This is something I've spent some time pondering over the last three weeks I spent in the field. While sitting on my ruck awaiting my turn on the range, or when a day is spent waiting for something to happen that never materializes, I wonder, are my peers and I wasting time lost in the bureaucracy while somewhere in the mountains of Afghanistan/Pakistan Taliban fighters are becoming more lethal? What is the Taliban doing right now at this very moment? I suspect this sort of down time (wasted time?) is universal among all military forces, but somewhere in the back of my mind I fear I am wrong.
And more philosophically, does my air conditioned house, comfortable mattress, hot food, clean clothes, etc., make me soft? Or does it make me smarter because I go to the fight more rested and with better morale? Or does the harshness of sleeping in the mountains, at the mercy of the elements, with only the supplies that can scrounged make the Taliban even harder and more lethal? Hmm... Thoughts?
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2 comments:
You can solve the first issue by putting a book on COIN or Afghanistan in a Ziploc bag in your cargo pocket. That way you can read about that Taliban guy you will one day face and more effectively kill him or coopt him.
As for the second issue, I personally am not a fan of suck for sake of suck unless you are at a weedout school like Ranger.
Despite my post above, I can promise you that it is slightly better once you are out of TRADOC.
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