were concerning the Air Force which really was no surprise because Tyndall Air Force Base was close, much larger hence providing a greater influence than the Coastal Systems Station where the Navy’s Dive School and Experimental Diving Unit was located. Statements I would hear like, “I’m joining the Air Force because they treat their people better.” and “They have it better in the Air Force.” made me wonder why the Department of Defense (DOD) would allow such a thing. I had to find out how this vicious rumor has perpetuated into “common knowledge”.
After hearing about it so many times I just had to see for myself. (Read the rest of the story…)
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Independence Day Memories
July 4th, 2008
It was a very hot summer day and the only things making the heat bearable was the smell of freshly grilled steak, a freshly grilled steak smell has many medicinal properties I won’t get into for now, and the fact that is was our first “day off” in quite a while. You see we, the USS Forrestal and battle group, have been deployed from our home ports for going on 30 days and we were in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea and I was experiencing my first “Steal Beach Picnic”.
The picnic was an event that would make any outdoor party fanatic proud - there were grills (Read the rest of the story…)
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USS Cole Mastermind Charged
June 30th, 2008
Apparently the prosecutors now feel they have enough evidence to move forward, as the story reads Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri has been charged with 8 counts, five of which could bring the death penalty for his alleged actions in the terror attack on the USS Cole. Holding true to my belief in justice, if he is in fact guilty they need to marinade with lethal injection juice and then fry his ass until crispy. (Read the rest of the story…)
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What to Bring to Navy Boot Camp
June 30th, 2008
Because storage space is extremely limited at Recruit Training Command (RTC), you should limit the amount of personal effects you bring, and keep luggage to a maximum of one small gym or travel bag. If your reporting to RTC during winter months (October through April) wear warm outer clothing - it does get cold near the lake! Keep in mind that during your in-processing you will be required to mail any item not listed below, with your excess civilian clothing and personal effects, to your home at your own expense or donate the stuff to charity. Personal items and clothing won’t be allowed to be stored at RTC.
Here is a list of stuff you can bring to Navy boot camp: (Read the rest of the story…)
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My First Trans-Atlantic Flight
June 27th, 2008
Twenty years ago this month I commenced a set of orders that would take me to the land of fire and ice. We lived in Iceland for two and a half years, I have tons of stories to tell about our adventures while there but this isn’t going to be one of them. What I am going to share during this post is how really small the world can be. How you really never know…
Before I selected the orders to Iceland I was actually given a few choices but I was looking for an opportunity to live overseas. That narrowed things down a bit to the Embassy in Seoul, Korea or an island I only heard stories about. At the time in 1988 there was rioting in Seoul over the coming Olympic games - the stuff seemed to be on the news every night. For that reason and also the fact that a transfer to Keflavik, Iceland included a school which was located in Latina, Italy. The school was for NATO’s version of SATCOM - yup, I got to work on state of the art, 46 foot in diameter antenna, satellite ground terminal equipment - God, I love the Navy! Anyway, (Read the rest of the story…)
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Physical Preparation For Boot Camp
June 21st, 2008
I know I recently posted about ensuring your within the ht/wt or body fat standards but every day across the nation a number of people are tipping the scales beyond their max weight and missing the mark when it comes to the body fat measurement. Some are not successfully passing the appropriate fitness assessment (IFA, PST) requirements. Please understand if you fail to pass the appropriate physical assessment or fail to make weight/body fat you will be re-classified or not be shipped to Recruit Training Command (RTC) by way of a discharge.
So, let me be clear, before you head off to boot camp you must be physically prepared for the rigors recruit training will offer. Too much training time is lost because prospective Sailors arrive at RTC without the minimum level of strength and endurance. The answer is a conscientious pursuit of Initial Fitness Assessment (IFA) standards and successful completion of this test prior to leaving for RTC. Placing a greater emphasis on this program will (Read the rest of the story…)
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Price of Recruiting Just Went Up
June 19th, 2008
Back in 2004 Navy Recruiting Command commissioned a couple of studies. LMI to take a look at overall effectiveness of recruiting commands structure and an RCI study to evaluate the effectiveness of headquarter operations.
The LMI study provided the recommendations needed to reduce the number of recruiting district headquarters to the current 26 and also facilitated the closing of regions central and south and the moving of regions north and west’s headquarters to Millington, TN.
If I remember correctly the RCI study was completed but only gave a second “thumbs-up” to the LMI plan. Both studies were expensive but predicted massive savings in logistics and personnel and fell in line with what the headquarters staff and the Navy wanted to have happen in the first place.
Well, it appears Navy Recruiting Command (Read the rest of the story…)
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MEPS Prescribed Weight Reduction or Gain
June 15th, 2008
When some applicants go to the Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) the biggest concern will be passing the height and weight or body fat measurement.
What happens If an applicant goes to MEPS and doesn’t meet the criteria set forth in the Navy height and weight chart and subsequent instruction? The instructions for what happens is not controlled by the Navy - it is actually USMEPCOM Regulation 40-1. You will note that the regulation states that an applicant must wait 4 days (Read the rest of the story…)
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