The more things change…

Boy, this article from Bill Gertz’ Inside the Ring column this morning in the Washington Times sure does bring back memories;

According to the officers, U.S. troops are being forced to carry unloaded weapons on most U.S. bases because commanders are more worried about a “negligent” discharge than the very real likelihood of a terrorist attack by an insider on the base. The rule is all the more disconcerting because these troops are in areas where they receive combat pay.
    Defense officials say the fear of “negligent” weapon discharge is due to lack of training and is different from concerns about accidental discharge, which involves a mechanical malfunction that rarely occurs.
    “This selection of political correctness and safety concerns over force protection contrasts markedly with combat experience in World War II, Korea or Vietnam, where soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines were required to be armed — with loaded weapons — at all times,” one official said.
    “This is a gross failure of leadership, and in all likelihood has contributed to the U.S. casualty rate,” the official said.
    The officer in Iraq said the unloaded-gun rule is a symptom of bigger military leadership problems, especially in the Army.

I remember patrolling the East German border, facing fully cocked and locked East German GAKs, with my magazines for M16 safely locked in an ammo can back on my vehicle 150 meters away.

On the other hand, I remember the support weinie, in the Port of Jubail during Desert Storm while we waited for our equipment to arrive, that discharged his weapon into the clearing barrel right next to my head.

Then, there we were in the desert in Saudi Arabia where we allowed to have only one loaded magazine (a hundred meters from the Iraq border) and it had to be in our ammo pouch. We weren’t even allowed to have an unloaded magazine in our weapon so our commander could see that our weapon was unloaded – within walking distance of the enemy.

It truly is a failure of leadership that combat troops in a combat zone can’t be trusted to carry loaded weapons. I hope General Petraeus and his sergeant major can overcome that failure – with training. 

In the meantime, Ace of Spades keeps us posted with a coming “grim milestone”.

Category: Terror War