Posted on Mar 23, 2016
Congresswoman to Air Force: Put down the tuba, pick up a gun
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Full Disclosure: My wife is a Bandsman. The Congressman has has no idea what the purpose of the Bands is (Primarily a Recruiting & Public Affairs tool).
I look at her argument of "get rid of the Bands to save money/personnel" as the equivalient of saying "get rid of Dress & Service uniforms since we should be able to do everything we need to with Utilities and Combat Uniforms. They're just a waste of money." Both are logically flawed arguments.
I realize the A-10 is important to her (She's a former A-10 pilot). It's important to us. But that doesn't mean she should throw another Military community under the bus. Especially one that has a longer history than the American Flight, let alone the USAF.
I look at her argument of "get rid of the Bands to save money/personnel" as the equivalient of saying "get rid of Dress & Service uniforms since we should be able to do everything we need to with Utilities and Combat Uniforms. They're just a waste of money." Both are logically flawed arguments.
I realize the A-10 is important to her (She's a former A-10 pilot). It's important to us. But that doesn't mean she should throw another Military community under the bus. Especially one that has a longer history than the American Flight, let alone the USAF.
Congresswoman to Air Force: Put down the tuba, pick up a gun
Posted from airforcetimes.com
Air Force
A-10
Congress
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 15
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"I remember when the band stopped at our FOB and played. It really lifted my spirits" ... said no one ever.
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Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS
I believe she is letting emotion cloud her judgement, and latching onto any argument, good or bad.
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Suspended Profile
She's a retired AF Col and an A-10 pilot(first female fighter pilot to fly in combat). So she obviously has the AF in her interests/heart. The AF leadership is telling her they cant support this much needed aircraft, but they can support bands. That's why she's "picking" on them.
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Historically, can you mention an incident in American History where the Micmac tribe was defeated by a tuba thrown at high velocity into a crowd of attacking troops? I think not.
That said, considering that the USAF mans its own base security, gyms, DFACs, Ramstein AFB Comic con, manages to sustain 90-120 day deployments, and still needs 6 more years to recover readiness, perhaps she needs to move pass tubas and on to the rest of the BOG DWELLING force issues...
That said, considering that the USAF mans its own base security, gyms, DFACs, Ramstein AFB Comic con, manages to sustain 90-120 day deployments, and still needs 6 more years to recover readiness, perhaps she needs to move pass tubas and on to the rest of the BOG DWELLING force issues...
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TSgt (Join to see)
Never made it passed E-6 because I didn’t have the smarts to hold off saying those things until I retired. Do you know how many times in 20+ years I heard an active duty officer tell me that “we’ll never be in that situation” or “the AFI says individuals must be certified. It doesn’t say that they have to be proficient”? One that will echo in my mind for the rest of my life, when the MAJCOM Commander said, “I understand, but it’s not my job to tell Congress the truth. It’s my job to tell them what they want to hear. Unfortunately, we can’t see family members, retirees, and active duty members and keep personnel proficient in the skills necessary to save lives down range and because of that, Iraq and Afghanistan ARE our training grounds”. Even now, the instructor demands by certain credentialing bodies were found to be unsustainable by the military and so the changed a program scientifically and evidentially proven to save lives, changed instructor requirements, and developed their own “credentialing” to protect it from outside audit and the inconvenience it created for line commanders. Of the many Core Values, one soon discovers that they can directly conflict with convenience and local agendas. Concerns about a band don’t began to scratch the surface of the things that might be revealed absent of the amazing ability to camouflage, conceal, and distract. PR is truly an art.
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