Army Mom and AP battle Army
Military.com is headlining this Associated Press story;
Ya know, I commiserate with this woman somewhat – however, calling Associated Press, a well-known hater of the US military, isn’t really a solution. They gloss over details like the fact that she’s not really “honorably discharged” as they claim since she’s in the IRR. Part of the responsibility of a military parent is to have a family care plan. In my unit during our Desert Storm, two Staff Sergeants who were married had to send their kids from Germany to their parents back in the US during their joint deployment to the battle.
Pagan, in the article admits that she knew that she could be called for deployment;
She always knew there was a chance she could be recalled, so she buried the thought in the back of her mind.
“When I enlisted, they said almost nobody gets called back when you’re in the IRR,” she said.
Those damn “they” lied again. But since she enlisted, all of this hoopla about IRR call ups happening should have spurred her into action, especially since it’s been over a year since she was notified to be recalled. Did the Army do a dumb thing? Yes, they did, since they’ve had a few chances to shed themselves of this particular problem and didn’t. But that doesn’t justify Pagan contacting the Associated Press to battle this out in a public forum.
I commend her for reporting for duty as she’s been ordered (since so many other cowards *cough*Chiroux*cough* won’t even do that much), but bringing AP into the discussion is just the wrong answer. Odds are that the Army would have done something about the problem when she showed up without the AP’s involvement, but there’s no good possible outcome for either party at this point.
Category: Media
The Army discharges hundreds of Soldiers each yr, mostly single parents, who do not have a family care plan. She would have gotten her discharge. I agree, bringing the AP into it isn’t going to help matters.
What I do not understand is this: “She always knew there was a chance she could be recalled, so she buried the thought in the back of her mind.” Buried the thought in the back of her mind?! Is this an appropriate response from a grown-up person who is also a parent??
Plus, she is not a single parent – “her husband travels for business so no one else can take care of her kids” – how about the husband curtailing his travel due to the fact that the mother of his kids is fulfilling her obligation to this country??
I am a civilian but I am not surprised that her appeals were denied. They had a year to figure this out and both done nothing – she brought the AP in because she believes the AP will allow her to get out of this and without dishonorable discharge.
Yeah, that’s what stuck out in my mind, too. The appropriate response to a potential problem to fulfilling your moral and legal obligations is not to “bury it in the back of [your] mind.” At least, not in the NCO guide that they gave me.
Sig
Jonn-
I’m with you on this. I knew plenty of single and married parents, too who were required to have a family care plan. If I remember right, my roomie had to sign custody of her kid over to her mother. We were a medical RDF at the time. She needs to get her shit together and quit stalling.
It is true that the Army has every right to call IRR servicemembers back to active duty, but I am starting to believe that the IRR is now a crutch for lazy Human Resources Command staffers. I wonder how many combat patches you would see if you walked down their halls?
When are people going to get it into their skulls that eight (8) years in the contract is eight (8) years? You are not iut until they send you that Honorable Discharge Certificate.