Damn, so true. I had a new unit commander call me a traitor because I wouldn’t volunteer to stay in the unit for the next deployment. I was a platoon sergeant and would be promoted the following month so I had to volunteer to stay. I said, “Look I get it. You’re looking to make your mark. But in the last three years I’ve been on four CONUS deployments that lasted a month or longer, a six month deployment overseas and spent nine months in the Gulf. In the last three years I’ve spent more time sleeping on the ground or in a foreign country than in my own bed and I’ve had three different COs during that time. I don’t care what you say; it’s your turn.”
I wasn't infantry or high-speed. (19D) But I had a gold cycle, CONUS border rotation, gold cycle, and DIV EX in my contract. So 2/3rds of my time I was in the field away from wife/kids. Or it felt like it. Hell, when I missed our last JRTC rotation they tried to chapter me. Only reason they didn't was because of a Red Cross letter after my father passed and a new 1SG that shot it down. I had less than six months before ETS. So they tried to have the Army pay me to stay in longer for the sole reason of kicking me out because I went to see my old man off. Question I had was why it was so important I go and miss the funeral? The US had just pulled out of Afghanistan and then COVID gutted our unit with people refusing the prick and getting chaptered. We were chronically under-strength and wouldn't even be combat ready as a squadron because most of our vehicles and heavy weapons were dead-lined. It all felt like rushing to failure and running people into the ground for nothing. Anyways, a bunch of suicides and divorces happened in my last year. For the life of me I can't understand why.
@@jamesbackus9345 Oh, as a forward, "we" never deployed to Afghanistan. I've never been shot at. I worded that weird, and I'll change it. I meant the US Military as a whole pulled out. I was in 3BCT, 101. We were supposedly set to go to Afghanistan but it never happened. Actually, the evacuation happened while we were on the border. At least as I recall. This was a few years ago. My point was it was a lot of wasted effort for never actually going to shoot the things and make the things fall down. 2018-2022 by the way. To give proper context of a timeline.
I remember telling doc my knees were hurt, and he said, "No shit Browning, everyone's knees hurt. What do you want me to do?" I later found out I had torn the meniscus in both of them. I started having trouble with my shoulder and asked to see a Dr. When I saw a medical Captain, he never even looked at me, let alone ordered a scan he looked at the calendar and said " You go to the field in a week so I'm writing you a 6 day profile to rest" I'm thinking awesome now I'll be ready to go. Day 6 and I tell my leadership my shoulder is still fucked, I can't go. My Platoon Sergent tells me if I refuse to train he will have my ass on charges. I'm forced to go and I suffer through the pain. I'm then told that if I was really hurt, I wouldn't be able to carry my ruck like i did. I'm labeled a lying piece of shit. I later found out I had torn my labrum almost completely from training with it hurt for 8 months. The surgeon said I'm lucky to be able to lift my right arm above my nipple. I'm now medically retired and unable to do any of the hobbies I enjoyed before being disabled. When the Infantry fuck you it never really heals.
It’s like reading my own biography. After my labrum surgery I was told my physical therapy couldn’t interfere with the training schedule. So I barely went. Needless to say it didn’t heal properly and I ended up getting med boarded. Which I got treated like shit for because I didn’t deserve it lol. It’s still fucked to this day
I have no cartilage left in my right knee. The doc just said it was only pain from getting older and I only found out from an MRI on a broken bone in my foot. They live lives of luxury and treat us like rtards.
From the time I first went to sick call about my shoulder to the time I got an MRI, 4 sets of X-rays, 2.5yrs, a combat deployment and 2 full rounds of physical therapy to treat something they didn’t know what was even wrong had gone by. Even as I was leaving the unit aid station to get the MRI, the doc told me “I don’t think they’ll find anything but this is the last thing I’m going to do for you”. I didn’t even make it back to my barracks yet after and I got a call from the aid station telling me my surgery date. I had to have my labrum sewn back together, my biceps tendon had to be reattached and the front and back of my shoulder had moved apart and had to be pulled back together with a Kevlar tether. The entire time I was treated like I was malingering until I brought that paperwork in showing my shoulder was beyond fucked up.
I was in North Korean army until I escaped. I thought we had bad leaders because we needed to adore the supreme leader or be sent to a education camp. If we where injured in any capacity we will go home and if the doctors had the treatment/equipment they would cure us. Your leaders are worse than ours
USMC infantry squad leader here. You summed up all of the things I’ve been bitching about for years. The infantry is awesome but we badly need to update how we do things. Great work.
Great work? His arguments are full of holes and sounds like someone that served for one term and hated by officers. Maybe it's different in the marines but when I was a infantry platoon sergeant, I planned all the PT and training.
@@axel8406 i mean u statements are plausible but read what you said YOU planned pt and trainning but you arent every officer in the military not trynna hate im a civilian so what do ik but thats the most plausible reason he has a problem with officers and the way shit works.
@pharox9711 in the army, we plan and conduct training according to Standsrd operating procedures. These SOPs should be based on field manuals and technical manuals. For example, I'm a jiu jistu practitioner. If I wanted my platoon to train hand to hand combative, I wouldn't be able to train off of my own martial arts background. I would have to train according to TC 3-25.150. This I true with physical training as well. So, a new LT is coming to the unit and wouldn't be able to just do what he wants. He would have to train according to SOP. Which in my platoon wouldn't have mattered because I tried to break them off, and my guys were about that life anyway.
On one hand i want to say this video and mentality is soft af. Then again this approach of recovery time is honestly better than collecting some low paying disability and continuing to have shitty healthcare
Enlisted in 1985 as 11B, served until I finally got my ticket punched in Afghanistan in 2012. IED, 3 fractured vertebrae, herniated discs, shrapnel, all the fun stuff. I did however not loose any body parts, so I've got that going for me. Medically discharged in 2015 after a lengthy process. You touched on one thing specifically that I warn young people about now. They will shitcan you the second you are no longer an asset, and all those "benefits" they crow about are hard to obtain. Despite having my 214, medical records, line of duty investigations, sworn statements, ect...the VA initially denied my claims. It took me over 2 and a half years to get rated 60%. But that was only for my IED injuries. Two things happened...I screwed myself because I wasn't prepared or briefed on the VA exams, how they work, what to do. So when they did a range of motion test for example, like the dumb grunt I was...I pushed through the pain to go as far as I could. That's one example. The other? All my other injuries and complaints? My shot knees, and torn up body? Yeah...insufficient records. Because I didn't go on sick call and sucked up injuries...rucking, running, working on sprained ankles, twisted knees, pulled tendons, and the whole shebang. Because of this false machismo we basically screwed ourselves not going on sickcall. Add, deployed we were on COPs and not the Burger King/Greenbeans FOBs with two lower enlisted medics (maybe an E5 if lucky), where even if the medic wrote down stuff in a notebook, it never made it into MEDPROS, so essentially didn't happen. This is why combat arms guys get shafted at the VA, while you'll run into Johnny Pencil Pusher who mysteriously is rated 100% despite never leaving the FOB. Sorry so long...this just needs to be said and therapeutic. If I had a time machine I'd go back and smack the shit out of myself. I used to be a high speed low drag stud...now at 56, I'm practically crippled.
What you say is true brother. I did 24 long years as an Infantryman and was only rated at thirty percent disability upon retirement. After meeting several FOBIT’s who, as the name suggests, were support people who never left the damn FOB who had disability ratings of 80, 90, and even 100 percent…after waiting eight years I finally went back to have my rating re-evaluated and now I’m finally at 90 percent where I should have been from the moment I retired. Your physical issues are worse than mine, there is no reason in this world why you should not be at 100 percent disability rating. One more rant and then I’ll shut up… I saw in the most recent issue of Stars and Stripes that the VA is expecting a 15 billion dollar shortfall this year and they claim the main reason for this is Veterans Benefits! WTF?! Why is it that we can send multiple tens of billions of dollars to Ukraine and Israel, our own Welfare System is NEVER in jeopardy but our own f@cking government wants to complain about having to pay out benefits to Veterans who served this country and same government for years and even decades!!!
As a 68W I've been both attached to Infantry as a line medic and station on base as a clinic medic for years, and have seen my senior medic's push off infantry for "none serious injuries". I've always tried to hear my fellow infantrymen out or even straight up lied so a few soldiers could as least get a single day or two of rest, that really needed it, but even then it was like pulling teeth with the physicians above me to "OK it". I wasn't well liked because of this but my fellow infantrymen loved me at one of my duty stations. I came from a medical background as an EMT, i got into the civilian career cease i wanted to help people, then I enlisted after 2 years. What I noticed is that a lot of the 68W's that were their before me never worked in the medical field before enlisting, so they never developed a health bedside manner with patients, only adopting the military bedside manner which is more akin to "do you have a problem? Ok, where? I don't see obvious signs and symptoms of the problem? your either lying or your playing it up"
Very interesting perspective from a 68w! I've seen it numerous times like I stated on video, where there's few caring medics, that get orders from higher that there's no injuries due to a mediocre training event in the next two weeks. I'm not quite sure that's how injuries work lol. Thanks for your perspective!!
@@RoboDanny Part of caring for patients is taking the time to understand. Doctors are taught early on to listen and empathize with individuals. For some people, they only develop empathy once they themselves are in the same position.
The most annoying thing about both of the units I’ve been in is having to get a sick-call slip signed by your 1SG, who is not a trained medical professional
At the Infantry conference a few years ago General Mattis said Infantry should have a minimum age of 23 years (to many immature trouble makers) . Get paid 75,000-80,000 a year and have 15 year retirement...
@justcause7521 that age requirement would make sense for nco promotions, but most units are at the breaking point on terms of healthy manpower as is. Additional salary should only be given to people who are currently within weight, at a certain threshold for PT, and have EIBs. Additionally, lateral transfers between different Mos after an abbreviated 8-12 weeks of infantry school ending with a live fire should be a thing. If somebody is injured, they should have a secondary Mos to fall into if they physically cannot keep up, additionally there needs to be a standardized PT/active-recovery program managed at the the post/division level.
@@ryankolbe365 This has got to be one of the dumbest comments Ive ever read. Extra money for an EIB. I think only people who deployed to Iraq prior to 2010 should get paid extra. See how absolutely ignorant that sounds when someone says it back to you.
@BlueMax717 you must have been very tired when you made this comment. EIB is standardized (sort of) testing on a laundry list of tasks; which should be done if there's to be additional salary. Call it a seal of approval from the unit to headquarters on the soldier they received from TRADOC. Idk what your problem is?
Got injured in a ruck because of our new PL decided that a blizzard was no excuse to post pone a ruck. I slipped on ice and spiked my leg into the ground. Immediate pain shot up my leg and I could barely stand on the weight. Told my Team leader who then told the medic. Medic told my PSG. PSG told PL. PL told PSG he didn't want any fallouts. Medic was told I just didn't want to work, he told me to try and take it easy and moved me to the center of the formation with him. PL didn't like our pace and had us run hakf way back from the ruck to save his time. I told the medic I don't think I could run. Medic passed it along. I was told to run anyway. I couldn't. I then got an article 15 for refusing to participate in an exercise. My left ancle turned purple when I finally got off my feet. Showed it to my medic. "Probably want to stay off that" . Grtq told my Team leader that PSG says I should have communicated my injury better. Fun times
For the sweet love of God, if there aren't enough warnings to stay the hell away from INFANTry, especially in peacetime garrison infantry, stay away from combat arms, and stay away from the army/marine corps in general. It's a dog and pony show so officers can look good for their records. Period. I don't care how much you think the air force.is th "chair force" , if you're wanting to enlist in the military, go Air Force or Space Force or Coast Guard.
@@kennylanqua6512Agreed. And if you REALLY want to fight on the ground, then still join the Air Force and go through one of the Battlefield Airmen pipelines. TACPs spend their entire careers on the ground attached to infantry units and do all the same things Marines and Army guys do, except they get to call in fixed wing aircraft and they are part of the AIR FORCE, so their lives are inherently better.
@@CyrodiilCome wow, that's pretty shitty article 15 , I had a room mate who got an article 15 for destruction of government property from getting a sunburn shoulder and back couldn't wear web gear and missed an exercise.
Sad to see it’s the same in Canada. In the late 1970s I was an enlisted Infantryman, 18 years old and thought I was bulletproof. At 20 I decided to put my name in for ROTP (our version of ROTC) and become an officer. My Section Commander, a career 48 year old Sergeant had a little father-to-son talk with me. First of all, he said he was proud of me and hoped I made it. Secondly, he asked what MOC I was considering and I replied Infantry of course. I could see the disappointment on his face and said “don’t become me”. He always kept up with us in PT, but admitted that his knees were shot, his back gave him perpetual pain and he was still recovering from a torn rotator cuff surgery. His next bit of advice was some of the best I had ever heard. He asked what I planned on studying, and I replied Commerce, Business or Economics, I’m not really sure right now. He then said to become a Logistics Officer, Finance, Supply, Transport or Administration, but stay out of any of the Combat Arms. You’ll be paid the same, but you’ll be getting real-life experience that you can carry into civilian life. Don’t get me wrong, the Infantry is probably the coolest job you will ever have and the most fun you’ll ever have, but it comes with an expiry date. I’m a worn out old Sergeant who never finished high school, my prospects aren’t all that great on civvy street. I took his advice, studied Commerce and became a Supply Officer. I did a few years and got out for greener pastures. I had a great civilian career, looking at retiring in a few months. I never had the chance to thank my Sergeant, but I think he understood he saved another young buck from destroying my body. Had I not made it through OCS and ROTP, I probably would have returned as an enlisted man but I really don’t think I would have returned to the Infantry. The world looks really different when you’re 20, glad I listened.
@@daepikduckno, it gets way better. You can live a normal life and own firearms and keep em in your own house. You don’t have sergeant fuckface giving you shit every other day for bullshit.
@@xXDrDankXxmakes sense though. Your friend should have been on top of his shit. That’s no reason for you to not be on top of your shit. You did the work ahead of time because you were responsible. This is a clear example of how a poorer performer can affect everybody else. I understand that was your friend but maybe that wasn’t the way to do it. I don’t think that was stepping on somebody else. It’s like this in high performing private businesses as well.
The Marine Corps Infantry suffers from the same exact issues, coming from a Platoon Commander the last three years and a Captain-select. It’s heartbreaking to see how our men are broken down over time and become shells of their former selves
@@sargonbebla5815Army Infantry officer here. I’ve heard that in the USMC, PL or PCs as the Marines would call them. Don’t really have that period of connecting with their platoon members. From the start they are in the planning and operational role. Which i understand may be due to the timeline of commissioning to when you arrive to your unit. For example, and it depends on the commissioning source. For a US Army non-prior officer who is assigned Infantry it’s 12-15 months before they are reach their unit. 3 months BCT, 3 months OCS, and 5 months BOLC. All infantry offices are expected to attend Ranger School plus any unit specific training eg Airborne etc Again just what I have been told.
@@AMZ19252From a non-infantry enlisted artillery Marine, our PCs were almost exclusively in the battery office from the minute they showed up. The few times they would descend from their throne, we’d always wish they didn’t. One somehow even managed to get himself kicked out for hazing in the field. Another had us all write book reports and quizzed us on the states and their capitals. My battalion had the worst first-term retention rate in the Corps and was under an investigation about it for most of my enlistment and, as of this year, is disbanded. Go figure.
Fun story: My unit was getting for a "deployment" to poland, and decided to flip the crunch switch about three months from when we are supposed actually start flying folks out. Say hello to nonstop motor pool ops, a layout almost everyday, so much goddamn admin work, and often working till 1900 or sometimes even longer. After doing this for about a month, I was feeling it...Until on fateful day in the Motor pool I guess I just wasn't paying attention or cogniscant enough and a 70 pound belly plate fell on my foot and I ended up having to have two of my toes surgically removed. Even after my surgery and my recovery leave, they were still having me come in to work in the motor pool while I was in a boot and knee scooter. They still made me go to the rail yard to move vehicles and put down chains despite me being profile, and they were legit trying to still get me to go to Poland despite me being in no condition to do my job. Took the intervention od our head PA and the Full bird colonel surgeon who actually did the toe removal to get me on the medboard list and off the deployment roster. And the amount of people in my unit who seemed...Disgusted and disdainful that i got out of deployment for an injury like that still pisses me off
And just assume you be there and go with them for the deployment, no one will fuc*** thank you for that, you are not getting paid more or promoted for it. Then they are all giga suprised that certain people wanna leave the unit or the army itself after all the crap. Edit: and certain people fake sickness and get through with it, no one is expecting something from *them*.
I had a similar experience of being a PT stud to having two failed knee surgeries in the infantry. They had me doing everything I wasn't supposed to and when the recovery ran into multiple complications thanks to the surgeon, I was looked down on. I wasn't perfect, I made small mistakes here and there that I still think about often, but I always worked hard and tried to carry the slack for others. They had promised me for 3 years that they'd send me to Ranger School while I had maintained a 300 PT score. I never got to take even the RPFT.
OIF 2.5 veteran here (1/506 INF) We had great officers and got a chance to do our jobs in combat. I hated garrison life - it’s like being stuck in high school and as an NCO I spent most of my time being forced to police the behavior of other adults. The Army did a terrible job of taking care of those who were injured/wounded. We had 80+ WIA from our deployment and over 200 on profile . I was wounded and offered evac from theater but I stayed to take care of my soldiers . When we got back to Carson that devotion was rewarded by being treated as “worthless” due to being on profile. My best friend and battle buddy killed himself after a medical discharge that took away his only identity in life . And these were the best years to be Infantry (2003-2007) !
A lot of these points ring so damn true. I did 3 years in the infantry, and when I first joined the Army I was super motivated, and wanted to do the full 20, but after a few years at my unit struggling with a ton of these very same issues, it soon became more of a disdain to stay in. I was fortunate to have the slight pay increase thanks to being airborne, but that pay increase only goes so damn far when you see a dude from S1 that only works about 3 or 4 hours a day making the same as you while you're working anywhere from 60 - 120 hours per week depending on the week or if you were in the field or not. Infantry morale is so dangerously low that we would always call it voluntary prison, and would refer to our time in as such by literally counting down the days until our contracts ended. If there's anything that should be taken from all of this, it's that the infantry is not only broken, but deeply scarred for generations to come. It's these same exact issues that made me decide that taking a crack at civilian life was more ideal, because at least then a boss would understand if I'm sicker than a dog, or if my truck just wouldn't turn over that morning. Do fucking better, Army.
If you’re in the infantry or even the military right now please go to medical and get your injuries documented. Ignore the old NCOs that shame you for going, in a few years you will never talk to them in your life and it’s your money on the line. If your unit doesn’t let you go to medical just go to the emergency room
I am an old NCO and I listened to ignorant old ones shaming me and others about trying to get taken care of one self or an injury. Now I am trying to get the care I neglected and hid to look “not weak” and I now tell young NCOs and soldiers take care of yourself who cares what ppl think not everyone makes the service a career like I have going on 26 years. So got the care and take care of yourself and your body
Great video. I fully agree with the idea of "getting a break" to heal. One of the most talented young officers that I knew had his career cut off at 2LT because he could heal after getting cellulitis in Ranger school. He was out of the Army at 1LT. I think one of the issue the military faces is an over abundance of MOSs. 100 years ago almost everyone in an infantry regiment was an infantryman. If someon got hurt and heeded to recover, you could send them to the Regimental HQ where they could serve on the staff until ready for full duty. A side benefit of this, is the reality that it provided a high level of societal accountability for staff actions. You better be on it, as you are going to be going back down to your buddies in the line..
The pay gap between officer and enlisted, and still having to kiss ass to every arrogant and genuinely idiotic officer is the most enraging part of life in the military.
Especially when you end up having to hold an officer billet because the officer got killed or wounded. Getting bumped from platoon sergeant to platoon commander doesn't even help for promotion.
Sailor here, ran into infantry guys in Hawaii and they asked about our PT. We ran 3 miles, did 60 pushups, 30 situps a year and you are good to go. Some of us worked out on out own but there was no mandatory PT until you got too fat to pass PT test every 6 months. Which you had to be REALLY out of shape to fail a Navy PT test. So glad I didn't go infantry, my son did in the Marines. First letter from Boot he writes "you were right, I should've joined the Navy". Proud of him though, 120 lbs and became a Marine.
What got me was the platoon sergeants, readiness NCOs, and new NCOs who had a chip on their shoulders, displayed acts of cruelty to their men, and had no regard for their men’s well being- all while being manipulative cowards and hypocrites behind the scenes. I’ve lost count of how many of them never saw combat but bragged about their bronze stars that none of us lower enlisted guys got, but many of us earned. I lost count of how many times I was in combat situations, but was denied any recognition other than JAG interrogations until our last mission out. After our last mission, I was mistakenly awarded a CAB instead of the CIB and that is what will always be on my record. Also, I was almost in prison for what finally got me, recognized and awarded an action badge. I’m extremely bitter towards the infantry and the army as a whole. Thanks for making this video-somebody needed to say all of this.
I ran nearly 1000 missions in Afghanistan one deployment, granted most of them bullshit but still outside the protection of the fob. Barely an award when me and the other few guys that did all that work got back. Hell, we even stayed a month longer than the rest of the battalion to rip with the incoming unit. You know who got "bronze stars"? Captains/LTs and SFCs in an office typing con-ops or making map overlays. Didn't care about awards anymore after that.
This is exactly opposite of what i read in us army manual for platoon. platoon leader and sergeant should give care about their mans well being. actually not should but MUST
@@himmlerwamlstein7128 big surprise, a peacetime military consumed with nothing to do but churn money and essentially gang politics, backchanneling shitheels and constant political bickering.. ends up not doing its best?
Many of these problems are large scale and I think there are bigger issues at higher echelons that trickle down into this bullshit. Infantry also just seems to have a toxic culture based on what I heard about the cats at IBOLC.
you said it man. They break us all down. I was an Engineer so we didn't deal with the same type of physical and mental abuse but just as bad. Breaking ground, digging ditches, laying blocks, pouring crete all hours of the day and night through any weather trying to build something to standard while the Army throws an English major at us as a PL only having a few months of school as experience wanting that bullet on their OER wants me to finish it now to move on to the next thing regardless if it's a safety hazard which ends up costing twice in materials, money and labor. Then GWOT hits and we start doing more tactical training and suddenly our "leadership" are combat experts. Grunts have always been the "Yin" to our "Yang" and I hope they get better in the future.
I was a medic for an infantry battalion for about 3 years back just before and during covid. I saw all of this stuff, leaders that only cared about their OER and NCOER, extreme alcohol, tobacco, and worse substance abuse, PT that destroyed your body, and constant rotation in and out of the field. This led to a turnover rate of about 60% of our junior enlisted, which in turn started leading to personnel shortages unit-wide, increasing the responsibility and pressure on everyone else, creating a cycle of pain, depression, and frustration. When I first joined I thought that guys who only did one contract were the weak or cowardly ones, now I’m six years in with three years left, broken, miserable, and fed up. I know now that they’re the smart ones.
Regarding pay, we all need a raise, and the proof is that recruiting goals are not being met in virtually every MOS. I absolutely agree with pretty much everything you said. Well done with this video, and I hope that someone in a position of influence actually sees it.
Considering how much money is being pumped into the US Army it’s shocking how low the pay rate is for the average grunt. It’s all being spent on equipment & the Military Industrial Complex, but what use is that equipment if there’s no one to hold it?
@@PeachDragon_ I'm not even against CEOs getting a raise, so long as they actually make their companies, stockholders, and employees richer. I can't understand the current trend of CEOs who suck getting richer, Bob Iger, for example.
@@justadummy8076because it's all sent to the rich fucks and the officers they can't retain as much as people get out. I just got out last December. Some units simply refuse to send guys to schools fuck that.
Yup Former Marine infantry squad leader here. Did 6 years, 2 deployments. Broken back, almost complete hearing loss in one year, broken big left toe, broken nose, horrendous IBS from eating local food and water on deployment because we ran out of MREs and water and our air drop lost its parachute and splatted. Heat casualty also. Mind you I had one of the best PFTs in my platoon, and was one of the top ruckers in both of the battalions I was in. Got forced out because I was a 6 year Cpl, and the cutting score was ridiculous for Sgt. My only option was recruiting, even though I had the MARSOC recruiter going to the career planner and talking to the monitor. Nope, they ONLY would let me go to recruiting or get forced out. Also they WOULD NOT approve any valor awards I put in for any of my guys on our last deployment, because in the Lieutenant’s eyes, he was only getting a NAVCOM with no V so he didn’t want anyone getting an award with a V. I got my wisdom teeth pulled the week I got out, and also had to do TAPs the in the last 2weeks before I got out because I was on my last deployment until 56 days before I EASd. All this while fighting to stay in. They also pushed out a Sgt with 10 years and 3 deployments, another Sgt with 12 years and 6 deployments and another Cpl with 8 years and 4 deployments. None of us has no plan whatsoever. We were all trying to be lifers because we had no where to go. It’s truthfully fucked. If you were infantry and got out in 2014, chances are you were forced out.
Be happy you didnt go to recruiting like I did. Infantryman with 3 combat deployments to high school recruiter was a poor choice on the Armys part. I left the military after that 3 year stint, but the outprocessing was a shit show; nothing like how outprocessing would occur from a regular base. Was on my own to figure it all out and wish I was able to see a doctor on a base instead of a clueless civilian for medical outprocessing.
@@kenwes6560 yeah bro that’s why I refused to go there. I had a buddy who went and he told me if I went my soul would die. I had another buddy who went drill instructor and he liked it but I knew it wasn’t for me and it wasn’t an option anyway. For me it was MARSOC, stay in the infantry or get out. The idea of going recruiting was not even on my radar because I knew how bad it was lol. Man that’s freaking rough dude, kudos to you for getting through it. I feel like unless an infantryman is like begging to go to recruiting, we shouldn’t be allowed 😂😂
@@kenwes6560 I hear you. Infantry Branch Managers are AWFUL. I got tagged with the 3 years in USAREC then they involuntarily extended me for 12 more months, then after 4 years of that BS the Branch Manager assigns me to Ft Drum. After 2 years at Drum and a 15 month surge in Iraq I get back to CONUS and what's waiting for me but orders assigning me back to USAREC as a detailed Recruiter for 90 more days that they called The Summer Surge. I showed up at my old recruiting station as an E7 and I refused to do anything and they didn't know what to do with me, so I chilled and got paid TDY for 90 days then rolled back to Ft Drum with my new car LOL.
And now the military is suffering and maybe this just me being paranoid but I'm low key wondering if they want more bureaucratic types so that they're easier to control and suppress the civilian population if our constitutional rights keep getting trampled on by this administration and people want to revolt
This video outlines exactly why I got out. I enlisted back in 2017 as infantry, went to basic training and upon graduation, got my duty station of 25th ID out of Hawaii. My Drill Instructor told me I was about to waste the next 3 years of my life training for a war I was never going to see. The whole reason on why I chose the infantry was to fight, and once I learned where I was going, I was crushed. Spent the next 3 years of my life on a training cycle that always ended in a JRTC rotation, to then reset the training all over again starting from Team live fires and working back up to another JRTC rotation. The times when I wasn't training, it was all work details. Area beautification was a constant, and any other detail that they needed done. It all seemed pointless. So, when I hit my re-enlistment window, I had a decision to make, I could try and go to a unit that was slated to deploy, but it was no guarantee. And the last thing that I wanted to be was to get stuck at another unit for 3 years with no chance at a combat deployment. So, I made my decision to just get out. I was very salty and jaded the first year or so that I was out, but I have sort of come to terms with it. I am able to look back now and see it for what it was, take the good skill and experiences I got from my service, remember the good times with my brothers, and try and forget the bad times.
@ZayneZinger maaaayyyybe This video sounds like something Sgt Afterbuffalo or Spc Chatel would write. Some people got so jaded they got out early. Idk, I think the unit as a whole just had like physical fitness issues and persistent drug problems. I'm a plumber now, and I don't have any serious injuries. If you happened to pick up a trade, maybe look into being an overseas contractor. All your coworkers will be burned out policemen and occasionally burned out SOF, but you'll have the chill job, and the money is serio
This was a great video. It insightfully lays out the flaws in the infantry and in the military as a whole. Too many young leaders are told to come in guns blazing and leaning toward that glorious OER, as you have pointed out. Couple that with a weak/toxic/incompetent or combination of all three PSG and you have a recipe for disaster. Our Soldiers are not meat for the grinder. No matter what their reason for joining, they are still people, who are willing to lay their lives down for their fellow Soldiers and leaders and should be respected, not babied...respected for the sacrifice they may have to give.
I am going to somewhat go against the grain with the first part of the vid and new Plt Leaders breaking their men. Maybe the Platoon can suck up the PT for first few Plt Leaders who want to show his men that he is as hard as them, but once the new Chad LT shows up and ends up doing too many Death Marches and Runs From Hell, and 20% to 40% of his Platoon ends up on Light Duty; The Plt Leader is going to get pulled into an office and is going to have to explain to his Company Co and even the BnCO why a good percentage of his Plt is on Light Duty. They are going to ask him WTF! is going on and want him to explain why his Plt is combat ineffective. That is a conversation a new LT does not want. I have had this conversation with a Company CO why we didnt do more MCMAP. The answer he told me: "How the eff am I going to explain to the CO why half my Company is broken and on Light Duty?
I was an infantryman for 6 years in the national guard. I had served in the line for less than 2 years before I was “voluntold” to the S3 of another battalion for their upcoming deployment to Europe. Maybe it was because I wasn’t the greatest riflemen, or because I didn’t fit in with my squad, or that I butted heads with my squad leader, but I was never given the chance to become a good infantryman. With how limited our time is at drill, and how my squad leader expected perfection during every lane it was difficult for me, no matter how much I would try I was never good enough. I ended up staying in the S3 for the rest of my guard career, never wanting to go back to the line. I was just so bitter and jaded that I felt cheated out of getting to do the job that I had signed up for, and even worse not becoming proficient at it. Nothing worse than having your chance taken away before you can show them what you’re made of.
You missed one VERY important part of the problem in your breakdown of the Infantry’s problem. Culture. The Infantry’s culture can be summed up as “So the F🤬🤬K what?! Suck it up and stop being a Bi🤬ch!!” This mentality involves everything we do and is directly connected to that statement. I just hit 20yrs (retiring in six months). Every one of our issues is linked to our mentality of being hard, willingness to suffer, and in the interest of the unit’s mission. Now I’m the crusty old dude who doesn’t give a 🤬 anymore but is still scared as hell to leave the Army and be a civilian cuz the job prospects are trash and require me to do much of the same shit I’m retiring from the Army to avoid- like SPENDING A LOT OF TIME AWAY FROM MY FAMILY! This is how this shit works- - Young officers (CPTs and below) feel the need to prove themselves at every opportunity (sometimes creating unnecessary levels of stress for troops). - Good NCOs (especially SFCs and SSGs) refuse to allow the platoon/squad and unit to fail, even if the officer is trash- but in doing so they end up ignoring or poorly mitigating how the OPTEMPO affects young Soldiers and expect them to just deal with it (because we had to- so why not?). - Young Soldiers either sink or swim- those that sink do so due to medical reasons or they begin to rebel against expectations they believe aren’t realistic or fair. Those that swim continue forward in spite of what’s going on- then when they become NCOs- they keep the same cycle going because- that’s what made them hard too. -Career Infantryman
Get ready for the fact that no one in the civilian world values your Army experience. Being an NCO does not equate much to management in the eyes of people hiring. Not sure what grade you're finishing out at, but I've had a Platoon, assumption of company command, responsibility of the battalion personnel for rear D, and so on. They don't care. Ranger School? Deployments? Ect. "Thanks for your service. I'm sure you have some wild stories. Unfortunately it doesn't have much to do with the way we do things in this organization." Or some response like that. Go get a trade and work for yourself. Or Civil Service I guess.
@@css31069very sad but also very true. I retired after 24 years of Honorable service. In that time I was in every leadership position from Team Leader through Company First Sergeant. For leadership/manager enhancement I was a Senior Drill Sergeant and Senior Drill Sergeant Leader at Drill Sergeant School. For academic enhancement I completed my four year Bachelor’s degree before retiring, was Senior Military Instructor for college ROTC assignment and was the NCOIC for Division Level G-3 Current Operations responsible for planning and putting out operational “fires” across eight states and six foreign countries. The only thing employers cared to see was proof for my Bachelor’s degree, and these days a Bachelor’s degree just barely gets your foot in the door for an interview…maybe.
One thing I've learned in life is that sometimes you have to let your superiors fail instead of succeeding despite their failures. Good employees are often used to cover up a lot of bad ideas and management. I say this as a pure civilian. You can't develop as a leader if you're not allowed to fail.
F**king THANK YOU!!!! All this trash calls for is softening up that cord that 90% love more than some bullshit paycheck. I think training needs to constantly be updated and for the love of god go back to the real EIB test and standards, but everything else gave us our attitude, pissed us off to the point of fighting harder and being the most evil MFer’s anyone could go toe to toe with which is exactly why we beg for the fight a POG runs from and we use a Ma Duce to “disarm” an IED instead of waiting for some POG bitch to get off his ass 8hrs later to come poke at it with a robot, and those of us with shrapnel permanently embedded in our bodies would trade our left nut(you know the prized one) for just one more fight! I swear to God, give me you and every other broken disgruntled pissed off grunt and put them up against tomorrow’s infantry and we will put boot to ask every single fucking time! Hey AmERICa when your new infantry can’t get the job done next time don’t forget to get down on your knees when you want us back!!😂
One thing on the health thing is the medic/corpsman is most of the time just there to get paid and dont want to do any work, during my EAS check out they switched from check ups at the Clinic to the BAS and the corspmans response if i brought anything up is bro idgaf this isnt supposed to be my job just sign your fucking name
As a “soldier” who entered service as an E-1 in Nov 1984 and served 30 years until Nov 2014… this video is 100% on point! Great job, this is a subject of many many discussions over the decades I served. There was an incident that I had with a Battalion Commander where he was being a prim example of “I’m the most important person in the room” during the conversation and exchange of words… he became particularly agitated when I commented “Sir… we NCO’s were here running this unit before you arrived here and it has been a very smooth running unit…we will still be here after you’re gone!… if you want this command to be a positive on your career progression and OER?… than you play along and we’ll make it happen!… if you continue to be a particular part of the male anatomy?… things will be very difficult for you here and not so positive…” I’m going to state the obvious here - it’s the NCO’s that run the Army. If a soldier is being treated like crap, it’s the failure of his NCO’s for allowing the officers to direct day to day soldiers issues. This job belongs to the NCO’s and NOT the officers! the only job that a good NCO should allow this officers to do is to delegate tasks and coordinate logistics. If an officer gets involved in day to day soldier issues, it’s because his NCO’s have failed him! This was a common situation during my career and is WAY too common in the Army. When I entered service in the 1980’s all of my senior NCO’s were Vietnam veterans, I watched the Army go through a transition as they retired, becoming soft and more focused on political correctness… this got worse during the Clinton administration where Infantry units began to incorporate female soldiers into positions as mechanics, cooks, medics, clerks… etc. prior to this an infantry Brigade was an ALL male environment and was a completely different breed. This “inclusion” agenda continued until 2001 and for a time the Army became focused on mission readiness and healthy leadership… (I’m not saying it went away, it just wasn’t the main agenda) everything changed again after 2008 and the push for social justice, diversity and inclusion of a subculture within the ranks began to tear it apart once more… and once again the senior leadership (pentagon staff) pushed to remove the combat experienced NCO’s from the ranks by any means possible… medically retiring then or pushing them into positions that pretty much forced them to ETS with no option to reenlist… and then returned the push on social agendas… Look I could truly rant here for days and days!… but the point here is that as long as the NCO’s allow their soldiers to be abused by officers and the officers care more about social justice than mission “national defense” (destroying the enemy and breaking things)… this situation will not change… it seems to me that the mission of the DOD is to breed soft minded NCO’s that will fall in line and do whatever the officers tell them because they are not capable of thinking or reasoning on their own. They have no concept of the foundation of their position or the responsibility of their job position. The command is structuring the Army to follow whatever orders are given without question and do whatever the officer says… this is toxic and dangerous not just for the average soldier, but to those who depend on them for security and the future of our nation… NOT ALL NCO’s ARE FAILING THERE ARE MANY THAT STILL UNDERSTAND, but they will be attacked and will retire at some point… this needs to be fixed before they do!
I spent 3 years as a 2w151 (aircraft armament systems) basically a bomb loader,I deployed once did a few tdy's and I gotta tell we get 0 love and almost 0 respect from the Air Force and that goes for all flight line maintenance personnel, but we are the single most important piece in the CAS chain, if we get taken out during a shift change there would be no air superiority whatsoever no A10s no F16s no F15E strike eagles, B1b, b52s no B1s and flight line jobs take a long time to learn and get good at, but yet we are an afterthought for most of the military, after I got out I met a lot of Infantry with the same gripes and problems that we had and this video just confirmed that. Seeing that you made to an Ivy League school brought a tear to my eye, I love seeing our veterans of all colors make it! God bless Brother!!
I was an 0331 Machinegunner in the Marine Corps from 1980-84. Every thing you stated here was the same for me as you described. I never saw combat, but we were seriously underfunded and still looked down on by many Americans due to the aftermath of Vietnam. My line unit, 1/9, average age for a grunt Marine was around 20 years old. Less than half of us had a high school diploma, and all of us without exception, came from working class families. I only served one enlistment, which was my was always my intention, since I had always planned on using my VA Benefits for college. Most guys never had a plan, and a good chunk of them were kicked out of the MC for a number of reasons, to include, being UA, not meeting standards, drug use, medical conditions due to rigorous training coupled with poor medical treatment, poor life choices and the inability to adhere to stick military standards and regulations. The day I EAS’d was the best day of my life, although, I’m proud to have served in the USMC. Got out as a Cpl., and graduated with two BS Degrees, and became a DEA Agent, retired in 2007, then had my own Private Investigation Agency for ten years, until I sold it in 2017. Now happily retired in both Chicago (summers) and Mexico (winters). The weird thing is, I still hump a 30 pound pack eight miles a day during the week for fun and fitness. Next month, I’ll be hiking the 500 mile Camino Frances from France to Galicia, Spain. I credit the gravel in my gut and my tenacity to my time in the Marine Corps, but realized early on, that it was better utilized outside the military if I wanted to advance my own interests. Semper Fi!
The Bundesheer, after WW2, decided that officers were to be enlisted for nine years except MDs, chaplains, veterinarians, etc: I was sent with four fellow MPs to our sister Feldjaeger company in Wuerzberg since we were semi proficient in German. We qualified with their sidearms and had lunch. I asked why all 2LTs were in late 20s or early 30s. It was explained that after the war, Germany did not want to rely on the Prussian aristocratic system for producing officers. I was assigned to the 127th MPC, Pioneer Kaserne, '89-'92.
I was a team leader in my final stint in the infantry. I switched my MOS to an intelligence analyst to escape what you are talking about. You are spot on! There needs to be a change. One needs to be cognizant of the fact that these 11B's talk to civilians about their experiences and then we wonder why enlistments are down.
My 1st sgt and QRF sat a block away from us during a fire fight. We asked for help because we were pinned down inside one of Sadr City's water facitllities, and completely cut off from the trucks. He said we had to handle the cross fire before they came to help. An apache ended up handling it because we couldnt even fucking stand up. 1st sgt got his CIB that day... so did QRF platoon. We already had ours 5 times over by that day. We were just bait for a bad leaders promotion ladder.
That video is where an airborne training happened and he landed on a hole and his leg twisted. Had too much complications so he opted to become an amputee ..
@@matthiasthulman4058To be completely fair, that video was from 2011 so Afghanistan was still quite kinetic at that time. Nonetheless, you are correct, just unnecessary bullshit
@@matthiasthulman4058The ability to conduct a Joint Forceable Entry is something the US Army prides itself as keeping the capability to do. It's not a waste of resources The Ranger Regiment jumped in Grenada, as well as during Panama alongside the 82nd, We've also seen paratroopers from France dropped into Mali during anti insurgency type operations
As a 24 year Army vet, all I hear is TRUTH. Although much of what you said I saw through much of the Army. I was a 25U and served in Infantry Divisions for most my career. The Infantry mindset essentially permeated every unit during the 90’s until i retired in 2017. 25th ID, 2nd ID and 10 MTN Div. All had their own special type of lunacy.
I wanted so badly to be an 0311 rifleman. I went through all the courses, got all the certifications, but I had a driver’s license, so they made me an 0313 LAV crewman. Every day consisted of endless vehicle maintenance. On the off chance we went to the field, if I were using my rifle, if I were walking around, patrolling, I was doing my job wrong. LAV crewmen aren’t like stryker drivers in the army. It’s not a billet, it’s a dedicated job to only drive the vehicle. Outside of boot camp I only went to the range not for qual once. That’s pathetic for an “infantry” MOS. It needs reclassification, but it won’t, because commanders don’t want to lose their precious billets. In 2019, we did a dog and pony show for the undersecretary of defense. She asked my friend how reliable the vehicles were. Some officer cut him off immediately and insisted they were “extremely reliable”. I was livid, considering one had just sank and almost drowned the driver, another rolled over and killed the vehicle commander, and they have a 40% breakdown rate to the point where they stopped deploying them to combat 12 years ago. Reclassify LAV crews who never dismount as a non-infantry MOS? Of course not, that would mean the officers don’t get to say they’re infantry officers anymore.
That's exactly why I didn't join the Marine Corps....They couldn't guarantee me in writing I would be 0311. Army guaranteed me 11X in writing. I've heard the Corps is considering or has already made a change more in line with the Army Policy that an Infantryman needs to be proficient in the full spectrum of Grunt Works throughout his career, meaning that by time you're an Infantry Platoon Sgt you have served as a Squad Leader, Team Leader, Machine Gunner, Grenadier, Rifleman.....at least in ideology anyways. It always seemed like an awful idea to me that Machine Gunner was a different MOS than Rifleman, especially for such a small branch as the Corps.
@@SaintLucieSkunkApe Well actually that was a huge problem with LAR retention was that guys were picking up platoon sergeant and getting the infantry platoon sergeant MOS and then leaving LAR, so they changed it so that now platoon sergeant LAV crewmen can’t pick up the infantry platoon sergeant MOS. It turned the MOS into a career killer. Tbf though you can be gauranteed 03xx in writing it’s just that there are far more infantry specializations in the marines than the army. There are advantages and disadvantages to it. On one hand, an individual marine can focus on far greater proficiency, but at the cost of being less well rounded.
@@arcblooper2699 I get what you're saying but theres NO Advantage to being a Machine Gunner for 5 years LOL.....If you cant MASTER a machine gun in 3-6 months you ain't doing it right LOL. It's sort of the similar to why we did away with all the Specialist ranks and Pay Grades, outside of Specialist 4, because if you can't develop an ability to lead then why would we keep paying you the same as your leader? The Corps will continue to evolve until Infantry is narrowed down to 1-3 MOS titles IMO.... A Platoon Sergeant that has demonstrated proficiency and expertise at all Infantry assigned weapons and squad positions is a more qualified person than the guy that's been a machine gunner for 8 years, at least that's the idea and it's a hard idea to argue against.
@@arcblooper2699 I understand, and apologies if I'm coming across as accusatory, it's not intentional. I suppose I'm just jumping on the opportunity your comment provided for me to make a point.
Alot of what you're saying, infantryman have been saying since time in memorial. You think the PL turnover rate is bad in peace time, it was actually worse during the middle of GWOT when big army just restructured to fit the BCT concept. Units got smashed together and some got gutted to create 4th and 5th brigades in each division. I was in 4th BCT 82nd 06-09... the beginning of that unit was a hot mess. We had cherry pog PL's leading combat experienced airborne infantry NCO's and a whole lot of privates with no tab spec4's or corporals in between. There was so much dick measuring amongst guys who had no fucking clue what they were doing. Our joes don't know how to properly call in 9 line's or call for fire, but hey - lets do a 12mile ruck run to prove how hard dick we are to the other platoons, shall we? Then we go on deployment and it's a rude awakening because we are suddenly given ACTUAL infantry objectives and no ones ready for that level of chaos. Luckily by the late 2010's big army figured out how to war properly. Then at some point they said oh shit... I guess BCT structure isnt suited for a "near peer" conflict i.e. china and russia, so lets scale down our numbers, kick out our most seasoned guys for dumb shit like neck tats, and train like it's 1999.
Love what you said about Joe's not knowing how to do a proper 9 line, but focusing on a 12 mile. This is exactly how I meant the "Chads with something to prove." For an OER.
nothing pisses me off more than drawdowns. Every time it happens its basically about fucking out experienced NCOs out of the service. because its not like you need to pass on hard learned experiences right? this is literally why the Army gets its ass kicked early in wars. The same reason why Korea was a cluster fuck less than 5 years after ww2 was because they dumped all the NCOs out of the army , drafted new guys with fuck boy officers to lead them and then spent the 3 years doing police work in occupied Japan and Germany. Then a new war kicked off and no one in the Army knew how to fight. Sounds familiar.
Asking as civilian with no military experience.... in your opinions, what are our chances of fighting a peer or near peer enemy successfully? The feeling I have is that the guys doing the fighting, and perhaps many of the NCOs are very capable and well trained, but the institutional issues might cause some problems.
@jacobhollback2879 I've been out for too long to tell you how it is now. Each unit and each branch operates differently. If you want more consistency with your everyday, try to get into a special team I.E. the blue angels or Rangers. That way, you can look up documentaries or TH-cam videos that can inform how it's going to be.
The pay part really hit me. As a prior army grunt who move onto avionic tech for S&R birds, why the fuck am I being payed the same as some admin guy working few hours with MUCH less stress and physical demand? Great video man
I once had pneumonia. The medic overseeing sick call told me it was allergies and to fuck off back to training. Took an ER visit to get a diagnosis and some antibiotics.
One tour in Iraq, multiple IED’s, two stays at Walter Reed, and over a dozen surgeries from my 3 years in the infantry. I’m 40 and just had my 4th knee surgery. Proud to have the blue cord, but it comes at a high price. 18 years later, I still feel it!
Fantastic video man. I love to hear this coming out. I was in the Canadian army infantry for a time, and I blew my ankle on a ruck, being a no hook scared private, I never got it checked out and I'm still dealing with it more than a decade later.
The infantry likes to ignore the medical and scientific facts that recovery is necessary for the body. You wouldn't go to the gym and do heavy leg work outs 5 days a week and expect to get good results because your legs would never recover. This is something that the infantry (Marine Corp 0311) didn't seem to understand when I was in in the 90's. We would be in the field for 5 days doing heavy ruck movements every day, with new fighting holes dug every day, then splitting night watch between the two guys in the hole, so 4 hrs of sleep each night, then come back to the rear to do a 10 mile run the first day back. Absolutely stupid over training with no recovery leads to nothing but injuries, but no one wants to admit to being hurt because you don't want to be a "broke dick". Then when you get out with destroyed knees and back and got to the VA to get your injuries rated, because you toughed it out and didn't get your injuries recorded, they act like your service had nothing to do with it.
You know, I remember training for the infantry when I was younger and getting overuse injuries and I got so confused. 'Am I not a normal human?' I used to ask myself, 'what's wrong with me? I can't run every other day while lifting weights every other day also? I must be broken, bad genes perhaps.' Today after a few years of adult living under my belt, I understand that I was totally fine, I just needed to go easier on myself, build up gradually, rest when I needed it and come back stronger. Heck, I remember my mother signing me up to a gym class run by a former infantryman and I remember being so confused, I told him that I was trying to recover from shin splints and he gives me a workout plan involving me sprinting up a staircase till exhaustion as an exercise. I mean, come on... I told him that I wasn't going to do it because I was in recovery and it was like he couldn't grasp what I was talking about. Anyway, I learned from that, I certainly learned that personal trainers are a waste of money. I haven't been in the military, but I've enlisted and I hope to be in the infantry. But I am a little worried, because it seems to be a common issue. Knowing what I know now, I've tried to focus heavily on injury prevention and bullet-proofing my feet and legs and back to the best of my ability, but you never know. The human body can only withstand so much. Hopefully one day we can get a bit of a shift in the philosophy of soldier health care. Even the fact that we have to lie about our health conditions before we sign up, God forbid we had an issue at one time that we resolved. I've already been under-reporting injuries as a civilian lest my GP writes that shit down somewhere and I regret it later when I try to join. I wrote a little much, but I just wanted to share my experience as a hopeful recruit. I've already sort of seen where it can go wrong, it's odd that this broken equation is the best we can come up with. I think we can definitely do better.
I served as an Infantryman with the 82nd Airborne division, everything you just stated is absolutely 100 percent facts, nothing but cold hard facts, I am right there with you Brother!!!!
Recently got out of the army I was also a 11b and all of the points were spot on not sure if it's only me that experienced this, but for the majority of my career, I was always told that I was a terrible soldier until it came time for me to re-enlist and the same Nco's who kept telling me that I was a bad soldier all of a sudden were trying to gaslight me and tell me that I'm a great soldier and that I should reenlist and that I won't make it in the real world, needless to say I didn't listen to them got discharged and I'm doing well in life.
Understatement of the year! ! ! I've been retired from the army for 32 years. I am in the process of having my diability reevaluated. The doctor who looked over my active duty medical records told me that an injury I sustained back in the late 80s actually resulted in both a broken shoulder that NEVER HEALED, and 3 broken vertibrae in my neck that also HEALED IMPROPERLY since they were NEVER DIAGNOSED! ! ! That's my medical benefits while I was on active duty for you! ! ! It does finally explain so many of the issues I've had since those injuries and why I've suffered so much pain for over 32 years. The army command and medical personnel don't care about you or your medical condition. All they care about is their OER [officer evaluation report] and getting one patient out the door so they can get the next patient also out the door as quickly as possible.
as a brit ive never understood how westpoint can churn out 4k officers a year and think each of them have had enough attention and training in leadership to become welrounded consistent empathetic leadees
I retired after serving 23 years as an active duty infantryman. When I came back home after my last tour in Iraq in 2005 my felt like an 80 year old man I just felt broken and lived off of muscle relaxers and 800mg Motrin for the last 3 months of that tour. I put in my retirement paperwork as soon as I got back and retired 9 months later. During my career I tore my acl, partially torn Achilles tendon, torn labrum in hip, torn labrum in shoulder, degenerative disks in my neck and lower back. I had several close calls during combat operations and training and was very blessed to survive.
The problem with a professional military is that the soldiers do not last long, mentally nor physically, unfortunately, that is the reason we must go back to the two-year draft. I went in pre-volar or volunteer army, then we were paid $90 per month, once a month, slept in open bays with double stacked bunks, pulled KP, worked half a day on Saturdays, there were no short orders in the mess hall, our equipment and uniforms was shit, stood weekly inspections, had 10:00 hour lights out and bed check, our training was marginal, we stood revely, did PT (not as stringent as today) yet we made it and actually (in hind sight) had a blast, but not many reenlisted. Yes, it was a tough existence! Prior to joining the military, I worked part time as kitchen help in a hospital, when I joint the military, I took a 50% pay cut.
On point. Big bellied billy and little sally in the s shops are chilling with a/c and maternity leave and selling bath water. While I'm getting fucking poured on down range zeroing a rifle. Increase pay for combat MOS. Fucking mindboggling.
@@rickfastly2671 Its the different offices where paperwork and organization are supposed to be done. Females and fatassed NCOs occupy the various slots in the s shops, most of these people would be working at Walmart if they weren't in uniform.
Another huge issue I have that only effects unmarried junior enlisted is the chow hall. My DEFAC is abysmal, quality of food, quantity of food, piss poor service, they are closed without warning frequently, everything is always broken, and the cooks don’t care. It cost me 700$ a month for this (300 in meal deductions and I don’t get the 400 for BAS) as a private I was flat broke because I couldn’t hardly afford to eat properly. I just got back from a 9 month rotation to Lithuania where the food was provided by the Lithuanian government, it’s was bland, almost always chicken or pork and it certainly wasn’t the best, but there was lots and it was substantial and nutritious. We should be embarrassed that other nations are taking way better care of our soldiers than our own government. Like you talked about we’re supposed to be professional athletes but they sure as hell aren’t feeding us like it, then charging extortionate prices that are mandatory and the only way to avoid it is get married, and we wonder why soldiers marry the first girl who looks at them.
I am furious to learn that the air force doesn't have the same broken bureaucracy as we did in the army. They already have everything else like nicer bases, better food, and better looking women.
I am a Canadian retired 30yrs infantry within combat unit with only couple one year posting due promotion and back to the unit. Your video is spot on, when I had a troop releasing the Troops responsible for last 30days is focus on release. I can't believe at times I had to fight with CoC to keep him off duty roster. One Soilder was put on as a duty driver on a long weekend week be his release by CSM. All because CSM didn't like him be honest the releasing troop was dick but still not right. I reported in weekend as the duty driver and the duty NCO was a lower rank I didn't care it was the right thing to do. I was told I was being promoted and posted and at the time I had some personal issues. Out of my 30yrs in military never said no to a course, posting, deployment or tasking. This one time ask delay posting for 6-8 months, I even had someone willing to take my spot I can his his. But NO I knew this was going to happen. When I was speaking with my career manager he said not possible without asking my why. Off I went on my house hunting trip for a week about two months before my report date. My first report day to new unit meeting the CoC I submitted my 30 day release with my 53 day retirement leave. New CoC asked why all said was I am just a number with 30yrs of service all I asked delay my posting 6-8 months. After the meeting went to see medical to be place on stress leave until last day in uniform. Reason I asked for 6-8 months I was working on my PTSD with programs. I release with no debit Mortgage free no car payments and with a great pension financial freedom and happiness I ever been.
Another big problem in the infantry is our lack of actual support. Vehicles are broken down, well the mechanics are too busy playing Xbox so switching out an engine is a skill level 1 task. Running low on food and water, well its really hot and or scary out there so next time pack 8 days food and water. Feels like every support unit exists to draw a paycheck and screw the infantry
And then eventually you start actually doing their jobs for them and it’s like, I get infantry don’t do shit in garrison other than train but holy shit why am I here working till 1700 when half the battalion leaves at 1400?
@@francoismarion-eu3jq In WWII the merchant marines were one of the branches with the highest losses, the other was the Army Air Force. during WWI french supply troops drove to Verdun again and again under german artillery, permanent german artillery fire on the road
23 years in, 19 years on the line with the infantry. ill be honest, i went into this video ready to roll my eyes, but i cant disagree with anything you said. good job. one thing we did un my unit to keep consistency with my soldiers was all troops trades had to be agreed upon by both squad leaders and the PSG. the LT had zero say. then once a year we would do a doge ball pick, where all the the squad leaders would get together and go over manning and pick who they wanted
Served 21 years as an Infantry Officer and 100% the issues depicted here are 100% spot on. The professional athletes comment drove me nuts because at Ranger School something popped in my knee. I played sports all my life up to that point. I never felt anything like that. They gave me Motrin (Ranger Candy) and sent me back after a medic wiggled my leg and said it’s nothing. I chewed Motrin and ran on one leg but had to be dropped from the school. I was a POS and went to my next school Bradley Leaders Course, went to the TMZ they said get an x-ray it showed nothing, the a bone scan again nothing, and when I mentioned needing an MRI I was told to pound sand. To this day I have no clue what my real injury was. I suspect it was a partial tear of my meniscus. I didn’t fully recover until after the Captains Career course. I almost got out because as a tab-less LT the Infantry viewed me as a POS. Dislocated my shoulder and was dropped from Ranger School on try 3. Somehow convinced my Bn CDR to send me back to Ranger School from Korea and that I would extend and command there. 9-11 happened, I went to Ranger School and this time because I knew in my gut it was my last chance I graduated. By the time I got back all the commands were filled and my CDR told me to PCS to Fort Campbell. My career changed from that point on. As a Commander I never pushed my LTs to break guys as a method of distinguishing themselves to me. Train smart, train hard but also to recover hard too. I can’t promise that guys didn’t get hurt in my unit, some did, but it wasn’t because I was Chading them. Ultimately I realized as an officer there are so many Beta males pretending to be Alphas in the officer side of the Infantry. Even amongst the true Alphas there is one type they don’t understand and it scares them which is the Sigma. A quiet observing and hyper intelligent guy threatened all the bravado bullshit. Officers measured their dicks by their APFT score and mostly by their 2 mile run time. All which mattered hardly at all in combat. Looking back I wouldn’t have served as long as I did if I wasn’t in the Infantry, but like this video depicts, we do stupid shit and like the saying goes shit rolls downhill and it’s young Soldiers and junior NCOs and mid level NCOs that get covered in it and pay a much higher price for it. Not every officer is a cold blood sucking vampire but unfortunately there are way too many Courtney Massingales and not enough Sam Damon’s in the Infantry (Once an Eagle book reference to those who are not aware).
I was an infantryman for four years, had the same attitude as Steve. This is a very accurate video about why a lot of guys leave, including myself, and am completely disenchanted with the organization. PT is always a complete waste of time. Platoon-lead PT is garbage, but squad PT is often no better, because the army just doesn't have many "fitness experts". Since becoming a POG I'm much happier. As stated in this video, other MOS's work much less than the infantry, but get paid the same. So I will happily take that MOS over being a grunt without second-guessing. It's unit-dependent, but there's a much better chance for you to be off the line as a POG. It's mind-blowing that the line is rough enough, then they add extra nonsense to it. I prioritize myself and my own health. I work out on my own, sleep more, eat better, am much stronger, and healthier in my position. I doubt anything will change in the army.
About to join the Australia army as an infantry officer. First thank you for the info I will consider this in my position. I know for a fact that enlisted infantry man here are paid less then most non-combat roles and suffered from all the same issues you listed. Infantry is meant to be hard but when the literal backbone of the military, the role that has disportionately the most causualities, most injuries, and worst conditions is not adequately compensated for is it any wonder recruitment is low? More/Harder work or the more responsibility one has should equal more pay
The problem is that your ideas have been said for years and young enlisted men stay in long enough to forget what they were complaining about once they are in a higher position. That 38 y/o PFC Joe has a different mindset than SGM Joe. He lost himself along the way climbing the rank ladder. He no longer has the same problems that he had when he was younger. Therefore he does not see himself in the eyes of lower enlisted. His job is to please the boss above him.
This is all very true , had a commander tell me if I took paternity leave to get out of ntc I was a piece of shit cause back in his day he only got 2 weeks . That’s just a taste of what I’m going through in my current unit . Came in the army as a motivated 18 year old ready to get after it , and now I’m getting out 21 years old and honestly just so checked out. This video put everything in perfect perspective.
My biggest issue with being infantry was going to combat and getting your CIB, then coming back to Campbell and having every officer screw with me, or talk sh*t to me, just because I had a CIB and they didnt. Wasn't just me, most of infantry grunts felt that way. Its like these officers had to prove they are superior since we were in combat and they were not.... The officers that were in combat with us, (very very few) were a different breed and were more in touch with reality.
I served as an 11c (Heavy Mortarman) for 7years in the 90's, and only 2 times I went to see a medic out in the field. Both times they told me it was nothing and that I was okay. On one of those occasions, my back locked up and I could not stand upright. We were prepping rounds under a camo-net that wasn't setup to regulation and could not stand or lift properly for more than 7 hours straight. It was a qualification live fire for the 3rd time that year that we kept acing and our new PL didn't want us getting dinged for the camo-net and refused to let us adjust it. We were prepping over 400 live 4.2in rounds that day. Our previous PL's mantra was "Safety First". He was our favorite PL out of the 7 years I was in. The new Chad also marched us thru Death Valley for 7 miles without support for a minor infraction, treating us like we were fresh out of bootcamp or something. He was fired and kicked out of the army after that. So yeah, Each new officer wants to define his authority. The problem is exactly as you portray in this video and it saddens me to hear it's still a problem. What good is it if our soldiers are broken before we get them to the battlefield/ frontline?
The thing that always upset me was the "X-ray eyes medical degree " every 1sgt received with their diamond. Talk about gate keeping. Sick call 0500 to 0515. You MUST see the 1sgt prior to reporting and recieve his authorization to report for sick call. Top comes in at ...0530. It really happened. 1988/89 FRG.
The Army had been broken for a long time, i was in maintenance before 9/11 and we were always in the field. I remember been the only E1 and them making dig 32 foxholes with my E-tool, details, work and two 1 year deployments, OIF1 and Afganistan, we were always working like they hated us seeing us take any break. The good old don't let higher up catch you doing nothing. After 6 years i reclased to a scout and it was pretty much the same shit, always in the field and training or some BS, details, then came another deployment for the Iraqi surge and I honestly felt they wanted to get us killed I went to the guard and honestly i didn't think it could get worst but it did, it might not have been the same as active duty but they are wanted to make us earn that weekend pay, plus most times or wasn't even 2 weeks for AT usually 29 days of you were on a line unit, infantry, cavalry and artillery. 29 so you didn't get your BAH money I knew a lot of infantry guys that were literally broken from so many years of abuse, bad knees, back multiple surgeries. My advice to young bloods, use the army cause the army is sure going to abuse you. Save your money, go to school and see if you can buy a house that way it's easier than after you get out
9:30 As an airborne medic $150 is really not worth it and I don’t think anyone does it for the pay. In WW2 airborne pay was $50 or about $1000 in today’s economy, it went up only $100 in the past 80 years….
Had a PC in the MC at first I didn’t like, feeling was mutual. We would flame each other behind our backs. Eventually I improved on my own, so did he. Death marches turned to light work, became rarer or were reasonable, I started to like my job, I became really good at it. Eventually it came to exercises and he excelled far beyond textbook officers. A mix of autonomy and his own madness that was almost unmatched. We cleared ranges in record time and earned our leadership praise, even NAMs (SL and PSG), we’d excel on force on force and no matter what happened in the TL we’d strive regardless. He changed, had mutual respect for his guys even me. He even got slotted to be a Cpt, this was his first command. From the guy who got us lost up in Bridgeport to one of the better leaders I’ve had the pleasure of working with, the good ones do pop up from time to time.
I first enlisted in army infantry for the first Gulf war. At that time, we weren't allowed to have any medications in our lockers, not even Tylenol or Ibuprofen. Fast forward to now, I'm a healthcare provider, working with primarily army and air force members. Well over half are on behavioral health meds for psych issues, major depression, etc. And these are guys in their early 20's. I recently dealt with a 41yo guy, who just reported to the base where I am, who is right out of basic/AIT. He enlisted at 40, originally was disqualified because of his lifelong psych issues. He went off meds for 1 year, then got an acceptance waiver for enlistment, and is now right back on meds with acknowledged psych issues. I have another patient who has 17 years in, 15 of those on profile and is non deployable. The army will accept and retain damn near anyone.
I was lucky, after Iraq tour 2008, I transfered to UH-60 mech. Then gained flight status to take crew member. Both mos's were wild asf. Stay well bro's.
Infantry as a Marine Veteran I honestly loved it,yes I know " mental health questions follow that statement". But I did and I've been to alot of Army schools, but when I wanted time out of the GRUNTS just for a few years. The Body Snatcher said you reenlist I'll get you two years out of the GRUNTS, yup. Signed and crippled up. Oh well, tell all the young guys it's not PERFECT.
1st dont ask them to do anything you wouldnt. 2nd Always out perform them in pt to be inspirational. 3rd eat chow and spend time with the individual enlisted man to earn respect and trust. 4th respect the knowledge of any 11B who has served longer than you. My lowest asvab score is 119, not everyone there is an asvab waiver, and your college education doesnt make you more intelligent then the men you serve with. Be open to listening to ideas from lower enlisted troops. You dont have to follow their suggestions, but you should be open to them. My last piece of advice is this... your biggest "trouble makers" are probably your soldiers with the biggest balls who will be your greatest assests in your time of need on the battlefield. Dont mistreat them. 11B13F2b
Remember that recovery is necessary for the body. You wouldn't go to the gym and do heavy leg work outs 5 days a week and expect to get good results because your legs would never recover. This is something that the infantry (Marine Corp 0311) didn't seem to understand when I was in in the 90's. We would be in the field for 5 days doing heavy ruck movements every day, with new fighting holes dug every day, then splitting night watch between the two guys in the hole, so 4 hrs of sleep each night, then come back to the rear to do a 10 mile run the first day back. Absolutely stupid over training with no recovery leads to nothing but injuries, but no one wants to admit to being hurt because you don't want to be a "broke dick".
@@Jaqenhgar222 imagine complaining about training hard, just to find yourself in real combat in guadal canal with no resupply for 50 days. Or in germany in the snow surrounded by nazis without resupply for 35days. I dont think you understand what the DoD is trying to prepare you for. They dont train you that hard because they think youll be riding in a humvee all day and back in your bunk later that night.
you missed my point if you think I was complaining about "hard training", I have a problem with stupid training leading to injured Marines that results in unit ineffectiveness. You put that training cycle that I mentioned above on a loop ; Field, rear with heavy running based pt, field, rear with heavy pt.... it leaves no time for recovery leading to leg/back injury. My suggestion would be when in the rear, have more of upper body based PT to give the legs a rest, but running long distances was what my unit liked to do.
@@Jaqenhgar222 the problem is that homosapiens tend not to push themselves to their limits and give up too soon. The prroblem then is also the group setting where not everyone is equal in ability. One mans limits may fall short of anothers. The concession i could make would be at least, required by ucmj, 1 day a week off when in garrison. Not a barraks maintenace day, but an actual day off. I think everyone understands there will be no days off when deployed, that doesnt need to be trained into people.
Great video. I'm not from the military but the information in your video was still incredibly easy to understand while also being entertaining. If you have more ideas for videos please pursue them, I think your channel could really go the distance.
Hey man, I’m coming in to my unit as a new Chaplain Candidate and I can honestly say my heart breaks for the misconduct and lack of care for any soldier, but this video was extremely informative for me. Thank you for sharing your heart and experience, along with your service 🤙 take care
Good video, it’s not much different in the other branches as you might think. I experienced much of the same in Naval aviation. I agree that there needs to be a change, but that is not going to happen with a weak leadership pool that keeps getting worse. Unfortunately our military is literally and figuratively broken without repair.
Describing the entire Army. The Reserve Component (RC/NG) has more continuity but that can also be a negative when someone overstays and younger troops can't be promoted unless they leave the unit.
I wasn’t an infantryman. But in the Marine Airwing that mindset rings so true for leaders. While they’re trying to prove themselves to their higher ups they’re making the lower enlisted lives miserable. I literally had an officer tell me that if I got put on light duty he would “get really really sad” trying to intimidate me. So I went to medical anyways lmao
I had a heart attack on a 12 mile run 2 miles in. Walked back to the Aid Station. Got told it was muscoskeletal pain by the PA. The NCOIC was my former line medic NCO. He advocated for me. Went to the TMC had an EKG. I had been having a heart attack for over 2 hours. Got put in an ambulance. I promptly died. I got over that.Had another heart attack. Was put on Rear D as Commander and then discharged 2 years later. Oh, and a second heart attack a month later after the first one. A year later, after discharge, I had to have my aortic valve replaced. I got out on an MEB with 20% disability.
OMG, so true. It’s why I got out. Spent 3 years in Germany, came home to Kentucky for 6 months and got leveed to Germany for another 3 year tour! I said , “not only no, but hell no!” I was thinking “someone in Washington must be stupid to create a policy like that!” The Army has a hard enough time keeping up recruitment, but to keep sending soldiers overseas for long tours was not helping at all. I don’t know how the Army kept soldiers in during the Iraq/Afghanistan tours with repeated deployments.
Bro when you mentioned battle drill 6 I immediately knew what you were gonna say. You can’t even do a glass house without 4 mfs jumping in and saying stuff like “that’s not how we did it back in *insert unit or deployment*”
I genuinely wanted to do the full 20, but between all of the points in this video and seeing HKIA happen while I was on PCS leave, I got out at 11. If any fellow Infantryman is reading this and is on the fence about getting out, what I would encourage you to do is use TA if you can and knock out college courses, and get on a CSP program if you decide to ETS. Use your GI Bill, don't just get out and start wasting away; I'm the oldest freshman in almost all of my classes, but it feels good knowing that I can PT on my own, wake up with the sun, and work towards a good degree that will help me in the job market. There's a whole other world outside of the military, just remember that whenever you're in the field or doing another 6 mile run with some young dude that doesn't have busted knees.
I think the issue with dynamic entry is the point that it was kinda adapted from LAPD SWAT’s style of hostage rescue, where surprise can be guaranteed somewhat by the fact that gangsters or hostage takers can’t always expect someone to breach in. Also SWAT of the time tended to pair DE with flash bangs or even chemical riot control agents to further disorient an ill prepared threat. As far as I can tell most armed forces or even police practicing DE nowadays doesn’t even use flash bangs that often if at all, since flash bangs can set things on fire for the police, and flash bangs aren’t really widely issued to troops either. The other option is a grenade, which given the nature of modern insurgency style warfare meant that was off the table. So DE in reality meant utilizing the element of surprise and violence of action to storm an enemy position and quickly neutralize it, but if the enemy knows you’re coming you basically have no advantages in a large amount of times.
Video was hit by a copyright strike, there's two awkward moments where audio is missing/distorted I apologize.
4:53 - 5:12
11:15 - 12:10
Was surprised u managed to sneak the soundtrack for Assassins Creed Odyssey in 2:55 😂
Damn, so true. I had a new unit commander call me a traitor because I wouldn’t volunteer to stay in the unit for the next deployment. I was a platoon sergeant and would be promoted the following month so I had to volunteer to stay. I said, “Look I get it. You’re looking to make your mark. But in the last three years I’ve been on four CONUS deployments that lasted a month or longer, a six month deployment overseas and spent nine months in the Gulf. In the last three years I’ve spent more time sleeping on the ground or in a foreign country than in my own bed and I’ve had three different COs during that time. I don’t care what you say; it’s your turn.”
What a statement. Beautiful.
“It’s your turn” damn straight 🔥
I wasn't infantry or high-speed. (19D) But I had a gold cycle, CONUS border rotation, gold cycle, and DIV EX in my contract. So 2/3rds of my time I was in the field away from wife/kids. Or it felt like it. Hell, when I missed our last JRTC rotation they tried to chapter me. Only reason they didn't was because of a Red Cross letter after my father passed and a new 1SG that shot it down. I had less than six months before ETS. So they tried to have the Army pay me to stay in longer for the sole reason of kicking me out because I went to see my old man off. Question I had was why it was so important I go and miss the funeral? The US had just pulled out of Afghanistan and then COVID gutted our unit with people refusing the prick and getting chaptered. We were chronically under-strength and wouldn't even be combat ready as a squadron because most of our vehicles and heavy weapons were dead-lined. It all felt like rushing to failure and running people into the ground for nothing. Anyways, a bunch of suicides and divorces happened in my last year. For the life of me I can't understand why.
How @@Thrainite
@@jamesbackus9345 Oh, as a forward, "we" never deployed to Afghanistan. I've never been shot at. I worded that weird, and I'll change it. I meant the US Military as a whole pulled out. I was in 3BCT, 101. We were supposedly set to go to Afghanistan but it never happened. Actually, the evacuation happened while we were on the border. At least as I recall. This was a few years ago. My point was it was a lot of wasted effort for never actually going to shoot the things and make the things fall down. 2018-2022 by the way. To give proper context of a timeline.
I remember telling doc my knees were hurt, and he said, "No shit Browning, everyone's knees hurt. What do you want me to do?" I later found out I had torn the meniscus in both of them.
I started having trouble with my shoulder and asked to see a Dr. When I saw a medical Captain, he never even looked at me, let alone ordered a scan he looked at the calendar and said " You go to the field in a week so I'm writing you a 6 day profile to rest" I'm thinking awesome now I'll be ready to go. Day 6 and I tell my leadership my shoulder is still fucked, I can't go. My Platoon Sergent tells me if I refuse to train he will have my ass on charges. I'm forced to go and I suffer through the pain. I'm then told that if I was really hurt, I wouldn't be able to carry my ruck like i did. I'm labeled a lying piece of shit. I later found out I had torn my labrum almost completely from training with it hurt for 8 months. The surgeon said I'm lucky to be able to lift my right arm above my nipple. I'm now medically retired and unable to do any of the hobbies I enjoyed before being disabled. When the Infantry fuck you it never really heals.
It’s like reading my own biography. After my labrum surgery I was told my physical therapy couldn’t interfere with the training schedule. So I barely went. Needless to say it didn’t heal properly and I ended up getting med boarded. Which I got treated like shit for because I didn’t deserve it lol. It’s still fucked to this day
That sucks, that kind of stuff is definitely part of their recruitment and retention problem.
I have no cartilage left in my right knee. The doc just said it was only pain from getting older and I only found out from an MRI on a broken bone in my foot. They live lives of luxury and treat us like rtards.
From the time I first went to sick call about my shoulder to the time I got an MRI, 4 sets of X-rays, 2.5yrs, a combat deployment and 2 full rounds of physical therapy to treat something they didn’t know what was even wrong had gone by. Even as I was leaving the unit aid station to get the MRI, the doc told me “I don’t think they’ll find anything but this is the last thing I’m going to do for you”. I didn’t even make it back to my barracks yet after and I got a call from the aid station telling me my surgery date. I had to have my labrum sewn back together, my biceps tendon had to be reattached and the front and back of my shoulder had moved apart and had to be pulled back together with a Kevlar tether. The entire time I was treated like I was malingering until I brought that paperwork in showing my shoulder was beyond fucked up.
I was in North Korean army until I escaped.
I thought we had bad leaders because we needed to adore the supreme leader or be sent to a education camp.
If we where injured in any capacity we will go home and if the doctors had the treatment/equipment they would cure us.
Your leaders are worse than ours
USMC infantry squad leader here. You summed up all of the things I’ve been bitching about for years. The infantry is awesome but we badly need to update how we do things. Great work.
Great work? His arguments are full of holes and sounds like someone that served for one term and hated by officers. Maybe it's different in the marines but when I was a infantry platoon sergeant, I planned all the PT and training.
@JohnSmith-tt2tu so. .Just because someone has a rank, you will go with whatever they say? What a joke
@@axel8406 i mean u statements are plausible but read what you said YOU planned pt and trainning but you arent every officer in the military not trynna hate im a civilian so what do ik but thats the most plausible reason he has a problem with officers and the way shit works.
@pharox9711 in the army, we plan and conduct training according to Standsrd operating procedures. These SOPs should be based on field manuals and technical manuals. For example, I'm a jiu jistu practitioner. If I wanted my platoon to train hand to hand combative, I wouldn't be able to train off of my own martial arts background. I would have to train according to TC 3-25.150. This I true with physical training as well. So, a new LT is coming to the unit and wouldn't be able to just do what he wants. He would have to train according to SOP. Which in my platoon wouldn't have mattered because I tried to break them off, and my guys were about that life anyway.
On one hand i want to say this video and mentality is soft af. Then again this approach of recovery time is honestly better than collecting some low paying disability and continuing to have shitty healthcare
Enlisted in 1985 as 11B, served until I finally got my ticket punched in Afghanistan in 2012. IED, 3 fractured vertebrae, herniated discs, shrapnel, all the fun stuff. I did however not loose any body parts, so I've got that going for me. Medically discharged in 2015 after a lengthy process.
You touched on one thing specifically that I warn young people about now. They will shitcan you the second you are no longer an asset, and all those "benefits" they crow about are hard to obtain. Despite having my 214, medical records, line of duty investigations, sworn statements, ect...the VA initially denied my claims. It took me over 2 and a half years to get rated 60%. But that was only for my IED injuries.
Two things happened...I screwed myself because I wasn't prepared or briefed on the VA exams, how they work, what to do. So when they did a range of motion test for example, like the dumb grunt I was...I pushed through the pain to go as far as I could. That's one example. The other? All my other injuries and complaints? My shot knees, and torn up body? Yeah...insufficient records. Because I didn't go on sick call and sucked up injuries...rucking, running, working on sprained ankles, twisted knees, pulled tendons, and the whole shebang. Because of this false machismo we basically screwed ourselves not going on sickcall. Add, deployed we were on COPs and not the Burger King/Greenbeans FOBs with two lower enlisted medics (maybe an E5 if lucky), where even if the medic wrote down stuff in a notebook, it never made it into MEDPROS, so essentially didn't happen.
This is why combat arms guys get shafted at the VA, while you'll run into Johnny Pencil Pusher who mysteriously is rated 100% despite never leaving the FOB.
Sorry so long...this just needs to be said and therapeutic. If I had a time machine I'd go back and smack the shit out of myself. I used to be a high speed low drag stud...now at 56, I'm practically crippled.
Replies keep,disappearing…just so we’re clear. 17 at enlistment, don’t turn 57 til November. Check your math
I think my replies with explanations disappeared because I offered to show DD214 in person.
This. Spot on. Hoping you ended up getting the higher rating you deserve and are enjoying retirement man.
@@RH3655-l9b you can't find a good VA representative, when *no good VA reps exist.*
What you say is true brother. I did 24 long years as an Infantryman and was only rated at thirty percent disability upon retirement. After meeting several FOBIT’s who, as the name suggests, were support people who never left the damn FOB who had disability ratings of 80, 90, and even 100 percent…after waiting eight years I finally went back to have my rating re-evaluated and now I’m finally at 90 percent where I should have been from the moment I retired. Your physical issues are worse than mine, there is no reason in this world why you should not be at 100 percent disability rating. One more rant and then I’ll shut up… I saw in the most recent issue of Stars and Stripes that the VA is expecting a 15 billion dollar shortfall this year and they claim the main reason for this is Veterans Benefits! WTF?! Why is it that we can send multiple tens of billions of dollars to Ukraine and Israel, our own Welfare System is NEVER in jeopardy but our own f@cking government wants to complain about having to pay out benefits to Veterans who served this country and same government for years and even decades!!!
As a 68W I've been both attached to Infantry as a line medic and station on base as a clinic medic for years, and have seen my senior medic's push off infantry for "none serious injuries". I've always tried to hear my fellow infantrymen out or even straight up lied so a few soldiers could as least get a single day or two of rest, that really needed it, but even then it was like pulling teeth with the physicians above me to "OK it". I wasn't well liked because of this but my fellow infantrymen loved me at one of my duty stations. I came from a medical background as an EMT, i got into the civilian career cease i wanted to help people, then I enlisted after 2 years. What I noticed is that a lot of the 68W's that were their before me never worked in the medical field before enlisting, so they never developed a health bedside manner with patients, only adopting the military bedside manner which is more akin to "do you have a problem? Ok, where? I don't see obvious signs and symptoms of the problem? your either lying or your playing it up"
Very interesting perspective from a 68w! I've seen it numerous times like I stated on video, where there's few caring medics, that get orders from higher that there's no injuries due to a mediocre training event in the next two weeks. I'm not quite sure that's how injuries work lol. Thanks for your perspective!!
Ur awesome
@@RoboDanny Part of caring for patients is taking the time to understand. Doctors are taught early on to listen and empathize with individuals. For some people, they only develop empathy once they themselves are in the same position.
The most annoying thing about both of the units I’ve been in is having to get a sick-call slip signed by your 1SG, who is not a trained medical professional
calm down emt boy, only crap medics don't know the deal. Nothing about being an oxygen pusher beforehand
At the Infantry conference a few years ago General Mattis said Infantry should have a minimum age of 23 years (to many immature trouble makers) . Get paid 75,000-80,000 a year and have 15 year retirement...
Of course it was Chaos looking out for the infantry.
@justcause7521 that age requirement would make sense for nco promotions, but most units are at the breaking point on terms of healthy manpower as is. Additional salary should only be given to people who are currently within weight, at a certain threshold for PT, and have EIBs. Additionally, lateral transfers between different Mos after an abbreviated 8-12 weeks of infantry school ending with a live fire should be a thing. If somebody is injured, they should have a secondary Mos to fall into if they physically cannot keep up, additionally there needs to be a standardized PT/active-recovery program managed at the the post/division level.
@@ryankolbe365 This has got to be one of the dumbest comments Ive ever read. Extra money for an EIB. I think only people who deployed to Iraq prior to 2010 should get paid extra. See how absolutely ignorant that sounds when someone says it back to you.
@BlueMax717 you must have been very tired when you made this comment. EIB is standardized (sort of) testing on a laundry list of tasks; which should be done if there's to be additional salary. Call it a seal of approval from the unit to headquarters on the soldier they received from TRADOC. Idk what your problem is?
@ryankolbe365 You forgot to close the dust cover. You will now commence death by push-ups. Sorry, Sport, some just don’t have what it takes :D
Got injured in a ruck because of our new PL decided that a blizzard was no excuse to post pone a ruck. I slipped on ice and spiked my leg into the ground. Immediate pain shot up my leg and I could barely stand on the weight. Told my Team leader who then told the medic. Medic told my PSG. PSG told PL. PL told PSG he didn't want any fallouts. Medic was told I just didn't want to work, he told me to try and take it easy and moved me to the center of the formation with him. PL didn't like our pace and had us run hakf way back from the ruck to save his time. I told the medic I don't think I could run. Medic passed it along. I was told to run anyway. I couldn't. I then got an article 15 for refusing to participate in an exercise. My left ancle turned purple when I finally got off my feet. Showed it to my medic. "Probably want to stay off that" . Grtq told my Team leader that PSG says I should have communicated my injury better. Fun times
For the sweet love of God, if there aren't enough warnings to stay the hell away from INFANTry, especially in peacetime garrison infantry, stay away from combat arms, and stay away from the army/marine corps in general.
It's a dog and pony show so officers can look good for their records. Period.
I don't care how much you think the air force.is th "chair force" , if you're wanting to enlist in the military, go Air Force or Space Force or Coast Guard.
@@kennylanqua6512Agreed. And if you REALLY want to fight on the ground, then still join the Air Force and go through one of the Battlefield Airmen pipelines. TACPs spend their entire careers on the ground attached to infantry units and do all the same things Marines and Army guys do, except they get to call in fixed wing aircraft and they are part of the AIR FORCE, so their lives are inherently better.
@@jonahs4819 inherently better meaning they get treated more like adults,.whereas army/marines get treated like little moronic children.
@@kennylanqua6512I feel like the only way something will change is us losing a major war unfortunately.
@@CyrodiilCome wow, that's pretty shitty article 15 , I had a room mate who got an article 15 for destruction of government property from getting a sunburn shoulder and back couldn't wear web gear and missed an exercise.
Sad to see it’s the same in Canada. In the late 1970s I was an enlisted Infantryman, 18 years old and thought I was bulletproof. At 20 I decided to put my name in for ROTP (our version of ROTC) and become an officer. My Section Commander, a career 48 year old Sergeant had a little father-to-son talk with me. First of all, he said he was proud of me and hoped I made it. Secondly, he asked what MOC I was considering and I replied Infantry of course. I could see the disappointment on his face and said “don’t become me”. He always kept up with us in PT, but admitted that his knees were shot, his back gave him perpetual pain and he was still recovering from a torn rotator cuff surgery. His next bit of advice was some of the best I had ever heard. He asked what I planned on studying, and I replied Commerce, Business or Economics, I’m not really sure right now. He then said to become a Logistics Officer, Finance, Supply, Transport or Administration, but stay out of any of the Combat Arms. You’ll be paid the same, but you’ll be getting real-life experience that you can carry into civilian life. Don’t get me wrong, the Infantry is probably the coolest job you will ever have and the most fun you’ll ever have, but it comes with an expiry date. I’m a worn out old Sergeant who never finished high school, my prospects aren’t all that great on civvy street.
I took his advice, studied Commerce and became a Supply Officer. I did a few years and got out for greener pastures. I had a great civilian career, looking at retiring in a few months. I never had the chance to thank my Sergeant, but I think he understood he saved another young buck from destroying my body. Had I not made it through OCS and ROTP, I probably would have returned as an enlisted man but I really don’t think I would have returned to the Infantry. The world looks really different when you’re 20, glad I listened.
Thank you for sharing
I loved your story
For me it’s the inconsistency of everything, everyone saying something different, nobody helps, and how everyone is in it for their own career
It literally doesn’t get better on the outside. This is life.
@daepikduck naw the only true thing you can have is freedom
@@daepikduckno, it gets way better. You can live a normal life and own firearms and keep em in your own house. You don’t have sergeant fuckface giving you shit every other day for bullshit.
@@xXDrDankXxmakes sense though. Your friend should have been on top of his shit. That’s no reason for you to not be on top of your shit. You did the work ahead of time because you were responsible. This is a clear example of how a poorer performer can affect everybody else. I understand that was your friend but maybe that wasn’t the way to do it. I don’t think that was stepping on somebody else. It’s like this in high performing private businesses as well.
Sounds like every corporate job ever.
The Marine Corps Infantry suffers from the same exact issues, coming from a Platoon Commander the last three years and a Captain-select. It’s heartbreaking to see how our men are broken down over time and become shells of their former selves
The marine corps infantry suffers from marine officers. Marine officers are the worst officers in the United States armed forces
@@sargonbebla5815Army Infantry officer here. I’ve heard that in the USMC, PL or PCs as the Marines would call them. Don’t really have that period of connecting with their platoon members. From the start they are in the planning and operational role. Which i understand may be due to the timeline of commissioning to when you arrive to your unit. For example, and it depends on the commissioning source. For a US Army non-prior officer who is assigned Infantry it’s 12-15 months before they are reach their unit. 3 months BCT, 3 months OCS, and 5 months BOLC. All infantry offices are expected to attend Ranger School plus any unit specific training eg Airborne etc
Again just what I have been told.
But they get as many crayons as they can eat.
@@TheLucanicLord crayons can't fill that hole in their heart.
@@AMZ19252From a non-infantry enlisted artillery Marine, our PCs were almost exclusively in the battery office from the minute they showed up. The few times they would descend from their throne, we’d always wish they didn’t. One somehow even managed to get himself kicked out for hazing in the field. Another had us all write book reports and quizzed us on the states and their capitals.
My battalion had the worst first-term retention rate in the Corps and was under an investigation about it for most of my enlistment and, as of this year, is disbanded. Go figure.
Fun story:
My unit was getting for a "deployment" to poland, and decided to flip the crunch switch about three months from when we are supposed actually start flying folks out. Say hello to nonstop motor pool ops, a layout almost everyday, so much goddamn admin work, and often working till 1900 or sometimes even longer.
After doing this for about a month, I was feeling it...Until on fateful day in the Motor pool I guess I just wasn't paying attention or cogniscant enough and a 70 pound belly plate fell on my foot and I ended up having to have two of my toes surgically removed.
Even after my surgery and my recovery leave, they were still having me come in to work in the motor pool while I was in a boot and knee scooter. They still made me go to the rail yard to move vehicles and put down chains despite me being profile, and they were legit trying to still get me to go to Poland despite me being in no condition to do my job.
Took the intervention od our head PA and the Full bird colonel surgeon who actually did the toe removal to get me on the medboard list and off the deployment roster.
And the amount of people in my unit who seemed...Disgusted and disdainful that i got out of deployment for an injury like that still pisses me off
Sorry to hear that, wow!
And just assume you be there and go with them for the deployment, no one will fuc*** thank you for that, you are not getting paid more or promoted for it.
Then they are all giga suprised that certain people wanna leave the unit or the army itself after all the crap.
Edit: and certain people fake sickness and get through with it, no one is expecting something from *them*.
First armored baby 🎉
I had a similar experience of being a PT stud to having two failed knee surgeries in the infantry. They had me doing everything I wasn't supposed to and when the recovery ran into multiple complications thanks to the surgeon, I was looked down on. I wasn't perfect, I made small mistakes here and there that I still think about often, but I always worked hard and tried to carry the slack for others. They had promised me for 3 years that they'd send me to Ranger School while I had maintained a 300 PT score. I never got to take even the RPFT.
"Ugh, an enemy didn't do that--YOU did that. You're not getting a DD-214, f*ckazoid."
OIF 2.5 veteran here (1/506 INF)
We had great officers and got a chance to do our jobs in combat.
I hated garrison life - it’s like being stuck in high school and as an NCO I spent most of my time being forced to police the behavior of other adults.
The Army did a terrible job of taking care of those who were injured/wounded. We had 80+ WIA from our deployment and over 200 on profile . I was wounded and offered evac from theater but I stayed to take care of my soldiers . When we got back to Carson that devotion was rewarded by being treated as “worthless” due to being on profile. My best friend and battle buddy killed himself after a medical discharge that took away his only identity in life .
And these were the best years to be Infantry (2003-2007) !
Currahee garrison life sucked.
White space? Never heard of her
2/506 scout platoon
A lot of these points ring so damn true. I did 3 years in the infantry, and when I first joined the Army I was super motivated, and wanted to do the full 20, but after a few years at my unit struggling with a ton of these very same issues, it soon became more of a disdain to stay in. I was fortunate to have the slight pay increase thanks to being airborne, but that pay increase only goes so damn far when you see a dude from S1 that only works about 3 or 4 hours a day making the same as you while you're working anywhere from 60 - 120 hours per week depending on the week or if you were in the field or not. Infantry morale is so dangerously low that we would always call it voluntary prison, and would refer to our time in as such by literally counting down the days until our contracts ended.
If there's anything that should be taken from all of this, it's that the infantry is not only broken, but deeply scarred for generations to come. It's these same exact issues that made me decide that taking a crack at civilian life was more ideal, because at least then a boss would understand if I'm sicker than a dog, or if my truck just wouldn't turn over that morning. Do fucking better, Army.
I’m in an airborne unit . Nobody re enlisted in my PLT. This is common. Most of us fake motivation, even the most motivated are tired and worn down.
If you’re in the infantry or even the military right now please go to medical and get your injuries documented. Ignore the old NCOs that shame you for going, in a few years you will never talk to them in your life and it’s your money on the line. If your unit doesn’t let you go to medical just go to the emergency room
I am an old NCO and I listened to ignorant old ones shaming me and others about trying to get taken care of one self or an injury. Now I am trying to get the care I neglected and hid to look “not weak” and I now tell young NCOs and soldiers take care of yourself who cares what ppl think not everyone makes the service a career like I have going on 26 years. So got the care and take care of yourself and your body
My unit wouldn’t let me go to medical because i was already dealing with EBH. Wish I was smarter when I was 22 man lol
Great video. I fully agree with the idea of "getting a break" to heal. One of the most talented young officers that I knew had his career cut off at 2LT because he could heal after getting cellulitis in Ranger school. He was out of the Army at 1LT. I think one of the issue the military faces is an over abundance of MOSs. 100 years ago almost everyone in an infantry regiment was an infantryman. If someon got hurt and heeded to recover, you could send them to the Regimental HQ where they could serve on the staff until ready for full duty. A side benefit of this, is the reality that it provided a high level of societal accountability for staff actions. You better be on it, as you are going to be going back down to your buddies in the line..
The pay gap between officer and enlisted, and still having to kiss ass to every arrogant and genuinely idiotic officer is the most enraging part of life in the military.
why didn't you all become officers then if you want the pay?
@@Prodigysportsman because not everyone is fortunate enough to have the money to go to college
@@Prodigysportsman bro forgets alot of us were poor
Especially when you end up having to hold an officer billet because the officer got killed or wounded. Getting bumped from platoon sergeant to platoon commander doesn't even help for promotion.
@@oldmanengie7790 what about GI bill? and green to gold?
Sailor here, ran into infantry guys in Hawaii and they asked about our PT. We ran 3 miles, did 60 pushups, 30 situps a year and you are good to go. Some of us worked out on out own but there was no mandatory PT until you got too fat to pass PT test every 6 months. Which you had to be REALLY out of shape to fail a Navy PT test. So glad I didn't go infantry, my son did in the Marines. First letter from Boot he writes "you were right, I should've joined the Navy". Proud of him though, 120 lbs and became a Marine.
What got me was the platoon sergeants, readiness NCOs, and new NCOs who had a chip on their shoulders, displayed acts of cruelty to their men, and had no regard for their men’s well being- all while being manipulative cowards and hypocrites behind the scenes. I’ve lost count of how many of them never saw combat but bragged about their bronze stars that none of us lower enlisted guys got, but many of us earned. I lost count of how many times I was in combat situations, but was denied any recognition other than JAG interrogations until our last mission out. After our last mission, I was mistakenly awarded a CAB instead of the CIB and that is what will always be on my record. Also, I was almost in prison for what finally got me, recognized and awarded an action badge. I’m extremely bitter towards the infantry and the army as a whole. Thanks for making this video-somebody needed to say all of this.
I ran nearly 1000 missions in Afghanistan one deployment, granted most of them bullshit but still outside the protection of the fob. Barely an award when me and the other few guys that did all that work got back. Hell, we even stayed a month longer than the rest of the battalion to rip with the incoming unit. You know who got "bronze stars"? Captains/LTs and SFCs in an office typing con-ops or making map overlays. Didn't care about awards anymore after that.
The way they handed out those non valorous BSMs was criminal
This is exactly opposite of what i read in us army manual for platoon. platoon leader and sergeant should give care about their mans well being. actually not should but MUST
@@himmlerwamlstein7128 big surprise, a peacetime military consumed with nothing to do but churn money and essentially gang politics, backchanneling shitheels and constant political bickering.. ends up not doing its best?
If you want a decoration you gotta blow.
36 months from 2nd LT to CPT. Prior enlisted, new infantry officer here. I agree with what you’re saying. Keep spreading the good word
is that new? It used to be 48 months? I can't wait to get my gold bar dude. O1E pay is gonna be lit.
@@dragoon1027 Brother, O1E pay is soooooo lit.
Many of these problems are large scale and I think there are bigger issues at higher echelons that trickle down into this bullshit. Infantry also just seems to have a toxic culture based on what I heard about the cats at IBOLC.
What were you as an enlisted man?
@michaelscott3003 what's your linkedin I need 6 army officer references for OCS
you said it man. They break us all down. I was an Engineer so we didn't deal with the same type of physical and mental abuse but just as bad. Breaking ground, digging ditches, laying blocks, pouring crete all hours of the day and night through any weather trying to build something to standard while the Army throws an English major at us as a PL only having a few months of school as experience wanting that bullet on their OER wants me to finish it now to move on to the next thing regardless if it's a safety hazard which ends up costing twice in materials, money and labor. Then GWOT hits and we start doing more tactical training and suddenly our "leadership" are combat experts. Grunts have always been the "Yin" to our "Yang" and I hope they get better in the future.
Bro, as an old ex-engineer, I feel ya, but please, for the love of God, learn how to use commas.
Blue cord holder here. Yeah accurate. Thats why I’m outtie. But now since I’m outtie. The retaliation I have received is immense.
What retaliation?
You a shitbag?
I second this request. I largely just meet by jealousy by dudes still in and congrats from dudes that were out. @@noface4176
@@noface4176if you get out you are worthless . That’s the mindset brain dead “leaders” have
man elaborate!
I was a medic for an infantry battalion for about 3 years back just before and during covid. I saw all of this stuff, leaders that only cared about their OER and NCOER, extreme alcohol, tobacco, and worse substance abuse, PT that destroyed your body, and constant rotation in and out of the field. This led to a turnover rate of about 60% of our junior enlisted, which in turn started leading to personnel shortages unit-wide, increasing the responsibility and pressure on everyone else, creating a cycle of pain, depression, and frustration. When I first joined I thought that guys who only did one contract were the weak or cowardly ones, now I’m six years in with three years left, broken, miserable, and fed up. I know now that they’re the smart ones.
Regarding pay, we all need a raise, and the proof is that recruiting goals are not being met in virtually every MOS. I absolutely agree with pretty much everything you said. Well done with this video, and I hope that someone in a position of influence actually sees it.
Considering how much money is being pumped into the US Army it’s shocking how low the pay rate is for the average grunt.
It’s all being spent on equipment & the Military Industrial Complex, but what use is that equipment if there’s no one to hold it?
Yeah during the GWOT cherry PLs had no power when all the E4s are sporting CIBs.
CEOs aside everyone in every profession needs a raise lmao
@@PeachDragon_ I'm not even against CEOs getting a raise, so long as they actually make their companies, stockholders, and employees richer. I can't understand the current trend of CEOs who suck getting richer, Bob Iger, for example.
@@justadummy8076because it's all sent to the rich fucks and the officers they can't retain as much as people get out. I just got out last December. Some units simply refuse to send guys to schools fuck that.
Yup Former Marine infantry squad leader here. Did 6 years, 2 deployments. Broken back, almost complete hearing loss in one year, broken big left toe, broken nose, horrendous IBS from eating local food and water on deployment because we ran out of MREs and water and our air drop lost its parachute and splatted. Heat casualty also. Mind you I had one of the best PFTs in my platoon, and was one of the top ruckers in both of the battalions I was in. Got forced out because I was a 6 year Cpl, and the cutting score was ridiculous for Sgt. My only option was recruiting, even though I had the MARSOC recruiter going to the career planner and talking to the monitor. Nope, they ONLY would let me go to recruiting or get forced out. Also they WOULD NOT approve any valor awards I put in for any of my guys on our last deployment, because in the Lieutenant’s eyes, he was only getting a NAVCOM with no V so he didn’t want anyone getting an award with a V. I got my wisdom teeth pulled the week I got out, and also had to do TAPs the in the last 2weeks before I got out because I was on my last deployment until 56 days before I EASd. All this while fighting to stay in. They also pushed out a Sgt with 10 years and 3 deployments, another Sgt with 12 years and 6 deployments and another Cpl with 8 years and 4 deployments. None of us has no plan whatsoever. We were all trying to be lifers because we had no where to go. It’s truthfully fucked. If you were infantry and got out in 2014, chances are you were forced out.
Be happy you didnt go to recruiting like I did. Infantryman with 3 combat deployments to high school recruiter was a poor choice on the Armys part. I left the military after that 3 year stint, but the outprocessing was a shit show; nothing like how outprocessing would occur from a regular base. Was on my own to figure it all out and wish I was able to see a doctor on a base instead of a clueless civilian for medical outprocessing.
@@kenwes6560 yeah bro that’s why I refused to go there. I had a buddy who went and he told me if I went my soul would die. I had another buddy who went drill instructor and he liked it but I knew it wasn’t for me and it wasn’t an option anyway. For me it was MARSOC, stay in the infantry or get out. The idea of going recruiting was not even on my radar because I knew how bad it was lol. Man that’s freaking rough dude, kudos to you for getting through it. I feel like unless an infantryman is like begging to go to recruiting, we shouldn’t be allowed 😂😂
@@kenwes6560 I hear you. Infantry Branch Managers are AWFUL. I got tagged with the 3 years in USAREC then they involuntarily extended me for 12 more months, then after 4 years of that BS the Branch Manager assigns me to Ft Drum. After 2 years at Drum and a 15 month surge in Iraq I get back to CONUS and what's waiting for me but orders assigning me back to USAREC as a detailed Recruiter for 90 more days that they called The Summer Surge. I showed up at my old recruiting station as an E7 and I refused to do anything and they didn't know what to do with me, so I chilled and got paid TDY for 90 days then rolled back to Ft Drum with my new car LOL.
And now the military is suffering and maybe this just me being paranoid but I'm low key wondering if they want more bureaucratic types so that they're easier to control and suppress the civilian population if our constitutional rights keep getting trampled on by this administration and people want to revolt
Follow Jesus Christ 🙏
I was a grunt in the army of the 80s, and everything you said was spot on even then!!!!! Great vid, brother
This video outlines exactly why I got out. I enlisted back in 2017 as infantry, went to basic training and upon graduation, got my duty station of 25th ID out of Hawaii. My Drill Instructor told me I was about to waste the next 3 years of my life training for a war I was never going to see. The whole reason on why I chose the infantry was to fight, and once I learned where I was going, I was crushed. Spent the next 3 years of my life on a training cycle that always ended in a JRTC rotation, to then reset the training all over again starting from Team live fires and working back up to another JRTC rotation. The times when I wasn't training, it was all work details. Area beautification was a constant, and any other detail that they needed done. It all seemed pointless. So, when I hit my re-enlistment window, I had a decision to make, I could try and go to a unit that was slated to deploy, but it was no guarantee. And the last thing that I wanted to be was to get stuck at another unit for 3 years with no chance at a combat deployment. So, I made my decision to just get out. I was very salty and jaded the first year or so that I was out, but I have sort of come to terms with it. I am able to look back now and see it for what it was, take the good skill and experiences I got from my service, remember the good times with my brothers, and try and forget the bad times.
You could apply for MARSOC, 18 series, or 0321, in that order. But yeah who wants to train and not even get to do a little something real world.
Damn man I was in 25th ID back in 2019 to 2022. I feel the exact same way.
Do we know each other? lol
@@ryankolbe365 we’re you in 2-27
@ZayneZinger maaaayyyybe
This video sounds like something Sgt Afterbuffalo or Spc Chatel would write. Some people got so jaded they got out early. Idk, I think the unit as a whole just had like physical fitness issues and persistent drug problems. I'm a plumber now, and I don't have any serious injuries. If you happened to pick up a trade, maybe look into being an overseas contractor. All your coworkers will be burned out policemen and occasionally burned out SOF, but you'll have the chill job, and the money is serio
This was a great video. It insightfully lays out the flaws in the infantry and in the military as a whole. Too many young leaders are told to come in guns blazing and leaning toward that glorious OER, as you have pointed out. Couple that with a weak/toxic/incompetent or combination of all three PSG and you have a recipe for disaster. Our Soldiers are not meat for the grinder. No matter what their reason for joining, they are still people, who are willing to lay their lives down for their fellow Soldiers and leaders and should be respected, not babied...respected for the sacrifice they may have to give.
I am going to somewhat go against the grain with the first part of the vid and new Plt Leaders breaking their men. Maybe the Platoon can suck up the PT for first few Plt Leaders who want to show his men that he is as hard as them, but once the new Chad LT shows up and ends up doing too many Death Marches and Runs From Hell, and 20% to 40% of his Platoon ends up on Light Duty; The Plt Leader is going to get pulled into an office and is going to have to explain to his Company Co and even the BnCO why a good percentage of his Plt is on Light Duty. They are going to ask him WTF! is going on and want him to explain why his Plt is combat ineffective. That is a conversation a new LT does not want.
I have had this conversation with a Company CO why we didnt do more MCMAP. The answer he told me: "How the eff am I going to explain to the CO why half my Company is broken and on Light Duty?
I was an infantryman for 6 years in the national guard. I had served in the line for less than 2 years before I was “voluntold” to the S3 of another battalion for their upcoming deployment to Europe. Maybe it was because I wasn’t the greatest riflemen, or because I didn’t fit in with my squad, or that I butted heads with my squad leader, but I was never given the chance to become a good infantryman. With how limited our time is at drill, and how my squad leader expected perfection during every lane it was difficult for me, no matter how much I would try I was never good enough. I ended up staying in the S3 for the rest of my guard career, never wanting to go back to the line. I was just so bitter and jaded that I felt cheated out of getting to do the job that I had signed up for, and even worse not becoming proficient at it.
Nothing worse than having your chance taken away before you can show them what you’re made of.
If I was to do it again, I would’ve been a tradesman first. During deployment, we didn’t have enough skills like welding, carpentry, electrician, etc…
And I wished the opposite since I deployed as a carpenter wanting to do infantry stuff
The reason for the trademan skill is because most bases needed upkeeps and fighting positions updated. We had the resources, but no skills for them.
Perhaps trades training could be used as a rest/recuperation period.
You missed one VERY important part of the problem in your breakdown of the Infantry’s problem. Culture. The Infantry’s culture can be summed up as “So the F🤬🤬K what?! Suck it up and stop being a Bi🤬ch!!” This mentality involves everything we do and is directly connected to that statement.
I just hit 20yrs (retiring in six months). Every one of our issues is linked to our mentality of being hard, willingness to suffer, and in the interest of the unit’s mission. Now I’m the crusty old dude who doesn’t give a 🤬 anymore but is still scared as hell to leave the Army and be a civilian cuz the job prospects are trash and require me to do much of the same shit I’m retiring from the Army to avoid- like SPENDING A LOT OF TIME AWAY FROM MY FAMILY! This is how this shit works-
- Young officers (CPTs and below) feel the need to prove themselves at every opportunity (sometimes creating unnecessary levels of stress for troops).
- Good NCOs (especially SFCs and SSGs) refuse to allow the platoon/squad and unit to fail, even if the officer is trash- but in doing so they end up ignoring or poorly mitigating how the OPTEMPO affects young Soldiers and expect them to just deal with it (because we had to- so why not?).
- Young Soldiers either sink or swim- those that sink do so due to medical reasons or they begin to rebel against expectations they believe aren’t realistic or fair. Those that swim continue forward in spite of what’s going on- then when they become NCOs- they keep the same cycle going because- that’s what made them hard too.
-Career Infantryman
Get ready for the fact that no one in the civilian world values your Army experience. Being an NCO does not equate much to management in the eyes of people hiring. Not sure what grade you're finishing out at, but I've had a Platoon, assumption of company command, responsibility of the battalion personnel for rear D, and so on. They don't care. Ranger School? Deployments? Ect. "Thanks for your service. I'm sure you have some wild stories. Unfortunately it doesn't have much to do with the way we do things in this organization." Or some response like that. Go get a trade and work for yourself. Or Civil Service I guess.
@@css31069very sad but also very true. I retired after 24 years of Honorable service. In that time I was in every leadership position from Team Leader through Company First Sergeant. For leadership/manager enhancement I was a Senior Drill Sergeant and Senior Drill Sergeant Leader at Drill Sergeant School. For academic enhancement I completed my four year Bachelor’s degree before retiring, was Senior Military Instructor for college ROTC assignment and was the NCOIC for Division Level G-3 Current Operations responsible for planning and putting out operational “fires” across eight states and six foreign countries. The only thing employers cared to see was proof for my Bachelor’s degree, and these days a Bachelor’s degree just barely gets your foot in the door for an interview…maybe.
One thing I've learned in life is that sometimes you have to let your superiors fail instead of succeeding despite their failures. Good employees are often used to cover up a lot of bad ideas and management. I say this as a pure civilian. You can't develop as a leader if you're not allowed to fail.
@@joeblow9657Very true, this applies to military leadership as well.
F**king THANK YOU!!!! All this trash calls for is softening up that cord that 90% love more than some bullshit paycheck. I think training needs to constantly be updated and for the love of god go back to the real EIB test and standards, but everything else gave us our attitude, pissed us off to the point of fighting harder and being the most evil MFer’s anyone could go toe to toe with which is exactly why we beg for the fight a POG runs from and we use a Ma Duce to “disarm” an IED instead of waiting for some POG bitch to get off his ass 8hrs later to come poke at it with a robot, and those of us with shrapnel permanently embedded in our bodies would trade our left nut(you know the prized one) for just one more fight! I swear to God, give me you and every other broken disgruntled pissed off grunt and put them up against tomorrow’s infantry and we will put boot to ask every single fucking time! Hey AmERICa when your new infantry can’t get the job done next time don’t forget to get down on your knees when you want us back!!😂
1:24 Platoon Leader Turnover rate
4:57 Inconsistency
7:20 Pay
9:43 Outdated Structure
12:18 Health
15:35 Outro
Love that you took the time to speak on this, thanks brother
One thing on the health thing is the medic/corpsman is most of the time just there to get paid and dont want to do any work, during my EAS check out they switched from check ups at the Clinic to the BAS and the corspmans response if i brought anything up is bro idgaf this isnt supposed to be my job just sign your fucking name
As a “soldier” who entered service as an E-1 in Nov 1984 and served 30 years until Nov 2014… this video is 100% on point! Great job, this is a subject of many many discussions over the decades I served. There was an incident that I had with a Battalion Commander where he was being a prim example of “I’m the most important person in the room” during the conversation and exchange of words… he became particularly agitated when I commented “Sir… we NCO’s were here running this unit before you arrived here and it has been a very smooth running unit…we will still be here after you’re gone!… if you want this command to be a positive on your career progression and OER?… than you play along and we’ll make it happen!… if you continue to be a particular part of the male anatomy?… things will be very difficult for you here and not so positive…”
I’m going to state the obvious here - it’s the NCO’s that run the Army. If a soldier is being treated like crap, it’s the failure of his NCO’s for allowing the officers to direct day to day soldiers issues. This job belongs to the NCO’s and NOT the officers! the only job that a good NCO should allow this officers to do is to delegate tasks and coordinate logistics. If an officer gets involved in day to day soldier issues, it’s because his NCO’s have failed him! This was a common situation during my career and is WAY too common in the Army. When I entered service in the 1980’s all of my senior NCO’s were Vietnam veterans, I watched the Army go through a transition as they retired, becoming soft and more focused on political correctness… this got worse during the Clinton administration where Infantry units began to incorporate female soldiers into positions as mechanics, cooks, medics, clerks… etc. prior to this an infantry Brigade was an ALL male environment and was a completely different breed. This “inclusion” agenda continued until 2001 and for a time the Army became focused on mission readiness and healthy leadership… (I’m not saying it went away, it just wasn’t the main agenda) everything changed again after 2008 and the push for social justice, diversity and inclusion of a subculture within the ranks began to tear it apart once more… and once again the senior leadership (pentagon staff) pushed to remove the combat experienced NCO’s from the ranks by any means possible… medically retiring then or pushing them into positions that pretty much forced them to ETS with no option to reenlist… and then returned the push on social agendas…
Look I could truly rant here for days and days!… but the point here is that as long as the NCO’s allow their soldiers to be abused by officers and the officers care more about social justice than mission “national defense” (destroying the enemy and breaking things)… this situation will not change… it seems to me that the mission of the DOD is to breed soft minded NCO’s that will fall in line and do whatever the officers tell them because they are not capable of thinking or reasoning on their own. They have no concept of the foundation of their position or the responsibility of their job position. The command is structuring the Army to follow whatever orders are given without question and do whatever the officer says… this is toxic and dangerous not just for the average soldier, but to those who depend on them for security and the future of our nation…
NOT ALL NCO’s ARE FAILING THERE ARE MANY THAT STILL UNDERSTAND, but they will be attacked and will retire at some point… this needs to be fixed before they do!
very long time, but its true. its why ive been avoiding getting my 5. i know it would get taken as soon as i spoke the truth, as i do now
I spent 3 years as a 2w151 (aircraft armament systems) basically a bomb loader,I deployed once did a few tdy's and I gotta tell we get 0 love and almost 0 respect from the Air Force and that goes for all flight line maintenance personnel, but we are the single most important piece in the CAS chain, if we get taken out during a shift change there would be no air superiority whatsoever no A10s no F16s no F15E strike eagles, B1b, b52s no B1s and flight line jobs take a long time to learn and get good at, but yet we are an afterthought for most of the military, after I got out I met a lot of Infantry with the same gripes and problems that we had and this video just confirmed that.
Seeing that you made to an Ivy League school brought a tear to my eye, I love seeing our veterans of all colors make it! God bless Brother!!
I was an 0331 Machinegunner in the Marine Corps from 1980-84. Every thing you stated here was the same for me as you described. I never saw combat, but we were seriously underfunded and still looked down on by many Americans due to the aftermath of Vietnam. My line unit, 1/9, average age for a grunt Marine was around 20 years old. Less than half of us had a high school diploma, and all of us without exception, came from working class families. I only served one enlistment, which was my was always my intention, since I had always planned on using my VA Benefits for college. Most guys never had a plan, and a good chunk of them were kicked out of the MC for a number of reasons, to include, being UA, not meeting standards, drug use, medical conditions due to rigorous training coupled with poor medical treatment, poor life choices and the inability to adhere to stick military standards and regulations. The day I EAS’d was the best day of my life, although, I’m proud to have served in the USMC. Got out as a Cpl., and graduated with two BS Degrees, and became a DEA Agent, retired in 2007, then had my own Private Investigation Agency for ten years, until I sold it in 2017. Now happily retired in both Chicago (summers) and Mexico (winters). The weird thing is, I still hump a 30 pound pack eight miles a day during the week for fun and fitness. Next month, I’ll be hiking the 500 mile Camino Frances from France to Galicia, Spain. I credit the gravel in my gut and my tenacity to my time in the Marine Corps, but realized early on, that it was better utilized outside the military if I wanted to advance my own interests. Semper Fi!
The Bundesheer, after WW2, decided that officers were to be enlisted for nine years except MDs, chaplains, veterinarians, etc:
I was sent with four fellow MPs to our sister Feldjaeger company in Wuerzberg since we were semi proficient in German. We qualified with their sidearms and had lunch.
I asked why all 2LTs were in late 20s or early 30s. It was explained that after the war, Germany did not want to rely on the Prussian aristocratic system for producing officers. I was assigned to the 127th MPC, Pioneer Kaserne, '89-'92.
I was a team leader in my final stint in the infantry. I switched my MOS to an intelligence analyst to escape what you are talking about. You are spot on! There needs to be a change. One needs to be cognizant of the fact that these 11B's talk to civilians about their experiences and then we wonder why enlistments are down.
Praying the algorithm blesses this.....Awesome video bro.
Appreciate it!!
My 1st sgt and QRF sat a block away from us during a fire fight. We asked for help because we were pinned down inside one of Sadr City's water facitllities, and completely cut off from the trucks. He said we had to handle the cross fire before they came to help. An apache ended up handling it because we couldnt even fucking stand up. 1st sgt got his CIB that day... so did QRF platoon. We already had ours 5 times over by that day. We were just bait for a bad leaders promotion ladder.
that is sad brother..smh
That video is where an airborne training happened and he landed on a hole and his leg twisted. Had too much complications so he opted to become an amputee ..
I had no clue! I always wondered what ever ended up happening with him, brutal video.
He ain’t gonna jump no more.
All for what? Realistically, we're not doing airborne anything unless it's some secret squirrel stuff.
Cool, nice waste of resources, Army.
@@matthiasthulman4058To be completely fair, that video was from 2011 so Afghanistan was still quite kinetic at that time. Nonetheless, you are correct, just unnecessary bullshit
@@matthiasthulman4058The ability to conduct a Joint Forceable Entry is something the US Army prides itself as keeping the capability to do. It's not a waste of resources
The Ranger Regiment jumped in Grenada, as well as during Panama alongside the 82nd,
We've also seen paratroopers from France dropped into Mali during anti insurgency type operations
As a 24 year Army vet, all I hear is TRUTH. Although much of what you said I saw through much of the Army. I was a 25U and served in Infantry Divisions for most my career. The Infantry mindset essentially permeated every unit during the 90’s until i retired in 2017. 25th ID, 2nd ID and 10 MTN Div. All had their own special type of lunacy.
From a 21-year retired Marine Grunt. Awesome job, moto.
Semper Fi
Thank you! Means a lot coming from you!
Lol 21 and retired huh
@@INFJ-ThaneTr6 years in the infantry does that to you
@@INFJ-ThaneTrhe didn’t say he’s 21 years old, he was saying he served 21 years as a Marine!
I wanted so badly to be an 0311 rifleman. I went through all the courses, got all the certifications, but I had a driver’s license, so they made me an 0313 LAV crewman.
Every day consisted of endless vehicle maintenance. On the off chance we went to the field, if I were using my rifle, if I were walking around, patrolling, I was doing my job wrong. LAV crewmen aren’t like stryker drivers in the army. It’s not a billet, it’s a dedicated job to only drive the vehicle.
Outside of boot camp I only went to the range not for qual once. That’s pathetic for an “infantry” MOS. It needs reclassification, but it won’t, because commanders don’t want to lose their precious billets.
In 2019, we did a dog and pony show for the undersecretary of defense. She asked my friend how reliable the vehicles were. Some officer cut him off immediately and insisted they were “extremely reliable”.
I was livid, considering one had just sank and almost drowned the driver, another rolled over and killed the vehicle commander, and they have a 40% breakdown rate to the point where they stopped deploying them to combat 12 years ago.
Reclassify LAV crews who never dismount as a non-infantry MOS? Of course not, that would mean the officers don’t get to say they’re infantry officers anymore.
That's exactly why I didn't join the Marine Corps....They couldn't guarantee me in writing I would be 0311. Army guaranteed me 11X in writing. I've heard the Corps is considering or has already made a change more in line with the Army Policy that an Infantryman needs to be proficient in the full spectrum of Grunt Works throughout his career, meaning that by time you're an Infantry Platoon Sgt you have served as a Squad Leader, Team Leader, Machine Gunner, Grenadier, Rifleman.....at least in ideology anyways. It always seemed like an awful idea to me that Machine Gunner was a different MOS than Rifleman, especially for such a small branch as the Corps.
@@SaintLucieSkunkApe Well actually that was a huge problem with LAR retention was that guys were picking up platoon sergeant and getting the infantry platoon sergeant MOS and then leaving LAR, so they changed it so that now platoon sergeant LAV crewmen can’t pick up the infantry platoon sergeant MOS. It turned the MOS into a career killer.
Tbf though you can be gauranteed 03xx in writing it’s just that there are far more infantry specializations in the marines than the army. There are advantages and disadvantages to it. On one hand, an individual marine can focus on far greater proficiency, but at the cost of being less well rounded.
@@arcblooper2699 I get what you're saying but theres NO Advantage to being a Machine Gunner for 5 years LOL.....If you cant MASTER a machine gun in 3-6 months you ain't doing it right LOL. It's sort of the similar to why we did away with all the Specialist ranks and Pay Grades, outside of Specialist 4, because if you can't develop an ability to lead then why would we keep paying you the same as your leader? The Corps will continue to evolve until Infantry is narrowed down to 1-3 MOS titles IMO.... A Platoon Sergeant that has demonstrated proficiency and expertise at all Infantry assigned weapons and squad positions is a more qualified person than the guy that's been a machine gunner for 8 years, at least that's the idea and it's a hard idea to argue against.
@@SaintLucieSkunkApe I’m not saying one is better than the other, only describing the different schools of thought
@@arcblooper2699 I understand, and apologies if I'm coming across as accusatory, it's not intentional. I suppose I'm just jumping on the opportunity your comment provided for me to make a point.
Alot of what you're saying, infantryman have been saying since time in memorial. You think the PL turnover rate is bad in peace time, it was actually worse during the middle of GWOT when big army just restructured to fit the BCT concept. Units got smashed together and some got gutted to create 4th and 5th brigades in each division. I was in 4th BCT 82nd 06-09... the beginning of that unit was a hot mess. We had cherry pog PL's leading combat experienced airborne infantry NCO's and a whole lot of privates with no tab spec4's or corporals in between. There was so much dick measuring amongst guys who had no fucking clue what they were doing. Our joes don't know how to properly call in 9 line's or call for fire, but hey - lets do a 12mile ruck run to prove how hard dick we are to the other platoons, shall we? Then we go on deployment and it's a rude awakening because we are suddenly given ACTUAL infantry objectives and no ones ready for that level of chaos. Luckily by the late 2010's big army figured out how to war properly. Then at some point they said oh shit... I guess BCT structure isnt suited for a "near peer" conflict i.e. china and russia, so lets scale down our numbers, kick out our most seasoned guys for dumb shit like neck tats, and train like it's 1999.
Love what you said about Joe's not knowing how to do a proper 9 line, but focusing on a 12 mile. This is exactly how I meant the "Chads with something to prove." For an OER.
2010 was when the army started becoming soft.
nothing pisses me off more than drawdowns. Every time it happens its basically about fucking out experienced NCOs out of the service. because its not like you need to pass on hard learned experiences right? this is literally why the Army gets its ass kicked early in wars. The same reason why Korea was a cluster fuck less than 5 years after ww2 was because they dumped all the NCOs out of the army , drafted new guys with fuck boy officers to lead them and then spent the 3 years doing police work in occupied Japan and Germany. Then a new war kicked off and no one in the Army knew how to fight.
Sounds familiar.
Asking as civilian with no military experience.... in your opinions, what are our chances of fighting a peer or near peer enemy successfully? The feeling I have is that the guys doing the fighting, and perhaps many of the NCOs are very capable and well trained, but the institutional issues might cause some problems.
@jacobhollback2879 I've been out for too long to tell you how it is now. Each unit and each branch operates differently. If you want more consistency with your everyday, try to get into a special team I.E. the blue angels or Rangers. That way, you can look up documentaries or TH-cam videos that can inform how it's going to be.
The pay part really hit me. As a prior army grunt who move onto avionic tech for S&R birds, why the fuck am I being payed the same as some admin guy working few hours with MUCH less stress and physical demand? Great video man
All facts!!! Former 11B with the 82nd and i fully agree with everything you said in the video.
*11BP
You earned that MOS identifier. We are different than dirt legs. AATW
@@EriktheRaids82D True. Dirty, nasty, stinking legs.
@@EriktheRaids82D it would technically be 11b1p or 11b2p most likely, for level 10 and 20
I once had pneumonia. The medic overseeing sick call told me it was allergies and to fuck off back to training. Took an ER visit to get a diagnosis and some antibiotics.
I wasn't even infantry, I was an MP for the 1st Cav, and a lot of what you said applies across the whole Army.
How was 31B? Thinking of going that with an option 4 contract or with the one that'll let you pick from a list of duty stations, option 20 I think.
Blue falcon asf
Isnt that how you become the company favorite in the Army? I stg ive never met so many kiss asses until arriving at my first unit. @@ChudicusMaximus
@@infernorule1434do not do it. Nobody I know who I joined with does not regret it.
Same here, fort Cavazos is fucked
One tour in Iraq, multiple IED’s, two stays at Walter Reed, and over a dozen surgeries from my 3 years in the infantry. I’m 40 and just had my 4th knee surgery. Proud to have the blue cord, but it comes at a high price. 18 years later, I still feel it!
Fantastic video man. I love to hear this coming out. I was in the Canadian army infantry for a time, and I blew my ankle on a ruck, being a no hook scared private, I never got it checked out and I'm still dealing with it more than a decade later.
Inconsistent leadership in the Army was a problem when I was in Aviation back in the 70s-80s. The more things change the more they stay the same.
The infantry likes to ignore the medical and scientific facts that recovery is necessary for the body. You wouldn't go to the gym and do heavy leg work outs 5 days a week and expect to get good results because your legs would never recover. This is something that the infantry (Marine Corp 0311) didn't seem to understand when I was in in the 90's. We would be in the field for 5 days doing heavy ruck movements every day, with new fighting holes dug every day, then splitting night watch between the two guys in the hole, so 4 hrs of sleep each night, then come back to the rear to do a 10 mile run the first day back. Absolutely stupid over training with no recovery leads to nothing but injuries, but no one wants to admit to being hurt because you don't want to be a "broke dick". Then when you get out with destroyed knees and back and got to the VA to get your injuries rated, because you toughed it out and didn't get your injuries recorded, they act like your service had nothing to do with it.
This right here. It gives a whole new meaning to "thank you for your sacrifice"
You know, I remember training for the infantry when I was younger and getting overuse injuries and I got so confused. 'Am I not a normal human?' I used to ask myself, 'what's wrong with me? I can't run every other day while lifting weights every other day also? I must be broken, bad genes perhaps.'
Today after a few years of adult living under my belt, I understand that I was totally fine, I just needed to go easier on myself, build up gradually, rest when I needed it and come back stronger.
Heck, I remember my mother signing me up to a gym class run by a former infantryman and I remember being so confused, I told him that I was trying to recover from shin splints and he gives me a workout plan involving me sprinting up a staircase till exhaustion as an exercise. I mean, come on... I told him that I wasn't going to do it because I was in recovery and it was like he couldn't grasp what I was talking about. Anyway, I learned from that, I certainly learned that personal trainers are a waste of money.
I haven't been in the military, but I've enlisted and I hope to be in the infantry. But I am a little worried, because it seems to be a common issue. Knowing what I know now, I've tried to focus heavily on injury prevention and bullet-proofing my feet and legs and back to the best of my ability, but you never know. The human body can only withstand so much.
Hopefully one day we can get a bit of a shift in the philosophy of soldier health care. Even the fact that we have to lie about our health conditions before we sign up, God forbid we had an issue at one time that we resolved. I've already been under-reporting injuries as a civilian lest my GP writes that shit down somewhere and I regret it later when I try to join.
I wrote a little much, but I just wanted to share my experience as a hopeful recruit. I've already sort of seen where it can go wrong, it's odd that this broken equation is the best we can come up with. I think we can definitely do better.
I served as an Infantryman with the 82nd Airborne division, everything you just stated is absolutely 100 percent facts, nothing but cold hard facts, I am right there with you Brother!!!!
@@pepper5128have you been reading the comment section here? Why would you want to join the military right now?
@@pepper5128 bro join as a pog i promise its the method
Recently got out of the army I was also a 11b and all of the points were spot on not sure if it's only me that experienced this, but for the majority of my career, I was always told that I was a terrible soldier until it came time for me to re-enlist and the same Nco's who kept telling me that I was a bad soldier all of a sudden were trying to gaslight me and tell me that I'm a great soldier and that I should reenlist and that I won't make it in the real world, needless to say I didn't listen to them got discharged and I'm doing well in life.
i really do wonder why they just start lying like that
Understatement of the year! ! ! I've been retired from the army for 32 years. I am in the process of having my diability reevaluated. The doctor who looked over my active duty medical records told me that an injury I sustained back in the late 80s actually resulted in both a broken shoulder that NEVER HEALED, and 3 broken vertibrae in my neck that also HEALED IMPROPERLY since they were NEVER DIAGNOSED! ! ! That's my medical benefits while I was on active duty for you! ! ! It does finally explain so many of the issues I've had since those injuries and why I've suffered so much pain for over 32 years. The army command and medical personnel don't care about you or your medical condition. All they care about is their OER [officer evaluation report] and getting one patient out the door so they can get the next patient also out the door as quickly as possible.
as a brit ive never understood how westpoint can churn out 4k officers a year and think each of them have had enough attention and training in leadership to become welrounded consistent empathetic leadees
One thousand graduate e@ch year
West Point does its best, but if you were bred and born to be an ass, it will shine thru not matter what training you receive.
Most officers, are 4 year college graduates, not West Point Grads.
I retired after serving 23 years as an active duty infantryman. When I came back home after my last tour in Iraq in 2005 my felt like an 80 year old man I just felt broken and lived off of muscle relaxers and 800mg Motrin for the last 3 months of that tour. I put in my retirement paperwork as soon as I got back and retired 9 months later. During my career I tore my acl, partially torn Achilles tendon, torn labrum in hip, torn labrum in shoulder, degenerative disks in my neck and lower back. I had several close calls during combat operations and training and was very blessed to survive.
The problem with a professional military is that the soldiers do not last long, mentally nor physically, unfortunately, that is the reason we must go back to the two-year draft.
I went in pre-volar or volunteer army, then we were paid $90 per month, once a month, slept in open bays with double stacked bunks, pulled KP, worked half a day on Saturdays, there were no short orders in the mess hall, our equipment and uniforms was shit, stood weekly inspections, had 10:00 hour lights out and bed check, our training was marginal, we stood revely, did PT (not as stringent as today) yet we made it and actually (in hind sight) had a blast, but not many reenlisted. Yes, it was a tough existence!
Prior to joining the military, I worked part time as kitchen help in a hospital, when I joint the military, I took a 50% pay cut.
On point. Big bellied billy and little sally in the s shops are chilling with a/c and maternity leave and selling bath water. While I'm getting fucking poured on down range zeroing a rifle. Increase pay for combat MOS. Fucking mindboggling.
What’s an s shop.
What is a s shop
What is this shop you talk about.
@@rickfastly2671 Its the different offices where paperwork and organization are supposed to be done. Females and fatassed NCOs occupy the various slots in the s shops, most of these people would be working at Walmart if they weren't in uniform.
@rickfastly2671 an S shop is an admin job, essentially. Things like intel, processing leave requests, etc.
Another huge issue I have that only effects unmarried junior enlisted is the chow hall. My DEFAC is abysmal, quality of food, quantity of food, piss poor service, they are closed without warning frequently, everything is always broken, and the cooks don’t care. It cost me 700$ a month for this (300 in meal deductions and I don’t get the 400 for BAS) as a private I was flat broke because I couldn’t hardly afford to eat properly. I just got back from a 9 month rotation to Lithuania where the food was provided by the Lithuanian government, it’s was bland, almost always chicken or pork and it certainly wasn’t the best, but there was lots and it was substantial and nutritious. We should be embarrassed that other nations are taking way better care of our soldiers than our own government. Like you talked about we’re supposed to be professional athletes but they sure as hell aren’t feeding us like it, then charging extortionate prices that are mandatory and the only way to avoid it is get married, and we wonder why soldiers marry the first girl who looks at them.
DFAC* but yeah you're not wrong dude. It's like that everywhere, 92G's are the worst.
I am furious to learn that the air force doesn't have the same broken bureaucracy as we did in the army. They already have everything else like nicer bases, better food, and better looking women.
I am a Canadian retired 30yrs infantry within combat unit with only couple one year posting due promotion and back to the unit. Your video is spot on, when I had a troop releasing the Troops responsible for last 30days is focus on release. I can't believe at times I had to fight with CoC to keep him off duty roster. One Soilder was put on as a duty driver on a long weekend week be his release by CSM. All because CSM didn't like him be honest the releasing troop was dick but still not right. I reported in weekend as the duty driver and the duty NCO was a lower rank I didn't care it was the right thing to do.
I was told I was being promoted and posted and at the time I had some personal issues. Out of my 30yrs in military never said no to a course, posting, deployment or tasking. This one time ask delay posting for 6-8 months, I even had someone willing to take my spot I can his his. But NO I knew this was going to happen. When I was speaking with my career manager he said not possible without asking my why. Off I went on my house hunting trip for a week about two months before my report date. My first report day to new unit meeting the CoC I submitted my 30 day release with my 53 day retirement leave. New CoC asked why all said was I am just a number with 30yrs of service all I asked delay my posting 6-8 months. After the meeting went to see medical to be place on stress leave until last day in uniform. Reason I asked for 6-8 months I was working on my PTSD with programs.
I release with no debit Mortgage free no car payments and with a great pension financial freedom and happiness I ever been.
Another big problem in the infantry is our lack of actual support. Vehicles are broken down, well the mechanics are too busy playing Xbox so switching out an engine is a skill level 1 task. Running low on food and water, well its really hot and or scary out there so next time pack 8 days food and water. Feels like every support unit exists to draw a paycheck and screw the infantry
Its your job to perform without support. Thats what makes you the best, and you can rub that fact in every pog's face you want.
11B13F2b
And then eventually you start actually doing their jobs for them and it’s like, I get infantry don’t do shit in garrison other than train but holy shit why am I here working till 1700 when half the battalion leaves at 1400?
tell that to those that drove on the sacxred or sailed the Atlantic hunted by wolfpacks
@@thodan467 any time, because their jobs morality rate is no where near that of the infantryman.
@@francoismarion-eu3jq
In WWII the merchant marines were one of the branches with the highest losses, the other was the Army Air Force.
during WWI french supply troops drove to Verdun again and again under german artillery, permanent german artillery fire on the road
This was a great video, thank you
Fancy seeing you here!
23 years in, 19 years on the line with the infantry. ill be honest, i went into this video ready to roll my eyes, but i cant disagree with anything you said. good job.
one thing we did un my unit to keep consistency with my soldiers was all troops trades had to be agreed upon by both squad leaders and the PSG. the LT had zero say. then once a year we would do a doge ball pick, where all the the squad leaders would get together and go over manning and pick who they wanted
Served 21 years as an Infantry Officer and 100% the issues depicted here are 100% spot on. The professional athletes comment drove me nuts because at Ranger School something popped in my knee. I played sports all my life up to that point. I never felt anything like that. They gave me Motrin (Ranger Candy) and sent me back after a medic wiggled my leg and said it’s nothing. I chewed Motrin and ran on one leg but had to be dropped from the school. I was a POS and went to my next school Bradley Leaders Course, went to the TMZ they said get an x-ray it showed nothing, the a bone scan again nothing, and when I mentioned needing an MRI I was told to pound sand. To this day I have no clue what my real injury was. I suspect it was a partial tear of my meniscus. I didn’t fully recover until after the Captains Career course. I almost got out because as a tab-less LT the Infantry viewed me as a POS. Dislocated my shoulder and was dropped from Ranger School on try 3. Somehow convinced my Bn CDR to send me back to Ranger School from Korea and that I would extend and command there. 9-11 happened, I went to Ranger School and this time because I knew in my gut it was my last chance I graduated. By the time I got back all the commands were filled and my CDR told me to PCS to Fort Campbell. My career changed from that point on. As a Commander I never pushed my LTs to break guys as a method of distinguishing themselves to me. Train smart, train hard but also to recover hard too. I can’t promise that guys didn’t get hurt in my unit, some did, but it wasn’t because I was Chading them. Ultimately I realized as an officer there are so many Beta males pretending to be Alphas in the officer side of the Infantry. Even amongst the true Alphas there is one type they don’t understand and it scares them which is the Sigma. A quiet observing and hyper intelligent guy threatened all the bravado bullshit. Officers measured their dicks by their APFT score and mostly by their 2 mile run time. All which mattered hardly at all in combat. Looking back I wouldn’t have served as long as I did if I wasn’t in the Infantry, but like this video depicts, we do stupid shit and like the saying goes shit rolls downhill and it’s young Soldiers and junior NCOs and mid level NCOs that get covered in it and pay a much higher price for it. Not every officer is a cold blood sucking vampire but unfortunately there are way too many Courtney Massingales and not enough Sam Damon’s in the Infantry (Once an Eagle book reference to those who are not aware).
I was an infantryman for four years, had the same attitude as Steve. This is a very accurate video about why a lot of guys leave, including myself, and am completely disenchanted with the organization. PT is always a complete waste of time. Platoon-lead PT is garbage, but squad PT is often no better, because the army just doesn't have many "fitness experts".
Since becoming a POG I'm much happier. As stated in this video, other MOS's work much less than the infantry, but get paid the same. So I will happily take that MOS over being a grunt without second-guessing. It's unit-dependent, but there's a much better chance for you to be off the line as a POG. It's mind-blowing that the line is rough enough, then they add extra nonsense to it.
I prioritize myself and my own health. I work out on my own, sleep more, eat better, am much stronger, and healthier in my position. I doubt anything will change in the army.
I love it! Good for you man, happy you find a better path!
About to join the Australia army as an infantry officer. First thank you for the info I will consider this in my position.
I know for a fact that enlisted infantry man here are paid less then most non-combat roles and suffered from all the same issues you listed. Infantry is meant to be hard but when the literal backbone of the military, the role that has disportionately the most causualities, most injuries, and worst conditions is not adequately compensated for is it any wonder recruitment is low? More/Harder work or the more responsibility one has should equal more pay
AD Company XO here, I agree with every word man, I’m sorry.
Thank you! I don't mean to come off as bitter to officers. I just feel a lot of enlisted share my sentiment!
The problem is that your ideas have been said for years and young enlisted men stay in long enough to forget what they were complaining about once they are in a higher position. That 38 y/o PFC Joe has a different mindset than SGM Joe. He lost himself along the way climbing the rank ladder. He no longer has the same problems that he had when he was younger. Therefore he does not see himself in the eyes of lower enlisted. His job is to please the boss above him.
I hate Seargen Majors with a passion.
This is all very true , had a commander tell me if I took paternity leave to get out of ntc I was a piece of shit cause back in his day he only got 2 weeks . That’s just a taste of what I’m going through in my current unit . Came in the army as a motivated 18 year old ready to get after it , and now I’m getting out 21 years old and honestly just so checked out. This video put everything in perfect perspective.
My biggest issue with being infantry was going to combat and getting your CIB, then coming back to Campbell and having every officer screw with me, or talk sh*t to me, just because I had a CIB and they didnt. Wasn't just me, most of infantry grunts felt that way. Its like these officers had to prove they are superior since we were in combat and they were not.... The officers that were in combat with us, (very very few) were a different breed and were more in touch with reality.
the officers that were in combat are not allowed to be delusional because it will get them killed
I was a 11B from 2000-2010. You nailed it
I served as an 11c (Heavy Mortarman) for 7years in the 90's, and only 2 times I went to see a medic out in the field. Both times they told me it was nothing and that I was okay. On one of those occasions, my back locked up and I could not stand upright. We were prepping rounds under a camo-net that wasn't setup to regulation and could not stand or lift properly for more than 7 hours straight. It was a qualification live fire for the 3rd time that year that we kept acing and our new PL didn't want us getting dinged for the camo-net and refused to let us adjust it. We were prepping over 400 live 4.2in rounds that day. Our previous PL's mantra was "Safety First". He was our favorite PL out of the 7 years I was in. The new Chad also marched us thru Death Valley for 7 miles without support for a minor infraction, treating us like we were fresh out of bootcamp or something. He was fired and kicked out of the army after that. So yeah, Each new officer wants to define his authority. The problem is exactly as you portray in this video and it saddens me to hear it's still a problem. What good is it if our soldiers are broken before we get them to the battlefield/ frontline?
The thing that always upset me was the "X-ray eyes medical degree " every 1sgt received with their diamond.
Talk about gate keeping.
Sick call 0500 to 0515.
You MUST see the 1sgt prior to reporting and recieve his authorization to report for sick call.
Top comes in at ...0530.
It really happened.
1988/89 FRG.
The Army had been broken for a long time, i was in maintenance before 9/11 and we were always in the field. I remember been the only E1 and them making dig 32 foxholes with my E-tool, details, work and two 1 year deployments, OIF1 and Afganistan, we were always working like they hated us seeing us take any break. The good old don't let higher up catch you doing nothing.
After 6 years i reclased to a scout and it was pretty much the same shit, always in the field and training or some BS, details, then came another deployment for the Iraqi surge and I honestly felt they wanted to get us killed
I went to the guard and honestly i didn't think it could get worst but it did, it might not have been the same as active duty but they are wanted to make us earn that weekend pay, plus most times or wasn't even 2 weeks for AT usually 29 days of you were on a line unit, infantry, cavalry and artillery. 29 so you didn't get your BAH money
I knew a lot of infantry guys that were literally broken from so many years of abuse, bad knees, back multiple surgeries.
My advice to young bloods, use the army cause the army is sure going to abuse you. Save your money, go to school and see if you can buy a house that way it's easier than after you get out
3 years Infantry 95 - 98. This was true then as it is now. Great video.
Incoming company commander here. Prior enlisted. I needed to watch this. Thank you.
Are you Ranger Qualified?
As a former combat medic and career E4, this is a great video. We can only hope some leader sees this and it sticks in their mind.
9:30 As an airborne medic $150 is really not worth it and I don’t think anyone does it for the pay. In WW2 airborne pay was $50 or about $1000 in today’s economy, it went up only $100 in the past 80 years….
Had a PC in the MC at first I didn’t like, feeling was mutual. We would flame each other behind our backs. Eventually I improved on my own, so did he. Death marches turned to light work, became rarer or were reasonable, I started to like my job, I became really good at it. Eventually it came to exercises and he excelled far beyond textbook officers. A mix of autonomy and his own madness that was almost unmatched. We cleared ranges in record time and earned our leadership praise, even NAMs (SL and PSG), we’d excel on force on force and no matter what happened in the TL we’d strive regardless. He changed, had mutual respect for his guys even me. He even got slotted to be a Cpt, this was his first command. From the guy who got us lost up in Bridgeport to one of the better leaders I’ve had the pleasure of working with, the good ones do pop up from time to time.
I first enlisted in army infantry for the first Gulf war. At that time, we weren't allowed to have any medications in our lockers, not even Tylenol or Ibuprofen. Fast forward to now, I'm a healthcare provider, working with primarily army and air force members. Well over half are on behavioral health meds for psych issues, major depression, etc. And these are guys in their early 20's. I recently dealt with a 41yo guy, who just reported to the base where I am, who is right out of basic/AIT. He enlisted at 40, originally was disqualified because of his lifelong psych issues. He went off meds for 1 year, then got an acceptance waiver for enlistment, and is now right back on meds with acknowledged psych issues. I have another patient who has 17 years in, 15 of those on profile and is non deployable. The army will accept and retain damn near anyone.
they've got depression because of the issues stated in the video
I was 8 years infantry. Great video, lots of good points. One point to mention, is that the entire UCMJ should be redone as well, it's very outdated.
I was lucky, after Iraq tour 2008, I transfered to UH-60 mech. Then gained flight status to take crew member. Both mos's were wild asf. Stay well bro's.
Infantry as a Marine Veteran I honestly loved it,yes I know " mental health questions follow that statement". But I did and I've been to alot of Army schools, but when I wanted time out of the GRUNTS just for a few years. The Body Snatcher said you reenlist I'll get you two years out of the GRUNTS, yup. Signed and crippled up. Oh well, tell all the young guys it's not PERFECT.
As a future officer - this is very important info to learn. Any tips on how to take care of my men better?
1st dont ask them to do anything you wouldnt. 2nd Always out perform them in pt to be inspirational. 3rd eat chow and spend time with the individual enlisted man to earn respect and trust. 4th respect the knowledge of any 11B who has served longer than you.
My lowest asvab score is 119, not everyone there is an asvab waiver, and your college education doesnt make you more intelligent then the men you serve with. Be open to listening to ideas from lower enlisted troops. You dont have to follow their suggestions, but you should be open to them.
My last piece of advice is this... your biggest "trouble makers" are probably your soldiers with the biggest balls who will be your greatest assests in your time of need on the battlefield. Dont mistreat them.
11B13F2b
Remember that recovery is necessary for the body. You wouldn't go to the gym and do heavy leg work outs 5 days a week and expect to get good results because your legs would never recover. This is something that the infantry (Marine Corp 0311) didn't seem to understand when I was in in the 90's. We would be in the field for 5 days doing heavy ruck movements every day, with new fighting holes dug every day, then splitting night watch between the two guys in the hole, so 4 hrs of sleep each night, then come back to the rear to do a 10 mile run the first day back. Absolutely stupid over training with no recovery leads to nothing but injuries, but no one wants to admit to being hurt because you don't want to be a "broke dick".
@@Jaqenhgar222 imagine complaining about training hard, just to find yourself in real combat in guadal canal with no resupply for 50 days. Or in germany in the snow surrounded by nazis without resupply for 35days. I dont think you understand what the DoD is trying to prepare you for. They dont train you that hard because they think youll be riding in a humvee all day and back in your bunk later that night.
you missed my point if you think I was complaining about "hard training", I have a problem with stupid training leading to injured Marines that results in unit ineffectiveness. You put that training cycle that I mentioned above on a loop ; Field, rear with heavy running based pt, field, rear with heavy pt.... it leaves no time for recovery leading to leg/back injury. My suggestion would be when in the rear, have more of upper body based PT to give the legs a rest, but running long distances was what my unit liked to do.
@@Jaqenhgar222 the problem is that homosapiens tend not to push themselves to their limits and give up too soon. The prroblem then is also the group setting where not everyone is equal in ability. One mans limits may fall short of anothers. The concession i could make would be at least, required by ucmj, 1 day a week off when in garrison. Not a barraks maintenace day, but an actual day off. I think everyone understands there will be no days off when deployed, that doesnt need to be trained into people.
Great video. I'm not from the military but the information in your video was still incredibly easy to understand while also being entertaining. If you have more ideas for videos please pursue them, I think your channel could really go the distance.
Thank you!! I'll try :)
Hey man, I’m coming in to my unit as a new Chaplain Candidate and I can honestly say my heart breaks for the misconduct and lack of care for any soldier, but this video was extremely informative for me. Thank you for sharing your heart and experience, along with your service 🤙 take care
Good video, it’s not much different in the other branches as you might think. I experienced much of the same in Naval aviation. I agree that there needs to be a change, but that is not going to happen with a weak leadership pool that keeps getting worse. Unfortunately our military is literally and figuratively broken without repair.
Describing the entire Army. The Reserve Component (RC/NG) has more continuity but that can also be a negative when someone overstays and younger troops can't be promoted unless they leave the unit.
Watching this as my neck screams in pain from the Infantry. VA says it's not service connected 😂
I wasn’t an infantryman. But in the Marine Airwing that mindset rings so true for leaders. While they’re trying to prove themselves to their higher ups they’re making the lower enlisted lives miserable. I literally had an officer tell me that if I got put on light duty he would “get really really sad” trying to intimidate me. So I went to medical anyways lmao
Good to know that not only in Poland we have these problems with Infantry.
I had a heart attack on a 12 mile run 2 miles in. Walked back to the Aid Station. Got told it was muscoskeletal pain by the PA. The NCOIC was my former line medic NCO. He advocated for me. Went to the TMC had an EKG. I had been having a heart attack for over 2 hours. Got put in an ambulance. I promptly died. I got over that.Had another heart attack. Was put on Rear D as Commander and then discharged 2 years later. Oh, and a second heart attack a month later after the first one. A year later, after discharge, I had to have my aortic valve replaced. I got out on an MEB with 20% disability.
"I promptly died. I got over that." Is the most Army thing I've ever read. Holy shit.
This guy just dismantled 248 years of infantry in 17 minutes… and he’s right 😂
OMG, so true. It’s why I got out. Spent 3 years in Germany, came home to Kentucky for 6 months and got leveed to Germany for another 3 year tour! I said , “not only no, but hell no!” I was thinking “someone in Washington must be stupid to create a policy like that!” The Army has a hard enough time keeping up recruitment, but to keep sending soldiers overseas for long tours was not helping at all. I don’t know how the Army kept soldiers in during the Iraq/Afghanistan tours with repeated deployments.
Bro when you mentioned battle drill 6 I immediately knew what you were gonna say. You can’t even do a glass house without 4 mfs jumping in and saying stuff like “that’s not how we did it back in *insert unit or deployment*”
My old SL had a rule to t teach according to the FM as a baseline. The common sense or experience came later once we knew what we were doing
"Team leader in front, no rifle man!"
Me:"why are they standing in front of a window?"
This easily could be a series of hour long episodes.
I genuinely wanted to do the full 20, but between all of the points in this video and seeing HKIA happen while I was on PCS leave, I got out at 11. If any fellow Infantryman is reading this and is on the fence about getting out, what I would encourage you to do is use TA if you can and knock out college courses, and get on a CSP program if you decide to ETS. Use your GI Bill, don't just get out and start wasting away; I'm the oldest freshman in almost all of my classes, but it feels good knowing that I can PT on my own, wake up with the sun, and work towards a good degree that will help me in the job market.
There's a whole other world outside of the military, just remember that whenever you're in the field or doing another 6 mile run with some young dude that doesn't have busted knees.
I think the issue with dynamic entry is the point that it was kinda adapted from LAPD SWAT’s style of hostage rescue, where surprise can be guaranteed somewhat by the fact that gangsters or hostage takers can’t always expect someone to breach in.
Also SWAT of the time tended to pair DE with flash bangs or even chemical riot control agents to further disorient an ill prepared threat.
As far as I can tell most armed forces or even police practicing DE nowadays doesn’t even use flash bangs that often if at all, since flash bangs can set things on fire for the police, and flash bangs aren’t really widely issued to troops either.
The other option is a grenade, which given the nature of modern insurgency style warfare meant that was off the table.
So DE in reality meant utilizing the element of surprise and violence of action to storm an enemy position and quickly neutralize it, but if the enemy knows you’re coming you basically have no advantages in a large amount of times.
what in the fuckin bot comment is this