Military bands and entertainment groups on chopping block
Bobo sends us a link to the Stars & Stripes which reports that the Pentagon has found $500 million/year that they can slash from their budgets – the money allocated for their bands and their entertainment groups, like the Air Force’s Tops in Blues and the Army Soldier Show. The Army has cancelled it’s Operation Rising Star tour, it’s version of American Idol, as well.
The Defense Department is set to spend around $1.5 billion on bands and other entertainment programs across the military branches, the Fiscal Times has reported.
Other Army units are also seeing their bands disappearing. The Army announced last month that the 40-member 392nd Army Band, in Fort Lee, Va., will be reduced to a dozen soldiers in 2016 as part of the Army’s overall budget cuts.
Warrant Officer Kevin L. Pick, the band director, told the local Progress-Index newspaper that the band, once an integral part of the community and on track to play 500 dates between 2015 and 2016, will end. “It will be a shock,” Pick said.
All told, nearly 200 Army band member positions are being eliminated Army-wide, with cuts planned for the the U.S. Army Signal Corps Band based at Fort Gordon, Ga.; The 98th Army “Silver Wings” Band based at Fort Rucker, Ala.; and the 113th Army Band based at Fort Knox, Ky., the Army has announced.
Well, I’d rather see these kinds of cuts instead of cuts to the A-10 Warthog program. Now, if they can see their way clear to cut staffs at the Pentagon and put some of those people back on the lines.
Category: Big Pentagon
500 Million split amongst the different branches doesn’t seem like a lot… when as you state there is so much more to be found inside the walls of the 5 sided puzzle palace.
Rather not see the cuts to music, but better there than on the pointy end of the spear which is being decimated under the current Pretender in Chief, and his sycophants in the Pentagon.
I’m in agreement with you… there are probably some SES and GO/FO’s that should be told to retire that are SLJO (Shitty Little Job Officers) inside the Puzzle Palace.
not 500 million… Defense Department is set to spend around $1.5 billion on bands and other entertainment programs
How about cutting out civilian contractors to mow the grass? We have plenty of soldiers on Additional Duty for that. Putting MPs back on gates instead of rent-a-cops. Putting Supplt SGTs and clerks back in charge of CIF.
Unlike the civilian contractors being paid big bucks to do these jobs, the Soldiers can pick up a rifle and “follow me” when it’s time to go. Even a band member is a Soldier first. Cut the civilian contractors, not the Warfighters.
I agree! I nearly came unglued the first time I encountered civilian gate guards at what used to be a SAC base.
The civilian cops were being talked about back in the late 80’s when I graduated MP school. Good idea in theory, and sometimes in practice. If the civilian cops are GS employees I’m all for it, rent a cops I’m against. When 9/11 happened a lot of bases found themselves short on security troops for an extended period of time and in several instances Guard and Reserve troops were mobilized and put on the gates after rudimentary training regardless of what their career fields were. In effect they were no more trained and perhaps even less so than your average rent a cop. With force downsizing and shifting large parts of mission sets away from Active Duty the ability to sustain an elevated force protection level for any period of time is now all but gone.
There is way more dead wood to cut in the Pentagon than by canning DA civilians. How is it, the USA ran the military in WWII with fewer generals than we have now. Oh, that’s right, because there wasn’t a four star billet for transgender integration into combat, with the attendant staff of subordinate generals and THEIR staffs. Some of these programs are good for the force, but the majority need to be cut.
Historically, military bands have played a very important roll in the military. Among other things, they were great ambassadors/liaisons with the public and morale builders among the troops. Those days seem to be passed, except among some of us older citizens.
Really hate to see military bands go by the wayside, especially when so much is wasted on things like living large for the political elite. But, as Jonn stated, my choice, if it legitimately is between the band or the A-10, it would be for the A-10.
The formal bands should absolutely stay. The superfluous crap like “American Idol for the Army” doesn’t seem to add much value to anything, though.
I would also draw a line between formal military bands and the traveling lounge acts. Military bands are a non-combat tradition like funeral honors that I would hate to see thrown away to balance the budget. I definitely think we could afford to lose some desk jobs in the five-sided building before we start cutting back on long-standing traditions.
I spent almost 25 years as an Army musician. Seven of them at Ft Knox in the 113th. Great times, indeed. I performed at so many Kentucky Derby’s that I am now an Honorary Kentucky Colonel (no I didn’t get THAT added to my DD214). I did two separate 3 year tours in the 82nd Band and got my Senior Wings. I would like to say that after all those years, it was a blast. No “Special” bands and no Soldier’s Show. Just what i like to call 25 years of Junior College music. Hard enough to be challenging, easy enough to enjoy the ride. I’m sorry to see these cuts going to active duty military personnel instead of gate guards, civilian contractors, etc. but the times are changing and I agree with OWB that if it comes down to A-10 vs military bands, A-10’s are just a little more important. It’s sad but true………..
No shortage of “Kentucky Colonels” thinking that they are real Colonels highlighted on this site. Some honorary CPOs with the same problem too.
Glad that you aren’t one of them 🙂
Holden
Never was a fan of the various bands that seemed to only entertain the GOs. Good to see them go awaaay….
The only thing I have seen any of the bands actually DO in the past decade is if you are a high enough rank, they would send a few people to play for your change of command.
That or do Force Pro while deployed.
As for the various Soldier Shows, I would be all for them if they actually went to forward units to boost morale on some barren outpost somewhere. But they dont. IF they went anywhere, it was to a major FOB to entertain the remfs that didn’t realize how good they actually had it over there.
“That or do Force Pro while deployed.” Yep. Our CHU-farm included some 25th ID band folks, and while the brass quartet played now and then, the rest of them guarded the JLENS, checked IDs at chow, etc.