Sur l’état de l’armée américaine

[Fusilier]

Vous avez raison. Mais on enfonce des portes ouvertes. Il suffit d'observer le foot féminin ou un autre sport d'équipe pour s'en convaincre.

Ce n'est pas une question de compétences mais de physiologie.

Le problème c'est qu'il y a un mouvement d'opinion en faveur de l'ouverture totale aux femmes; voir des décrets dans ce sens.  Visiblement, le bon sens et les évidences ça ne suffit pas

Il faut par conséquent construire un argumentaire contre cette "connerie" , et autant que possible avec des "preuves scientifiques"

[Gibbs le Cajun]

Vous avez raison. Mais on enfonce des portes ouvertes. Il suffit d'observer le foot féminin ou un autre sport d'équipe pour s'en convaincre.

Ce n'est pas une question de compétences mais de physiologie.

Sauf que ce point de vue n'est apparemment pas partagé par tout le monde et qu'entre différent lobbye  ( féministe and co )  qui sont très présent  aux USA  et les choix politique à ce sujet ne semble pas mettre tout le monde d'accord , donc on fait un test réel pour mettre en évidence ou pas les capacités des femmes au combat .

Apparemment le résultat semble ne pas être celui qui était attendu au niveau Pentagone .Donc soit l'USMC ne joue pas le jeu , soit ils ont  une preuve que cela est une réalité .

 

[Serge]

Ceux qui ont pratiqués le savent, or ce ne sont pas eux qui définissent les politiques de recrutement et la doctrine.

enfin, il est bon d'avoir des éléments "scientifiques" pour appuyer une décision. 

[Gibbs le Cajun]

J'ai fait un doublon sur le file nana au combat dans la partie Europe ,avec les derniers posts cité plus haut .

 

[Serge]

Departing secretary McHugh delivers straight talk on the Army's future 

By Sandra I. Erwin 

Acquisition problems will never be totally fixed. The Army cannot predict where it will fight next. And trying to persuade Congress to pass predictable budgets is a lost cause. 

Those were some of the takeaways from a talk this week by Army Secretary John McHugh, who will soon leave office after six years of service. 

Musing about his toughest challenges on the job, McHugh said the Arlington National Cemetery mismanagement scandal — involving military burials and the identification of U.S. service members' graves — topped the list. 

But weapon acquisition woes also have caused McHugh significant headaches, he told an audience of defense contractors Sept. 10 at a Bloomberg Government event. The Army “could do a lot better with its acquisitions,” McHugh said, and cautioned that funding instability and political battles will continue to dog modernization programs. 

Just months after taking office, McHugh had to deal with the fallout of a damning probe of Army procurement programs and a subsequent report by former Army acquisition executive Gilbert Decker and retired Gen. Lou Wagner. The report revealed the Army had frittered away more than $30 billion over a decade on new weapons programs that never reached fruition or produced any useful equipment for soldiers. And it confirmed what everyone already knew: The Army starts more programs than it can afford, takes too long to define requirements and fails to take advantage of commercial technology. Between 1990 and 2010, the Army terminated 22 major programs. 

“One of the first things I had to deal with when I walked in the door was the Wagner-Decker report,” McHugh recalled. He described the revelations in the study as “painful” and also “accurate.”

The night before the Bloomberg event, McHugh met with 10 defense industry CEOs, and had a candid discussion about the state of Army acquisitions. “We need to do better,” McHugh said. Some programs have turned around, but many of the issues that have plagued weapon acquisitions are intractable. “When I came in, I hoped to have the problem solved. The issue is that you never solve it, you’re always chasing.”

Making matters worse is a budget crunch that is creating pressure on the Army’s modernization accounts. Most of the service’s $127 billion budget is consumed by personnel, operations and maintenance expenditures. “That’s a critical challenge,” said McHugh. The Army has been downsizing since 2013 but the savings take time to accrue. Science, research-and-development accounts are being shielded from cuts for now, but “I’m not sure how long that can be continued,” said McHugh. 

At 490,000 active-duty soldiers, the Army has shrunk by nearly 42,000 over the past two years. McHugh noted that only 28 percent of Army troops are assigned to combat formations. About 40 percent provide logistics support to the entire U.S. military. Nonetheless, the Army’s leadership was powerless in efforts to persuade Congress to undo the Budget Control Act. Despite much advocacy on Capitol Hill, McHugh said, “We obviously haven’t been as successful as we would like.”

Worsening the effects of spending cuts is the Army’s poor track record in weapon investments. “We made some not wise choices,” said McHugh. 

Instead of trying to do the impossible and predict the future, the Army has decided to shift the focus from equipment to people. If the force is led by smart leaders, it will adapt to whatever challenges arise, he said. “What we’re trying to do to lessen the uncertainty is to focus on having skilled, trained leadership that can act and react in uncertain environments.”

Rather than pour scarce resources into gee-whiz futuristic weapon systems that may never come to fruition, the Army is targeting basic soldier needs like protective equipment, and is seeking ways to lighten the load that dismounted troops carry on their backs. “For the United States soldier, a loss of a pound of equipment is an amazing step forward,” McHugh said. Other priorities are night vision sensors and advanced protective armor. “These are things we know we will need because we know we will be shot at,” he said. “We want to invest in anything that makes the soldier lighter and more agile, able to react and be more mobile.”

Another consequence of funding cutbacks has been a deepening rift between the Army and the National Guard over a 2013 decision to realign aviation units in order to save $12 billion in future costs. The so-called Army Aviation Restructuring Initiative would cut approximately 10,700 troops from the active and reserve ranks. It would divest nearly 800 older helicopters from the force, remove all Apache combat helicopters from the reserve component and increase the number of Apaches in the active component. The National Guard would receive additional Black Hawk utility helicopters. 

The Guard has mounted an all-out push against this initiative and Congress has called for further studies before the Army can move forward. 

“It’s frustrating to me,” said McHugh. The aviation initiative obviously has caused angst in the Guard. “It’s a step I wish we didn’t have to take, but a step that was inescapable” given the current budget situation.

Even if budgets stay flat, as long as there is predictable funding, the Army could adjust to whatever top line is set, McHugh said. The problem is the uncertainty that has become the norm in recent years. “It is amazing what the Army could do, and what contractors could do, if only we knew, 18 months from now, that this is what we’ll get,” he said. “The key to our success over time, it seems to me, is the reliance upon a regular budget passed on time with a set number that we can plan to.”

[Gibbs le Cajun]

http://www.army.mil/article/156956

 

Via Chris Hernandez : un américain d'origine française va obtenir la médaille d'Honneur .

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Oct. 14, 2015) -- An American Soldier who was born in France, lived in Spain, and later moved to the United States with his family where he became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2001, will receive the nation's highest military award for his actions in Afghanistan, Aug. 8, 2012.

Capt. Florent A. Groberg, now medically retired, will receive the Medal of Honor, or MOH, from President Barack Obama, during a White House ceremony, Nov. 12.

Born in Poissy, France, in 1983, Groberg's family would eventually move to Spain, back to France, and then finally to the nation's capital. He became a U.S. citizen by his 18th birthday and graduated from Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda, Maryland, in June 2001.

Known as "Flo" to his friends, Groberg next attended the University of Maryland, where he competed in varsity track and cross country. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in criminology and criminal justice in May 2006.

By then, Groberg said, he felt he owed something to the country he'd sworn allegiance to. So in July 2008, he signed up for the Army, and was off to Officer Candidate School on Fort Benning, Georgia.

By December 2008, he was commissioned as an 11A infantry officer. Being one to challenge himself, he also completed the Infantry Officer Basic and Mechanized Leaders Courses, and then followed on with Army Airborne and Ranger Schools.

Groberg said he felt compelled to join the Army and wear the uniform.

"The proudest thing I've ever done in my life is to be able to wear this uniform and serve this country with some of the greatest people I've ever met and will always know," he said.

With schools behind him, he next took on his first role as a platoon leader with the 4th Infantry Division on Fort Carson, Colorado. By December 2009, he was leading his unit with Task Force Lethal through the Pech River Valley in Afghanistan's Kunar province.

Having been trained at several of the Army's elite leadership schools doesn't by default make a second lieutenant a respected leader in a kinetic area like Kunar province, Groberg remembered.

"I didn't know anything about being a platoon leader or being a leader of men who had already been in combat for months," Groberg said. "So when I was tasked with being a platoon leader, I found out it was going to be a different transition for me to earn respect from men who were already battle-hardened Soldiers."

Groberg said he had a meeting with his platoon sergeant, Sgt. 1st Class Korey Staley, to discuss the situation.

"I told him I'm as green as it gets and I'm not over here trying to make mistakes - you have to be my mentor and teach and work with me. He was happy that I had come into the unit with that type of mindset, so for the first week I just over-watched everything the unit did - how we reacted in combat situations," Groberg recalled.

After a week or so that included being hit by the enemy a few times, he and Staley sat down to talk about the company commander's vision, the battalion commander's vision, and how the squad leaders could help put together an overall plan.

"We were in many, many firefights together. Because of the leadership and trust we developed, I understood that no officer will ever be successful without the direct support and mentorship of a noncommissioned officer [NCO]," Groberg said. "Because of that, we were able to bring everyone home from the deployment."

Upon returning home in June 2010, Groberg continued serving as a platoon leader until he was promoted to first lieutenant and reassigned as an infantry company executive officer. He held that position from October 2010 until November 2011.

He next became the personal security detachment commander for the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

"I hand-picked him based on personal observations and recommendations from his chain of command," said Brig Gen. James J. Mingus, deputy commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division and of Fort Carson, Colorado. "Flo was and is a dynamic and powerful leader. He is all about building teams and ensuring that his/ our team was ready for anything."

In February 2012, Groberg returned to Kunar province with Task Force Mountain Warrior. While there, in July 2012, he was promoted to captain.

ANYTHING BUT ROUTINE

On the morning of Aug. 8, 2012, Groberg and five other Soldiers were providing a personal security detail for seven senior leaders, and were leading a dismounted movement of 28 coalition and Afghan National Army, or ANA, troops to the provincial governor's compound in the city of Asadabad.

"The mission that day was one that we had done on a week-to-week basis for five or six months. Maybe 20 times we've done that same exact mission, so we knew what to expect of the area," recalled Groberg's radio telephone operator, Sgt. Andrew J. Mahoney. "Basically, the governor of the province brings all the village elders from around the area and coalition military leaders together to discuss on-going projects."

As Mahoney had pointed out, the team had done perhaps 20 of these types of missions. Mingus agreed that the nature of the job became somewhat routine. But by then, he said, the team had plenty of time to get to know and understand how to operate together.

"You do begin to develop a keen sense of how your team thinks and acts. On the day of Aug. 8, it was no different," he said. "We knew of intel that indicated a heightened awareness, but there were intel threats of this nature that we dealt with almost every day."

Mahoney said on routine visits to the provincial governor's compound, Groberg would go inside, sit as security, and act as scribe so then-colonel Mingus wouldn't have to take notes. The rest of the detail would pull security around the building's perimeter with ANA support. 

But Aug. 8 wouldn't be a routine day in the least.

Groberg served as lead at the top of the security diamond, escorting three brigade commanders, three battalion commanders, and an Afghan general. As the detail moved cautiously down the street toward the governor's compound, an ambush started to unfold - first with two motorcycles as a diversion, which the ANA soldiers managed to flag down.

"A man came out of a building to our left walking backwards," Groberg said. "It was eerie and looked suspicious. I yelled at him and he turned around immediately and then started walking towards us. He looked like a young man with a beard, wearing man-jams and dark clothing. He didn't appear to be himself that day ... most likely drugged.

"Sgt. Mahoney to my left moved in with me and struck him, then Mahoney and I threw him. I pushed him as hard as I could away from our patrol, because I felt he was a threat. I just wanted to make sure he wouldn't hurt anyone," said Groberg, adding that he had noticed an abnormal bulge under the man's clothing.

As Groberg grabbed the intruder by the vest and Mahoney piled on to drive the man into the road, Groberg knew what was about to happen. From the point of identifying the security breach to reacting took about 10 seconds.

The man landed chest-first on the ground. As he slammed onto the road, he released a dead-man's trigger, which he had squeezed and held before walking towards the Soldiers. The vest flashed, sending thousands of lethal ball-bearings flying.

Mingus had watched the scene unfold.

He said that Groberg and Mahoney didn't hesitate, and that Groberg had gone "all the way to subdue the attacker ... clearly and absolutely, with no regard for himself."

"I have read many MOH citations, many are for multiple acts of bravery and some for singular acts such as this," he continued. "I believe Flo is absolutely deserving and rates right up there with the many incidents where soldiers in a split second make a life decision to jump on a grenade or similar acts. This was no different; he knew the mission, saw the threat, and with complete disregard for himself, did everything to neutralize the threat."

Nearly at the same moment, a second suicide bomber set off his vest.

When the dust settled, five of those who were on the mission that day had been killed. Among them were Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin Griffin, the brigade's senior enlisted advisor; Maj. Thomas Kennedy; Maj. Walter Gray, an Air Force officer who helped coordinate air strikes; and Ragaei Abdel Fattah, a volunteer worker with the U.S. Agency for International Development, Groberg said.

The first explosion threw Groberg and Mahoney some 15 feet from the blast. While they had serious injuries, they were both alive - something Mahoney said he has been hard-pressed to explain.

"If I were a religious man, I'd say by the grace of God," Mahoney said. "But since I'm not, I say by the grace of body armor. I really don't know. I tell Soldiers to believe in your body armor."

After the detonation of the explosive, Groberg struggled to regain control of the situation.

"I remember waking up in shock. My helmet was loose so I threw it away. I couldn't find my rifle, but picked up my pistol and made sure I had a round in the chamber," Groberg said. "I couldn't remember what happened. I thought I had stepped on an IED [improvised explosive device]. My fibia was sticking out of my left leg, my skin was melting, and there was blood everywhere. I checked myself for internal injuries and started to drag myself out of what was probably a kill zone for small-arms fire."

Help came from his platoon sergeant, who grabbed the captain by the handle of his plate carrier and dragged him into a ditch. There, the group's medic, Spc. Daniel Balderrama, applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Balderrama was himself injured, suffering from torn knee ligaments.

"We're going to save that leg ... you'll be fine," said Groberg, recalling what the medic had told him, before he hobbled off to help the next wounded Soldier.

Groberg said he remembers being carried to an armored truck, and that he wasn't going willingly. He said he remembers that he had a lot of unanswered questions then. How's his charge, brigade commander Col. Charles Mingus, for instance? He learned the commander had a slight concussion, but otherwise, "the boss" was fine. Still, he wanted a status report and wanted to be the leader his NCOs had made him.

Finally, his Soldiers moved Groberg to the truck and loaded him in. He said he was still trying to direct operations and control all that he could; he felt it his responsibility.

Then, a senior NCO stared him in the eyes and said, "Sir, I've got this - you're done - now it's time for you to recover," said Groberg, recounting the words of the NCO. "Then he stepped back and closed the door."

"That's when all the pain came in. It felt like a blow torch was burning through my leg," Groberg said. "Aug. 8, 2012, was not a bad day; it was the worst day of my life."

Since that day a little more than three years ago, Groberg has been through 33 surgeries to keep his leg. He wants to run again, just as he did in college, though he knows he won't ever run with the same quickness. He still has two legs and continues to push himself through the pain that exists both physically and from the loss of comrades.

"Receiving the Medal of Honor is not about me," he said of the honor. "It's about a terrible day that translated into the loss of four brothers."

Today, Groberg and Mahoney still keep in touch and remain friends.

Mahoney's actions on that day in August 2012, earned him the Silver Star. The sergeant was also recognized as the USO Soldier of the Year during an October 2014 ceremony in Washington, D.C. Groberg made it a point to attend that ceremony once Mahoney told him about it.

"I sent a short text to him and he replied simply that he'd be there for the ceremony and the next thing I knew he showed up," Mahoney said. "He came out of the woodwork and there he was standing tall and proud to be there for me and my family ... I hope I can do that for him."

Mingus said he considers Groberg and Mahoney to be part of his personal Family. He said the retired captain has visited with his Family several times and they've linked up during his travels to Washington.

"I consider both he and Sgt. Mahoney as permanent members of our Family," Mingus said. "In spite of our losses that day, our team will forever be in debt to their sacrifices that saved many lives that day. Our hearts ache for our losses that day and the others during this deployment, but if not for the heroic actions of Flo and Sgt. Mahoney on Aug. 8, 2012, there is no doubt that there would have been many more losses that day."

[TimTR]

Ptain, il a sauté sur un type avec une veste suicide.

[Philippe Top-Force]

Je le place ici

 

[Gibbs le Cajun]

http://www.breachbangclear.com/female-rangers-an-insider-speaks-on-the-record/#comment-131194

 

Female Rangers: An Insider Speaks on the Record

Written by Mad Duo Chris on 25 October, 2015.

You will recall the two recent female Ranger School graduates. Not long ago I published an essay about them and the allegations of lowered standards. I argued that evidence shows they attained THE school standards, not adjusted or lowered standards. I also said people claiming they were given special treatment had no facts, and were only offering “I don’t have any proof but I heard about it from someone so I know it’s true” to substantiate their argument. I ended my essay with,

I took a ton of crap for my stance. Some readers correctly pointed out I’m not a Ranger (which I stated at the beginning of my essay) and had no understanding of how Ranger School works (also true). Several people accused the Ranger School instructors of being boot-licking career chasers who don’t have enough integrity to admit they were ordered to lower standards, and berated me for not acknowledging it. Some readers criticized my use of photos of Rangers at Normandy and in Somalia, saying there is no connection whatsoever between the school and Ranger Regiment. As one reader put it, because I don’t have firsthand knowledge of Ranger School I was out of my lane to talk about this subject.

Fair enough. So instead of listening to me, how about we hear from someone smack-dab in the middle of the female Ranger lane?

I’ve been around the military a long time, and I know people. One of those people served with me in Afghanistan. He’s now out of the regular Army, but his wife is an Army civilian. Through my friend and his wife I was connected to someone who knows all about Ranger School, all about the female Rangers, and everything that happened behind the scenes. You should probably listen to this other soldier’s opinion, because he knows facts. Not theories, not maybes, but actual facts.

I’d like to introduce you to Sergeant Major Colin Boley. SGM Boley served fifteen years in the Ranger Regiment, from 1999 to 2014, and deployed with the Regiment fifteen times. He was awarded a Silver Star and multiple Bronze Stars for valor in combat. He also happens to be the Operations Sergeant Major of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade, which runs Ranger School.

SGM Boley won the Best Ranger Competition and served in every leadership position up to Operations Sergeant Major within the Special Operations community. He’s been the Brigade Ops Sergeant Major for eighteen months. Because of this position he knows all about how females were integrated into Ranger School, how they performed, what standard they and every other student were held to, and whether or not they graduated fair and square.

Sergeant Major Boley is far from a boot-licking career chaser. He’s got his twenty, plans on retiring in a few years, and has no plans on leaving his current assignment before retirement. “Since there’s no such thing as an E-10,” he said, “I’m not concerned with being promoted.” He has what I call a magical superpower: he can say or do what he wants, drop his papers and walk whenever he feels like it, and has no reason to hold back the truth.

It’s worth noting that SGM Boley originally didn’t like the idea of females attending Ranger School. In fact, when he first heard about the plan to allow females into class 6-15, he “thought the idea would die”. “Over the last fifteen or twenty years, there have been several attempts to get females into Ranger School,” he said. “All the previous plans were shelved. I thought the same thing would happen this time.”

This time, obviously, the idea didn’t die. SGM Boley was involved in every phase of planning for the first female Ranger students, and eventually realized it was going to happen. Even though he personally opposed the plan, he said, “It’s not my job to agree or disagree, it’s my job to make sure the Ranger School standards are upheld.” And according to SGM Boley, they were. “The females attained the same standards as the males, which are the same standards that have been in place at least since I got here a year and a half ago, and have probably been in place for a lot longer than that.”

I’m going to list a few accusations/conspiracy theories about the females at Ranger School, and let SGM Boley respond.

The females were given unfair prior training to prepare for Ranger School.

Sergeant Major Boley thinks that’s a pretty stupid accusation. “Everyone who goes to Ranger School should get extra training before they show up,” he says. “Before I went to school my team and squad leaders in the Regiment gave me extra training in land navigation and everything else. There are soldiers in the Regiment who get two years of training and preparation before going to school. The females trained for the course, but never observed the training before starting the school. Some people are saying they practiced on the Darby Queen [obstacle course] before their class started. As far as I know they didn’t, but if they did, who gives a shit? The Darby Queen isn’t a drop event anyway, and anyone can go through Darby Queen if they get prior permission through land requests. If a soldier arrives at Fort Benning to attempt the Ranger Course and doesn’t have prior trainup, his leadership failed.”

Bottom line? “Did the females get extra trainup? Yes,” SGM Boley says. “Did they get unfair trainup? No.”

The standards were lowered so the females could pass.

SGM Boley was emphatic about Ranger School standards being maintained. He clearly stated nobody was ever ordered to lower standards for the females, and contrary to a really stupid article in People Magazine, no General ever said, “A woman willgraduate Ranger School.” Despite suggestions that the females should only have to pass female PT standards, the decision was made early on to hold them to Ranger standards because, as SGM Boley says, “the Ranger standard is the only standard.”

SGM Boley didn’t expect any females to make it. He thought, and still thinks, female Ranger students should have gone through a pipeline before Ranger School: infantry basic, infantry Advanced Individual Training, and then Ranger. He didn’t think it made sense to send females without prior infantry training, and unlike others, he wasn’t sure a female would even make it through RAP Week (Ranger Assessment Phase, a difficult week of physical events at the beginning of the school). But the two female graduates made it through the entire course, upholding the same standards as every other graduate.

You know you want this shirt - get yours at knifehandthworld.com or click the image.

A General walked patrols with the females to make sure they passed.

Major General Scott Miller did indeed walk a patrol while the females were at Ranger School, and spoke at their graduation. “Major General Miller was celebrating his thirtieth anniversary of attending Ranger School,” Sergeant Major Boley said. “He was scheduled to walk the patrol and speak at graduation months before we knew females were going to be in the course. As the Operations Sergeant Major, I have to know months in advance if a VIP is coming. We knew MG Miller was coming, long before we knew females were coming.”

SGM Boley also says General Miller intentionally stayed away from the females. “He didn’t go to any event with a female student. He made sure not to, in order to avoid accusations that he was influencing anything. He probably never saw a female. And he definitely didn’t ‘grade their patrols’ like some people have been saying. He’s not an RI [Ranger Instructor], so he’s not authorized or certified to grade their patrols.”

“President Obama was scheduled to attend their graduation! That proves the females were going to graduate no matter what!”

Even though it was a phone interview, I could almost hear Sergeant Major Boley roll his eyes in disgust when I mentioned that particular conspiracy theory. “The President was never scheduled to come to the graduation if a female was to graduate,” he said. “I’m the Operations Sergeant Major and would have to know if the President is coming. A presidential visit is a big deal, and takes a lot of preparation. If he had planned on being there, I would have known about it. That story is completely false.”

This accusation seems to piss Sergeant Major Boley off more than most others, probably because it was created out of thin air, with absolutely no basis in reality, and won’t go away. SGM Boley is obviously getting tired of all the conspiracies. “I’ve tried talking sense to people who say things like that,” he says, “and it never works. There are guys who won’t believe the facts, no matter what. I’ve seen comments online like, ‘Even if there’s an investigation and all the training records say the females made it, I still won’t believe it because I know the Army is lying.’ So what’s the point of even trying to convince them? I know what happened, and I know they made it.”

The females were offered two Day 1 Recycles, which males are almost never given.

According to some critics, the two female Rangers who graduated were given two chances to start over, which males wouldn’t have received without extraordinary circumstances. “That’s ridiculous,” SGM Boley said. “Just this year we’ve had more than twenty males take Day 1 Recycles. And that’s just the ones who accepted the offer. We’ve offered Day 1 Recycles to way more soldiers than that. When a soldier doesn’t make it through a training phase, a board looks at all the factors involved and decides whether or not to give them the opportunity to start the course over. If the board believes in the soldier, thinks he’s doing his best and is physically and mentally able to succeed, he gets the chance to start over.”

This isn’t new. When Sergeant Major Boley went to Ranger School in 1997, he met a student who had been in the course almost 300 days (the course lasts 62 days if the student passes everything first try). “That guy had to have been given several chances,” SGM Boley says. “And even in the females’ class males were given the same chances. Some male students started with the females in class 6-15, and were still in the school after the females graduated with class 8-15. Maybe those males have graduated by now, but they were still there long after the females graduated. They got extra chances too. The females didn’t get any opportunities a male didn’t get.”

Ranger School has no connection to the Ranger Regiment, the honor and integrity of Regiment Rangers doesn’t extend to schoolhouse Ranger Instructors, and those instructors are lying when they say the females attained the standards.

SGM Boley acknowledged that there aren’t many Regiment veterans at the schoolhouse. “I couldn’t even give you a number of RIs who were in Regiment, but it isn’t a lot. I’d guess maybe once every phase a student encounters an RI who was in Regiment.”

So what does this mean? It means that although there aren’t many, there are in fact Regiment veterans instructing at the school, and those soldiers have a vested interest in maintaining the honor and integrity of not just the school but also of the standards held by the Regiment. Without question, Regiment veteran Sergeant Major Boley wants the standards maintained, and has a duty to uphold those standards. Comments against Ranger Instructors aren’t separate from attacks on the Regiment; “Every time someone claims we’re lying about the females,” SGM Boley says, “they’re directly attacking my integrity as well as Colonel Fivecoat’s, Command Sergeant Major Arnold and all the Ranger Instructors currently working at Ranger school.”

So many changes had to be made to allow females in Ranger School, it made the two females who graduated not worth the trouble.

This one isn’t an accusation or conspiracy theory, and many reasonable people would argue that it’s a valid criticism. Even SGM Boley had his own concerns about the presence of females; he thought they’d need so many special considerations that, as he said, “the juice wouldn’t be worth the squeeze.” In the end, however, the females needed almost no accommodations for their gender. “The only thing different for them was that they showered separately from the males,” he said. “That was it. There were practical considerations for the females, but no special considerations.”

The females aren’t really Rangers. They’re just Ranger qualified.

Again, this isn’t a conspiracy or accusation, but it’s been brought up quite a bit since the females graduated. Even Sergeant Major Boley understands this opinion. “When I was a Regiment E5 and E6, maybe even as a young E7, I would have said the same thing,” he admitted. “That’s a very common attitude in the Regiment, but that’s not the rule. There’s no regulation saying you have to be in Regiment to be a Ranger. If you graduate from the course, you’re a Ranger. I have no problem with the females calling themselves Rangers, or with anyone else calling them Rangers.”

NPR photo

When I wrote my first essay about the female Rangers, I held the opinion that the school had upheld the standards, and two females had honestly attained those standards. I’ve argued before that women who are capable, qualified and willing to serve in combat arms should at least be given the opportunity to attempt the training. After speaking with SGM Boley, I still feel that way. All the evidence I’ve seen – and the direct, firsthand information I just heard straight from Sergeant Major Boley’s mouth – leads me to believe Captain Kristen Griest and 1st Lieutenant Shaye Haver legitimately graduated from one of the Army’s toughest schools.

And that’s all Sergeant Major Boley and I are saying. The females did their best, attained the standards, and graduated from a school. That school earned them a tab, but not the tan Ranger beret. Not a platoon leader position in an infantry unit. They graduated from a school, and all the people going insane over that fact should calm down. Because it was just a school. An important school, and maybe a crucial step forward for women, but still just a school.

“The two females deserve recognition for making it through Ranger School,” Sergeant Major Boley says. “But they don’t deserve more than anyone else. One soldier who graduated with them is a cancer survivor, and not long ago was told he’d never be able to do something like this. He did it, the females did it, every other soldier who graduated did it. They all deserve praise, but not more than their classmates. Completing Ranger school is the easiest part of being a Ranger, living up to what that tab means every day of your life after is the hard part. Thus far Haver and Griest are doing just that, with class and dignity.Some of us old Rangers may want to take a page out of their book.”

As far as I’m concerned, Sergeant Major Boley’s opinion is the final word on the matter. I’m a cynical old senior NCO who is frankly sick to death of the Army and counting the seconds until I retire, and I often harbor a near-homicidal hatred and distrust of officers (just kidding…sort of). If it was just some official Army spokesman colonel insisting the females graduated fairly, yeah, I’d be suspicious. But when a twenty-year Ranger Regiment combat veteran Sergeant Major with a Silver Star, who is assigned to Ranger School, tells me they made it fair and square, I believe him.

Disagree with me all you want, and call me whatever you want. People disagree with me all the time, call me all kinds of bitches and hoes, and I ain’t even mad, bro. But if you’re going to call Sergeant Major Boley a liar, you better have actual evidence to back that accusation.

Don’t have evidence? Then you should probably practice saying this:

-CH

Note: this interview was conducted before the third female graduated Ranger School, and because she was still a student her performance was not discussed or addressed in this article.

Mad Duo, Breach-Bang& CLEAR!
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About the Author: Chris "Mad Duo Herndo" Hernandez (seen here on patrol in Afghanistan) may just be the crustiest member of the eeeee-LIGHT writin' team here at Breach-Bang-Clear. He is a veteran of both the Marine Corps and the Army National Guard who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is also a veteran police officer of two decades who spent a long (and eye-opening) deployment as part of a UN police mission in Kosovo. He is the author of White Flags & Dropped Rifles - the Real Truth About Working With the French Army and The Military Within the Military as well as the modern military fiction novels Line in the Valley and Proof of Our Resolve. When he isn't groaning about a change in the weather and snacking on Osteo Bi-Flex he writes on his own blog, Iron Mike Magazine, Kit Up! andUnder the Radar. You can find his author page here on Tactical 16.

 

11 Responses

1. EddieB says:

   October 25, 2015 at 9:16 pm

   As far as I’m concerned, if you earned it, you earned it. Sergeant Major Boley’s comments are the equivalent of the microphone drop and walk-off. Well done, Lieutenant Haver and Captain Griest.

   Reply
2. Rita Kansiz says:

   October 25, 2015 at 9:49 pm

   They Deserve to be Rangers, thy did exactly the same Training as the Males! When will Unhappy Folks stop Turning everything into a Negative, to feel more important then the Two Woman who went to this very Hard Training, bet the complainers would not even have made it to finish Basic Training! Thank you for your Service Ladies and I for one am extemly proud of your Accomplishment!

   Reply
3. David Buffamoyer says:

   October 26, 2015 at 3:14 am

   Lol, there is no such thing as E10, but unless you want your career ending at RTB, you can bet your ass they will support the party line, or be the EEO in ft Polk, instead of a Division CSM. At the senior enlisted ranks the career enhancing jobs are like musical chairs, fewer, and fewer. CSM Boley did all that you say, but now he also is a political entity. Just like turncoat and General Miller. Go along, get along……….They will never admit what they did, but we know. Ranger school took a shit this year. If you choose to buy into he whole Standards Were Uphwld cry from the mountains………..I have a bridge to sell you.

   Reply
   • Maria Vasquez says:

     October 26, 2015 at 5:27 am

     Ok what I don’t understand about you saying this. If standards were relaxed for females, then why did so few graduate? Just statistically speaking, there should have been an amount to match male numbers that drop or tab.

     Reply
   • Chris Hernandez says:

     October 26, 2015 at 8:18 am

     SGM Boley clearly stated he plans on staying where he is until he retires.

     My question is, since it’s so obvious these females got special treatment, and every RI knows it, why does not one RI have the courage and integrity to speak out?

     Reply
4. seans says:

   October 26, 2015 at 6:10 am

   First do you call personnel who attended Ranger School from other branches Rangers?
   Second do you really believe the Operations Sergeant Major of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade is going to admit that standards were lowered? That he is going to come out and admit standards were lowered on his watch. That the integrity of the Tab isn’t actually that high?
   Standards in the SOF community have been lowered in the past. Standards in the aviation community have been lowered in the past. They change every time you get a change of command, a new set of instructors rotate thru. When there is a shortage of personnel. When someone decides to diversify the force. Standards change all the time, for the better or worse.

   Reply
   • Chris Hernandez says:

     October 26, 2015 at 8:24 am

     I couldn’t tell you what other branches call the RS grads. I can tell you that the Ops SGM at ARTB says if you graduate from the course, you’re a Ranger.

     I believe that the Rangers charged with upholding the RS standards would fight, speak out and even quit if they were forced to pass substandard students. The fact that not a single RI has spoken out leaves us only two options: either Rangers have no integrity, courage or backbone and we were wrong to ever think so highly of them, or the females passed. I think it’s way more likely that the females passed.

     And correct, the standards change. That’s not the question here. The question is, “did the females pass at the same standard as their male classmates”? As far as I can tell, the answer is yes.

     I extend an open invitation to interview any RI or student who has firsthand knowledge that the females didn’t attain the standards. I’ll publish their word as long as I can verify that they were there, even if I disagree with what they say.

     Reply
5. Roger says:

   October 26, 2015 at 9:15 am

   What about peer evaluations?

   Reply
6. Female Rangers: An Insider Speaks on the Record | chrishernandezauthor says:

   October 26, 2015 at 10:00 am

   […] Read the rest at http://www.breachbangclear.com/female-rangers-an-insider-speaks-on-the-record/ […]

   Reply
7. Dan says:

   October 26, 2015 at 10:49 am

   Everyone is missing the point. The same standards WERE upheld by the female attendees. The big question is WHAT are the standards, and in a year WHAT is going to be the new gender-normed standard? 60+ pound ruck weight a year ago was ***40 WITH WATER*** on this particular cycle. Next year it will be 32 with a 240 as opposed to a 270 on the RPFT – a year after that? Maybe we’ll just carry teddy bears and lollipops through the fucking woods.

[Gibbs le Cajun]

http://www.45enord.ca/2015/12/decision-historique-larmee-americaine-ouvre-tous-ses-postes-aux-femmes-sans-exception/

L’armée américaine a pris la décision historique d’ouvrir aux femmes tous ses postes de combat « sans exception », y compris les plus exigeants comme les unités d’élite, a indiqué jeudi le secrétaire américain à la Défense Ashton Carter.

Les femmes pourront accéder à tous les postes de combat si elles peuvent « remplir les conditions » fixées pour ces postes, a précisé M. Carter lors d’une conférence de presse au Pentagone, en allusion notamment aux critères de capacité physique.

Des femmes « pourront conduire des chars », « tirer au mortier », être membres des forces spéciales comme « les Bérets verts ou les Navy Seals » « ou mener » des soldats d’infanterie au combat, a-t-il dit.

L’armée américaine doit avoir accès « au plus grand nombre possible de talents », et ne peut pas laisser les femmes de côté, a-t-il expliqué.

 

Le secrétaire à la Défense a reconnu qu’il n’avait pas donné suite à la demande des Marines, le prestigieux corps expéditionnaire américain, de réserver certains postes aux hommes.

Les Marines étaient isolés dans cette demande, les autres armes et notamment l’Armée de terre (US Army) n’ayant pas demandé à conserver des postes exclusivement masculins, a-t-il notamment fait valoir.

L’administration Obama avait annoncé en 2013 sa volonté d’ouvrir tous les postes de combat aux femmes mais le Pentagone avait reçu un délai pour décider si d’éventuelles exceptions seraient conservées.

Depuis 2013, l’armée américaine a déjà ouvert un grand nombre de postes. Mais l’ouverture aux femmes restait à confirmer pour les postes de combat de l’infanterie, des blindés et des chars, et pour de nombreux postes des forces spéciales.

Trois jeunes femmes militaires américaines avaient marqué un point symbolique important cette année pour la cause des femmes au combat en réussissant la très dure formation des Rangers de l’armée de terre américaine.

L’armée américaine compte environ 15% de femmes dans ses effectifs.

[Fusilier]

On va bien voir. Si je comprends bien, pas de critères adaptés. 

[Gibbs le Cajun]

https://www.funker530.com/sergeant-major-speaks-out-on-women-in-combat/

Sergeant Major Speaks Out On Women In Combat

 

 

Sergeant Major Lehew, a 27 year veteran of the United States Marine Corps, speaks the honest truth that no one wants to hear about women in combat.

Sergeant Major Justin Lehew is a beast among men. At a time where the entire military is absolutely terrified of speaking their minds, he personified moral courage. This man is a leader of Marines, and when it comes to protecting the combat effectiveness of the United States Marine Corps, he let his words speak without the fear of repercussion.

After spearheading the Ground Combat Element Integrated Task Force, a unit specifically designed to test the mettle of women in ground combat-arms roles, he said this.

After posting this message to his Facebook page, Sergeant Major Lehew was not afraid of consequences, but he was expecting them. He knew from the moment he hit send on that message, that his career would be in jeopardy. After speaking to him however, I learned that he faced no punishment whatsoever from his actions. “Repercussions – none, not even a stern talk. Likely due to the fact that I said what most all feel or believe but the difference is…I actually said it…” It’s probably hard to punish someone for their actions, when you internally agree with them.

I personally am inclined to agree with this man’s statements. There is a lot of debate currently going on about the recent decision to open all combat roles in the military to women. On one side, we have the feminists screaming for equality (yet I don’t see a massive line at the career planner for MOS changes.) On the other side, we have the men with experience, speaking from a realistic point of view.

It’s not bias, it’s science.

 

 

 

http://www.tecom.marines.mil/Leaders/LeadersView/tabid/22264/Article/528628/sergeant-major-justin-d-lehew.aspx

Modifié le 8 décembre 2015 par Gibbs le Cajun

[Serge]

C'est en effet le grand sujet là-bas en ce moment. 

[collectionneur]

Je resignale que l'on a ouvert un chapitre spécial pour les fils concernant l'armée des États-Unis. Il faudrait y transférer ce fils et bien d'autres. 

[imposerlaforce]

Je pense que les États Unis sont dans la tentative de mettre au combat des materiels qui se veulent révolutionnaires seulement la rd c'est long, les matériels actuels viellissent les nouveaux tardent...

[Tancrède]

Petite résurgence amusante de la question des femmes dans l'armée aux USA.... Sous un nouvel angle: les chefs de l'Army et des Marines ont mis en avant, lors d'une audition au Congrès jeudi dernier, que maintenant que tous les postes des forces armées étaient ouverts aux femmes, celles-ci devraient avoir, comme les hommes, à s'inscrir sur les listes du Selective Service System, l'organisme qui recense la population mobilisable en cas de réactivation de la conscription. Le but d'un tel changement serait donc une conscription indifférenciée et n'accordant aucune priorité ou aucun avantage à un sexe sur l'autre. 

La manoeuvre peut sembler politicienne de la part des officiers généraux, une manière de rendre la chose -et la perspective, aussi improbable soit-elle- plus réelle dans l'esprit de la population féminine afin d'un peu plus dissocier les organisations féministes aux revendications sélectives, et de maintenir le buzz sur les changements silencieux imposés aux forces, souvent à leur corps défendant (à tort et à raison selon les sujets).Politiquement, l'arme est à double tranchant, parce qu'à moins que le problème ne repasse sous le manteau (probable), cela ne laisse que 2 solutions: soit intégrer effectivement les femmes dans le système (ce que nombre de démocrates pourraient craindre), soit fermer définitivement le Selective Service System, c'est-à-dire toute possibilité de revenir rapidement à la conscription en cas de besoin, ou de la maintenir dans l'horizon. Le système en lui-même coûte quelque chose comme 24 millions par an, en soit une goutte d'eau dans le budget militaire, et une mobilisation minime de ressources, mais la base de donnée et la planification qu'il maintient à jour sont un capital potentiellement important, et conservé à moindre coût. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/02/02/army-and-marine-corps-chiefs-its-time-for-women-to-register-for-the-draft/

 

Modifié le 3 février 2016 par Tancrède

[Seal]

Bonjour tout le monde,

Je suis désolé si je me suis trompé de rubrique ...

Je suis tombé sur cette vidéo d'un A 10 qui a été touché par un missile.
Je suis surpris que le missile ne l'ai pas abattu, mais juste un énorme trou dans l'aile droite ...
C'est si solide que ça un A 10 ?
 

 

[collectionneur]

Si les commandes de vol ne sont pas totalement HS, la portance des ailes à suffit à le faire retourné au sol sans trop de casse.

Sinon, les troupes US en Europe renouvellent leurs stocks de munitions, 4500 tonnes métriques (5000 tonnes courtes) sont arrivé en Allemagne :

http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/former-guantanamo-detainee-among-4-arrested-in-spain-morocco-for-islamic-state-ties-1.395610

Destination, le ''Miesau Army Depot'' :

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/miesau.htm

[penaratahiti]

Il pleut des Humvees !!!  :

 

[Ciders]

Ça ressemble à un essai de nouvelle munition : le Humvee non guidé.

[alexWF]

il y a 18 minutes, penaratahiti a dit :

Il pleut des Humvees !!!  :

 

Le résultat à l'impact

 

[ascromis]

Mise en place d'un Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB) par le Génie.

 

[Tancrède]

Pour les amateurs d'organisation militaire, voici un projet qui a eu un très sérieux lobbying auprès de l'Army, et qui l'aura encore pour un moment, afin de remplacer le modèle fondé sur les très critiquées Brigade Combat Teams (déjà en train d'être largement refondues par "densification"). En toile de fond, on sent autant le sponsor d'un industriel allemand et ses fanas dans la sphère politico-militaro-industrielle aux USA, qu'une certaine vision moins de la politique étrangère que de ce que doit faire l'armée, parce qu'on se le dise, c'est un éloge aux forces lourdes, qui entend promouvoir un modèle fondé entièrement sur le PUMA dans toutes les variantes qu'il pourrait adopter (y compris avec un canon de 120)....

http://www.douglasmacgregor.com/LRSGBriefing.pdf

 

[kalligator]

Une base souterraine américaine dans le Groeland  abandonnée depuis des années est en train de refaire surface (réchauffement climatique) quelques image spectaculaires.

[collectionneur]

 @kalligator

On en parle sur divers sites depuis 2015. 200 t de produits chimiques et 200 m3 environ de carburants a nettoyer mais cela coûte trop cher. 600 missiles balistiques prévu au départ... La Guerre Froide a gelé les cerveaux dans ce cas-là :)

Au fait, vous avez oublié les photos  :)

@Tancrède Tu a un lien sur la nouvelle organisation des BCT ? Le projet que tu m'est avec des Puma Germains est il fruit d'un lobbying d'industriels allemand pour pousser BAe dans le caniveau ?

Modifié le 3 octobre 2016 par collectionneur