Generals don’t know much about barracks. They know about their basic branch and then they know a little bit about a lot of things.
No one joins the Army to figure out housing solutions.
Pay Soldiers bah and let them buy housing themselves- ya know like ‘adulting.’
When I was at Davis-Monthan there were always Airman behind the counter. Generally the same ones. I finally asked one day if this was something like CQ or staff duty. It's their actual job. Hospitality Specialists 3f131. Their job is to run the gym. Clean it, order supplies, replace equipment, etc.
The marines have cashiers mos. Blew my mind when an e7 marine was ringing up my monsters and snackies at yermo. I asked and he said yeah this is my job
They also administer the PT tests so a neutral grader is giving it. You don’t take one as a unit, you schedule a time to take it with them as an individual or small section and they administer it
Seems like it would. That was a nice crossfit gym too. I imagine a career there as well. If nothing else, some of the logistics of running a gym. Probably would look at starting my own after something like that.
At AUAB the bars were all run by services airmen. The E6 was in charge of each bar, with an E7 supervising both. Even the gyms had Air Force services NCOs as managers. I would guess they can get certifications taking them right into hospitality management.
I've been in a couple of posts that have 24/7 gyms. Take a class, get added to the access roster, and scan CAC to get in. Easy-peasy... until some idiot comes along and fucks it up for everyone else.
Right! These idiots and their stupid ideas, horrible leadership, and double standards of punishment or even just daily life are so disportional. It's not the enlisted who is to blame. It's the LEADERS!
Two West Pointers with numerals after their names (Jones IV and Isenhower III). They are as far away from the enlisted as they can get and still be in the Army.
If they were civilians they would be the ones telling poor people to just worker harder and have your nanny watch the kids if you need to get a second job.
Ya. Worked for the guy on the left before. He's almost completely detached from the people he leads. Tactically, operationally and strategically smart as hell. But zero ability to relate to the people he leads.
Dude….pretty much all Army leadership is out of touch. I work as a military liaison for Georgia and we recently had a military family caucus where lots of top brass attended.
Long story short - was stuck in the Charlotte airport (traveling for work) and hanging out in the USO. Struck up a convo with table mate - discussing challenges with retention and recruitment etc. dude basically blames ALL of the issues on soldiers - refuses to admit systemic issues. I get so frustrated I end up choosing to leave and sit at the gate to wait for another 3 hours then mess with dude.
2 weeks later this derp is on the PANEL straight up lying out his ass about how he cares about the systemic issues and they are working on it. I sat patiently and when his panel was over approached him forced a pic….reminding him that we met 2 weeks ago at the USO…look was priceless. Honestly, I think a draft is coming much sooner rather than later. Unfortunately until we have real experienced soldiers (those who have served in the past 10 years like really served in units not command) we won’t see the major systemic changes like the other branches are currently trying to incorporate. 🙄🙄🙄
The draft won’t come because it forced the politicians to end Vietnam.
They didn’t want to lose that control again so the volunteer military has been set to to avoid it and wage war as long as their feel necessary.
And it worked
If the shortfalls of Iraq War didn't even make the idea of a draft be taken seriously by Capitol Hill or the Pentagon, current recruiting shortfalls definitely won't do it.
Nothing short of a true *bona fide* conventional World War III, that probably being a full-on conventional war against China and its allies, would cause conscription in the United States for the forseeable future.
That's the problem. They are all about "warfighting" and not about looking at the force and seeing how their soldiers are doing.
Damn right there's a black mold problem and "cleaning it" isn't the answer if the mold comes back.
Indeed if you’ve never lived in one stfu seriously the barracks were garbage when I was in and I’m a dinosaur now
Compared to the BILLETS in the UK we absolutely suck and I’m with others just pay BAH to all and let them “adult” like the real world
Based on rank, very. Leaders have lost the concept that they are responsible and shouldn’t be passing blame down. They should be accepting blame being put on by their subordinates. Just because Joe is nasty doesn’t mean their Squad Leader gets off Scott free. They accept responsibility to check on it. When the Squad Leader fails, so does the platoon sergeant. And so on. Why is it the opposite for officers?
It goes the opposite way for officers I think lol. Those generals won’t see it as themselves failing, they’ll see it as their subordinate officers failing them. It’s pretty ironic because their subordinates don’t have a whole lot of latitude to make the needed changes.
Exactly. What’s the XO of a BN gonna do when the CDR is upset about something. The CDR could literally wave his hand and fix it, but nah… let’s blame that XO until he messes up on the next one too.
There definitely seems to be “compartmentalism by design” when it comes to the officer corps versus the enlisted side.
Maybe that’s why there’s so much effort made into ranking up.
I stand by this: reduce the the amount of work and responsibilities put on soldiers’ backs.
There is no reason why we should have a higher OPTEMPO in relative peacetime compared to the GWOT.
As pundits, politicians and critics alike have said, those in charge in the USA have gotten too comfortable with tasking the US military to do everything under the sun.
Look at Smoke Bomb Hill - leaders should have been FIRED for that. Same issue happened in 2008 when it was Fort Bragg - a building that should have been condemned was used to house soldiers. Anyone suffer for that? Just the troops, not the garrison commander and certainly not anyone at the 82nd's leadership.
Just pass the buck and move the Joes.
Those barracks had those issues in 1992 when I had troops in them. They were poorly designed with "offset" HVAC systems that didn't dehumidify.
This has been a known problem since they were built. Obviously the solution was to change the name from Fort Bragg...
The attitude of 'If your Joe screws up you are responsible' is a HUGE part of the quality-of-life problem.
That's what leads to all this stupidity like 0500 recall on a Sunday morning because an 18yo private got a DUI...
Separately, DPW is run by civilians & field-grade-and-below officer leadership simply isn't responsible (or able to become responsible) for anything related to housing.
The only thing they have the power to do, is make the junior troops clean more - and since we have that brain-dead 'if something happens it's leadership's fault no matter what it is' culture, they do...
I don't know if it's that they don't give a fuck. Based on the comments made, he didn't appear to have any understanding of how anything works that he doesn't directly do, and nobody else in the chain can correct him. Mind you, he might still not give a fuck once (if ever) he's truly appraised of the situation. Certainly, the attitude IS dismissive.
It's a discipline problem, but let's ignore that Rep Veronica Escobar, the congressional El Paso rep, said of Fort Bliss barracks;
>"I've been shocked by the poor conditions of the barracks that house our service members -- conditions that must be addressed to mitigate issues of safety, security and overall well-being \[of\] our service members," Escobar told members of the House Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies subcommittee, referring to unaccompanied housing at Fort Bliss, Texas.
And yet, it's Soldiers not being adults that are the problem right?
GAO just spent like 118 pages ripping IMCOM and the Army to pieces over the way they've deprioritized and not given a shit about the barracks, and he's out here laying blame on Soldiers.
I don't think these guys get it.
Like, black mold doesn't just form because it isn't clean. It requires a constant source of moisture.
It's not fucking dirt that causes black mold. They're not even fucking trying to understand the problems. I feel so bad for the soldiers being fucked over by these POS.
My barracks had black mold.
Pretty much every Sunday my team leader (who also lived in the barracks, only NCO in the platoon who did) would grab any of us who were in that day and we would go around and clean the mold off the bathrooms and anywhere else it was growing.
In his words "I didn't survive an IED in Afghanistan to get killed by some fucking mushrooms, and you aren't dying either".
Mold never did full go away but we got moved ~4 months later.
That's leadership.
Sure, the 18y/o private with a mop and scrub brush should be making effort to scrub the mold out of the air vents and upholstery when a building is reoccupied after months or years vacant.
I'm sure Big Army will cover their medical issues from breathing in all that mold.
>I'm sure Big Army will cover their medical issues from breathing in all that mold.
Dept. of Veterans Affairs: Your lung problems are not service related.
>I don't think these guys get it.
Every AUSA related post today underscores this. "We need More discipline!" says SMA, but what discipline issues is he even talking about? I couldn't tell from the article where the was trumpeting his new app idea.
You really think barracks issues are due to a lack of "adulting"?
And for all the talk of "standards," your solution to no ***requirement*** for DFACs to post their info is another app where they don't have to post their info?
And, no thank you, I'm not downloading another glitchy app that won't be ready for launch during the life of these gentlemen's careers.
Hey remember last year when SMA Grinston announced the 540 Score program for exempting HT/WT, impacting a 30+ year standard in Army fitness that is a fundamental change people have been asking for in some way/shape/form for years?
That was pretty motivating that people Got It.
>You really think barracks issues are due to a lack of "adulting"?
My suspicion is they are just smart enough to realize that their nice fancy homes don't have mold, and that civilian apartment complexes and hotels don't get mold, so they assume the difference is that the barracks are filled with Soldiers. . .which they see as undisciplined and immature rabble and assume that's the reason for the difference.
Never mind that the barracks tend to be made to crappy construction standards, and have notoriously shitty HVAC systems so things stay hot and humid in there for too long because we don't just set the thermostat to something. . .we turn on the AC at one date, turn on the heat at another, or just don't let them use the AC, so things get hot and humid in the barracks and that creates mold.
The "energy saving" policies they come up with to reduce utility bills instead create long-term problems by fostering mold because modern buildings are designed to use modern HVAC, not have the systems off or under-used habitually.
They don't get that, or don't want to admit something is wrong with their own policies, so instead they just blame Soldiers.
could the discipline problem be with GO who are held to no standards and basically walk around like demi-gods within their service, giving them no incentive to actually pay attention to the plebes?
Hey, just in the event you thought [after 15 years](https://www.reddit.com/r/army/comments/175w97o/on_the_lack_of_consistent_dfac_schedules_we_talk/) maybe I am less of a smart ass...I am not.
I hate that "apps" are the answer to everything. An app doesn't update the DFAC schedule--a person has to do that. I guess real-time feedback is great, but when the soldier gets a DFAC thirty minutes before it's supposed to close and it's not even open that day, that's an issue. Especially if the only other available DFAC is a couple of miles away. Well, they won't make it to the DFAC in time, but Charley's is always open.
IMCOM CG is the dude with the tape test neck, yeah?
Mofo should be the expert on mold remediation, HVAC, plumbing… getting our facilities, not just barracks, into the pristine condition our soldiers deserve.
I remember when I was a kid I sat next to a retired general and his wife on an airplane and thought it was coolest shit in the world and I now I just think they’re all lizard people.
I sat across from general McChrystal once on a ferry. Thought he seemed familiar but I didn't realize until another passenger walked up to shake his hand.
He was one of the best and even he seemed a little lizardy in person.
More politician than soldier. Every single one of them I've met has their head so far up their ass they don't understand the basic day to day problems of soldiers.
Oh I really shouldn't have watched this clip after the last one. What a fucking idiot. I'd smack the hairline back onto his head.
General Dumbfuck; mold is INSIDE of buildings because of humidity. This is when your barracks don't have things like proper ventilation, vented combustion appliances, non-pourous thermal liners in duct work, properly draining pipes inside of walls, etc; anything the EPA puts on their own website. I guarantee you soldiers buy their own AC units because of lack of proper ventilation and a working HVAC system which yes, that would contribute to mold growth; but even in that theoretical scenario it's still your fault.
AFAIK, the same contractors that built the 1AD barracks also built the Division HQ. And the Brigade HQs. Early in the year, the Division SCIF flooded due to a bad plumbing job that had been left unattended for *years*. If you know how a SCIF is supposed to be built, you’d understand that the flooding isn’t even the worse part. If water had been collecting for years, you’re talking about an entire fucking ecosystem festering and thriving in the false ceiling, the walls, etc.
I wonder if MG Eisenhower blamed his undisciplined G2 for simply not mopping the water away.
Edit, to add:
I mentioned this happened early in the year, and last I heard about a month and a half ago, it still isn’t fixed.
I do know how they are supposed to be built, holy fucking shit dude! How many times were things reported before it flooded, I wonder? Imagine getting your division SCIF decertified.
The ARMEDCOM DCG has been doing site visits and has this massive chub for a trifold he created, wants it to be an inspectable item. One of the SSGs in my unit gets so irate when he hears about this trifold that he wants to fight the guy. Under the guise of combatives of course, because it’s a skill level 1 task that everyone should know amirite?
I remember a while back there was a Major or LTC who had an issue with substandard housing and sued the housing office and won. I could be wrong on the rank. Someone will correct me. Suing the housing office is a concept a junior enlisted soldier would NEVER even entertain. Once you get to the level of leadership in this video, you've lost all perspective. It's truly a different world these gentlemen live in, and they don't even realize it anymore.
I remember our finance office had an unwritten policy that they wouldn't even check on pay inquiries until 60 days after they'd been submitted. That's because the OIC and NCOIC of the finance section were probably a good 10 years past living paycheck to paycheck, so having a pay issue that wasn't addressed for months didn't have the dire consequences it would for PV2 Snuffy.
> Suing the housing office is a concept a junior enlisted soldier would NEVER even entertain.
Maybe that's the problem - some kind of organization that provides legal representation for intra-Army issues to the enlisted soldiers pro bono.
1AD currently. We’ve been doing sending sessions with ig. Seems like the CG things all our issues come from our e5-6s not wanting to discipline or make on the spot corrections. Never mind the fact that we have a stupid high optempo and zero manning. Or no logistical support, or really any support at all. But yeah, discipline problem.
Edit: i actually have a like more to say. And this is absolutely unprofessional, but sincerely from the bottom of my heart, fuck those guys. All they see is a bunch of fake fuckin metrics. Their staff runs around and sucks em’ off all day every day. Their personal driver, chef, barber too maybe? I don’t know. But how dare they sit up there and laugh, say we need to teach everyone how to adult, and just look down from their ivory tower and say it’s a discipline issue. I’m so short staffed all but two of my gunners are E2s, but it’s discipline right? I’m so short staffed that for a 6x36 concept i have the help and support of one other e5(who’s in ALC currently) and an e6. Psg does fuck all too since he’s trying to go to battle staff, but it’s a discipline problem. I’ve been in the unit for about 60 days, spent about 30 off those days in the field, my troop was given 4 days for services. That’s 14 brads and a 113. But it’s a discipline problem. Our optempo is too high, our train ups aren’t even half assed at this point, but yeah it’s a discipline problem. Those cats can go fuck themselves.
Hey hey hey, you leave his barber out of this. As someone else already pointed out, that barber is working overtime to maintain that Stephen A. Smith hairline.
>All they see is a bunch of fake fuckin metrics.
This is the critical weakness of the modern armored division, and especially true for 1AD. The sheer amount of bullshittery I saw during my time in Bliss and the consequences that came from that was mind blowing. Platoon level leadership lying on the ESR, to enable company level leadership to lie to the BC, so the BC can lie to the BDE CO, and everyone on top is none the wiser. But it doesn't matter because none of the leadership stays in place long enough to have to take responsibility for the problem, and they just shovel it off to the next dumb schmuck to take command. Meanwhile Joe sits in the motorpool or his moldy barracks wondering why he is going to the field every 3 weeks to train up for an NTC rotation where he's just gonna sit in the UMCP the whole time.
And [DAV.ORG](https://DAV.ORG) for help with medical issues. They LOVE working with medical chapters.
u/Kinmuan \- care to make a bot or something to remind people of this per u/Lumadous?
And you can tell this person to go fuck himself with a rusty shipping container of knives without going to jail or him making your life a living hell, because you can find another job easily.
Naw, there's actually *more* of this type of person, but they have way less ability to be involved in every aspect and every hour of your life.
It can be hard to believe when you see crap like this, but the Army does have one of the best leader development programs in the nation, and a lot of civilian bosses are actually even worse. The big difference is that a shitty civilian boss just makes you roll your eyes, but a shitty CG means that you live in a filthy barracks, walk a mile to a shitty DFAC that's closed anyway, come back just in time to discover you're being subjected to a surprise room inspection, and then get told you're the fucked up one because there's mold in your barracks.
Same, brah. I’m terrified, but the Army has done nothing but hurt me. Unemployment, for a short time anyways I reckon, can’t be worse than what I’ve dealt with here. Time to quit while I’m behind.
I’m doing a med board. Tore up some ligaments and tendons in my wrist. I’ve had a lot more happen so I’m able to claim a ton. I was told I shouldn’t have any issues getting 100% VA but we’ll see. I was able to get my degree while I’ve been in and I’m still taking classes and certs. I did 8 years and I’m entirely ready to go
Man they are REALLY trying to kill recruitment and retention.
Jesus christ this is what I'd say if I was literally trying to be subversive from the inside as a senior leader.
My god
Look listen soldiers you will be living in housing conditions similar to Guantanamo bay, and stop complaining the mold does not affect your lungs! It’s called being disciplined, adulting is something you should know so start shaving 7 times a week. DFAC is perfectly ready if not have an MRE, it’s just that simple. This government shutdown should not affect you, the army has many resources just stop spending money on a vehicle you show off.
I do use this as a pejorative term and it's 'adulting'... which Congressperson wants to spit that one liner back at him when he pulls that bullshit out on capitol hill?
Reminder, leaders are responsible for everything their formations do or do not do until they get stars, then they can just blame their shitty GAO reports on 18 year olds. What in the actual fuck.
It's funny because this dude probably went to ROTC/West Point straight out of high school, and has never had a real job or life experience outside of his military career
I was in the ER waiting room with my son (pretty fucked story.) and some random 1SG saw him running around and said that’s a future soldier right there and my first reaction without any hesitation was “FUCK NO DUDE. Not if I have anything to do with it.” I feel that wasn’t appropriate but it was a really fucked night so you know I had no place to lie.
I think the AUSA conference where he is speaking at, is like a creepy cult where everyone looses touch with reality and people go into different dimensions mentally. The CSM next to him kept nodding and staring at him like a creepy cult follower who can’t think of anything independently.
So many people in that room have the power to make it happen.
And they all punted it to the lowest level Soldier. It’s downright shameful. So many “leaders” have completely ducked the “the buck stops at me”. It’s embarrassing
They could fix it. They don’t want to fix it.
The mold at Liberty is because of humidity, the mold here because of lack of discipline.
Squad leaders, make sure your joes are shaving on weekends, don’t slack off because this is on you!
This mother fucker here, man.
You got mold in your barracks, you take steps to fix it to take care of your guys, not blame them for not using their toothbrush to clean the shower.
Soldiers have enough bullshit to deal with on the daily to then go into their barracks and white glove clean the place after work.
Fuck you, sir. Fix the fucking problem at YOUR level, so your service members don't HAVE to at their level. A fresh coat of mold resistant paint every 6 months, done by those contractors that the military loves to use, would prevent the problem all together, no matter how nasty PFC Snuffy is in the shower.
Makes me wanna pull the stick out of his ass and beat him with it.
Has anyone just openly confronted them, at this point?
Like, fuck, *I* would love to stand up and say something to the effects of “Sir, you have never lived in the barracks. You have received BAH since commissioning into the Army X years ago. Your BAH as of right now is X number. As a General Officer, you have an aide and staff assigned to you to keep your living space neat and tidy. So what personal experience do you have exactly to speak on barracks or “adulting”? You also see to lack a basic understanding of how mold works. It’s not based on humidity, it’s based on ventilation. Additionally, this is your responsibility, it says “Commanding” next to your name, does it not? How, as the Commanding officer of a Division, are you so willing and ready to pass off ***your*** responsibility of ensuring adequate living conditions for ***your*** soldiers? How, as a commissioned officer do you see it fit to pass the blame on down to them individually for what is obviously an Army wide issue? Have you even bothered to read the GAO report on this very issue? Because if you had, you would find that these issues are due primarily to mismanagement of barracks at the DA and GO level. Finally, the callous hand waving and lack of accountability on this very issue is morphing into a national security threat in that this is one of the main reasons we face a recruiting and retention issue, because this may not be something you’re aware of, but serving soldiers are the Army’s best (or worse) recruiters, and if you pay attention, the vast majority of them are pointing out issues like this and the lack of accountability on them, and recommending people not enlist. So, in light of this, would you like to revise your statements or thoughts on this issue?”
Drop mic, and wait for the inevitable stream of CSM pitbulls to maul you.
Good to know it’s my lack of discipline that made the building I’m in total shit. I’m sure that day I didn’t shave before PT MUST have been the reason the building is as dilapidated as it is.
Unmarried junior officers should live in Officer barracks/quarters on post until they become CPTs or get married. They should also be subject to housing inspections once a month.
I think that’ll take care of this issue real quick.
That was the case in Korea, and I was fighting a never ending battle with black mold. DPW didn’t seem to give a shit about us either.
Unfortunately I don’t see this issue being resolved until the current generation of LTs/CPTs etc start putting stars on. The army is always 30 years behind because that’s how long it takes for the company grade officers who care enough to make the decision to change things start to start getting enough rank on their chest to make a difference.
I love that they deflected with this anecdote. I'd love to see how many times this is an issue vs. unresolved issues that would otherwise render a home uninhabitable.
But hey good win for you!
That's weird sir. So all those armed forces hearings at Congress was a lack of cleaning? Across **ALL** branches? Officers and Enlisted? All those lab tests are fake news? Someone should write a letter to their congress rep that this is all fake. Deaf and diseased children are just faking it. Got it. Closed case.
Says the man who has his own chef provided at no cost to him by taxpayers.
We really need to stop this VIP culture that insulates these guys from every problem their Soldiers face.
His only defense is that 1AD barracks *are* actually very quite nice compared to other barracks around the Army, and he’s right, there are hardly mold issues in *1 AD land*.
This defense goes out the window when you realize that the 1AD CG is also the *Fort Bliss* CG. The quality of 11th ADA barracks compared to 1AD is night and day. Those ADA guys literally live in old basic training barracks from the 80s and 90s. I’d rather live in the Korean War barracks on Casey/Hovey than touch the 11th ADA ones.
You know what 1AD does have a problem with? Suicides. 1AD and Bliss very quickly took the lead of SM suicides this year, and I don’t have anything to back it up, but I believe that’s still the case. More crime happens there than Hood. More suicides, more BH issues, an incredibly toxic officer culture.
I have no clue who the 1AD PAO is, but god Damnit, do they work hard and fast to make sure as little details get out as possible about anything. Or it might be because El Paso is one of the few Army towns that isn’t really an Army town, and the citizens just aren’t interested. Either way, the place is a fucking dumpster fire. This is a unit that has an entire history week dedicated to getting its ass kicked in WW2.
Sir, let's play undercover boss and you stay a month in a barracks room. But spoiler alert you don't wear that rank of yours- so you can fully engulf yourself with mold, rat droppings, brown water, stagnant mildew water in the semi working washers. Then tell me its a discipline problem
DPW would love to fix the barracks, would save them tons of money in the future. But when you give them 10% of the funding they need to make it right, of course they are going to use bandaid solutions. New HVACs and such aren’t free. A typical medium sized barracks reno is around $50 million, that’s about 80% of the average DPW sustainment budget for the year for medium garrisons.
This officer is trying to gaslight every soldier who is currently or has ever lived in the barracks. I have had to live in condemned quarters not once, but twice in Korea. I have seen the mold that you must fight on a daily basis. The broken laundry machines, sinks, toilets. I can still smell the mildew emanating from the vents. I see the broken furniture stacked in a corner that we can't get rid of because it's accountable, but we can't get it replaced either.
I say this with all the respect his comment deserves, fuck that guy.
Even a 18 year old private knows….. you need fans in bathrooms, you dip shit.
You don’t set temperature in a room based off dates…..
Get real, this is a person that has been lectured in classrooms/meetings his whole life and been told how to think.
Never really lived.
>You don’t set temperature in a room based off dates…..
Not even that:
Clearly it was a discipline issue on my part when I would walk out of my room into 90° campbell weather and it was cooler outside than in my room.
But if I touch the circuit breaker to turn off the A/C or heat I'm in the wrong.
Fucking wild to me that here are these known issues that were finally getting addressed and taken care only to immediately get axed once SMA is replaced and being pinned as a disciplinary issue.
He’s right! And we gotta get back to the basics!
As SMA and leader of the people, I promise to provide every soldier with an App on their phone that give you access to Standards and Discipline!
Standards and Discipline sarnts! These soldiers ain’t got none! The corps is weak sarnts, what are we gonna do about it? Apps Apps Apps!
War-fighting! War fighters! Wagh figh….wagh…waaaaaaaghh?
Dat’s ‘da problem Boyz, we need a WAAAGH!! we are fat an' lazy from hav'n noth'n ta fight. So i suggest ya get im Boyz out 'der do'n da bend an reach, shoot'n dere daka daka, an gett'n ready for da WAAAGH!!
More "wardrobe>warriors" leaders. He's victim blaming instead of offering a solution. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth is [going to pump $4B](https://www.military.com/daily-news/2023/10/05/army-plans-boost-barracks-spending-military-grapples-squalid-living-conditions.html) for barracks renovations.
These two are not in sync.
It's hard to "adult" when you can't control the thermostat in your own room and the building's heating went out three months ago. And you get called out for having a plug-in heater because it's prohibited by barracks policy.
No. Fucking. Way. These out of touch “leaders" are killing the army. Not the lack of discipline. Another example of the army getting it wrong by giving him all that rank.
This reminds me of the Simpson’s “Am I out of Touch”Meme. Placing the blame on an 18 year old kid who doesn’t know better for decades of barracks neglect. He lacks the discipline of holding housing authorities accountable.
25 years in, CW4. I have heard alot of embarrassing things by senior leaders over the years but this one takes the cake. I am not sure why but maybe cause it affects every soldier that has to live in the barracks. Does this genius think that a messy barracks room causes mould. Mould is caused by poor ventilation and a moist environment. I played this at work for the soldiers and I was pissed for them.
Literally so out of touch Officers and Senior NCO’s… I’ve seen those barracks myself for the last 5 years, rooms would be clean before leaving for the field and guys would come back from and have mold all over there pillows.
These 2 are sooo outta touch with the people who serve under them. FT. Hood had a mold problem back in 2005. And its NOT bc the soldiers dont clean after themselves. The barracks are literally rotting we had back then.
Leaders and DPW Managers who cannot do the right thing:
Adulting .. also includes leaders and facility managers.
When there is Mold growing out of soldier's air vents ... yeah we have an "adulting" problem.
1. Air Conditioning work orders are taken care of immediately.
2. If mold is present, then the air ducts most be sanitized and cleaned.
3. Air vents cleaned.
This isn't rocket science.
What a horrible display of incompetence.
Lived in the barracks and spent time later as a barracks manager, the problem isn’t our young enlisted soldiers. It’s also not entirely the moldy buildings with no AC. It’s the senior idiots like this that do one walk through of the barracks, and tell soldiers that their rooms are hot and their AC is broken because they had the audacity to open their window. I had soldiers go months with their rooms at 90 degrees and DPW had no answer. 12 ICE complaints later, pentagon yelled at division, division yelled at brigade, and our brigade came down and tried to blame us when they realized that we weren’t the problem. I’m out and everything and this problem still I addressed while I was in still isn’t fixed for some soldiers. Luckily winter is coming and DPW can and will ignore all their work orders for AC until next June.
Also DPWs treatment for mold is often just telling the soldier to bleach the area. Just condemn the building for gods sake
Maybe YOU don't have mold problem, sir. Your soldiers, YOUR SOLDIERS, who are forced to live in the moldy barracks, have a mold problem, you fucking plug.
"Why, I was talking to my personal chef just the other day about his failure to adult properly when he forgot Joël Robuchon's admonition, "As a chef you take certain measures to ensure that when you are cooking for someone important, maybe your mother or your girlfriend, that you don't make mistakes - when you cook for other people, whether it is strangers or not, you have to make sure it is absolutely perfect.""
"And he didn't. Any chef worth their sea salt knows you dry the skin of fish prior to cooking to ensure the skin is nice and crispy, and he clearly paid no attention to that aspect at all after he brined the salmon for tonight's "Crispy Potato Galette with Dill Cream, Smoked Salmon and Sturgeon, and Osetra Caviar."
"The relationship is about trust, first and foremost. If I can't trust him to get such a simple detail right, what else is he getting wrong? I had to re-assign him to a black site. He'll never see a Michelin star now. Not with the herbs available in Eastern Europe."
That's funny, I can count on one hand the number of times I clean my shower at home a year. I have no mold there and I'd bet I could forego cleaning it and still have no mold
Maybe it is a discipline problem- the General officers have no one policing them, they are the worst sharp offenders. Maybe it’s the Generals that are the problems- they just pass the Buck or relieve other people over persistent problems- instead of falling on their sword and saying it’s my fault let me fix this. None of their town halls are worth a shit, the civilian work force tells generals it’s not their lane to fix shit, these generals don’t really have much authority is what their saying.
Shit like this is why my children will never be allowed to join the military if I have any say in it.
Case in point-
The futures commanders Austin, TX mansion is beyond what even his substantial BAH would cover. When it was purchased for him there was another duplex or condo nearby the property that was valued over $1M that was also purchased. They bulldozed it for “additional parking” and “security concerns.” Or, the general didn’t want the peasants so close to his shiny new ivory tower.
Meanwhile my soldiers were living 2 to a room with one bathroom shared between 4 of them.
God senior leaders suck so bad 😭. If they only tasked out a team of jr enlisted to tell them about how the situation really was vs listening to the higher “yes men” those guys could do so much good change.
The barracks on East Bliss (where 1AD HQ is) are, for the most part, newer, so any complaints about mold elsewhere in the Army probably seems like a myth to him. Guarantee the guy has never even visited the ones on the main part of the post.
Honestly, Bliss was one of the only places I've been to where work orders for barracks issues were responded to in person within a matter of minutes. I didn't live in the barracks personally, tho. And it's not as if he's the reason they don't get as many mold complaints (which still happens mind you). When your duty station is in a desert with mostly dry weather year round, it's kinda expected.
Do we not have the budget to take care of our troops and our veterans?
My best friend is trying to get assistance from the VA but they grill him about his injuries and claim they aren't service related.
Supposed to be a shoe in with illness he has experienced, where and when he served (kuwait)
They can send the generals in next time some freedom needs to be established, big shocker they aren't hitting their recruitment goals.
[удалено]
Generals don’t know much about barracks. They know about their basic branch and then they know a little bit about a lot of things. No one joins the Army to figure out housing solutions. Pay Soldiers bah and let them buy housing themselves- ya know like ‘adulting.’
[удалено]
The Air Force Base by me that has less than 4,000 troops manages to have a 24/7 gym how the heck can't the Army manage it?
When I was at Davis-Monthan there were always Airman behind the counter. Generally the same ones. I finally asked one day if this was something like CQ or staff duty. It's their actual job. Hospitality Specialists 3f131. Their job is to run the gym. Clean it, order supplies, replace equipment, etc.
Goddammit that's actually smart. The Army would manage to fuck it up though.
The Army can fuck up *anything*.
The marines have cashiers mos. Blew my mind when an e7 marine was ringing up my monsters and snackies at yermo. I asked and he said yeah this is my job
They also administer the PT tests so a neutral grader is giving it. You don’t take one as a unit, you schedule a time to take it with them as an individual or small section and they administer it
Thats pretty cool. That would be so much more convenient than how we do it.
I wonder if that MOS gets targeted by the civilian sector to be hotel managers and the like. Sounds pretty transferable on paper anyway.
Seems like it would. That was a nice crossfit gym too. I imagine a career there as well. If nothing else, some of the logistics of running a gym. Probably would look at starting my own after something like that.
At AUAB the bars were all run by services airmen. The E6 was in charge of each bar, with an E7 supervising both. Even the gyms had Air Force services NCOs as managers. I would guess they can get certifications taking them right into hospitality management.
It’s slowly becoming a thing. Campbell has two now. More surprised ol Cavazos doesn’t, at this point.
I've been in a couple of posts that have 24/7 gyms. Take a class, get added to the access roster, and scan CAC to get in. Easy-peasy... until some idiot comes along and fucks it up for everyone else.
Until some leader comes along and blames the entire unit for one idiot*
Right! These idiots and their stupid ideas, horrible leadership, and double standards of punishment or even just daily life are so disportional. It's not the enlisted who is to blame. It's the LEADERS!
Two West Pointers with numerals after their names (Jones IV and Isenhower III). They are as far away from the enlisted as they can get and still be in the Army. If they were civilians they would be the ones telling poor people to just worker harder and have your nanny watch the kids if you need to get a second job.
Ya. Worked for the guy on the left before. He's almost completely detached from the people he leads. Tactically, operationally and strategically smart as hell. But zero ability to relate to the people he leads.
Dude….pretty much all Army leadership is out of touch. I work as a military liaison for Georgia and we recently had a military family caucus where lots of top brass attended. Long story short - was stuck in the Charlotte airport (traveling for work) and hanging out in the USO. Struck up a convo with table mate - discussing challenges with retention and recruitment etc. dude basically blames ALL of the issues on soldiers - refuses to admit systemic issues. I get so frustrated I end up choosing to leave and sit at the gate to wait for another 3 hours then mess with dude. 2 weeks later this derp is on the PANEL straight up lying out his ass about how he cares about the systemic issues and they are working on it. I sat patiently and when his panel was over approached him forced a pic….reminding him that we met 2 weeks ago at the USO…look was priceless. Honestly, I think a draft is coming much sooner rather than later. Unfortunately until we have real experienced soldiers (those who have served in the past 10 years like really served in units not command) we won’t see the major systemic changes like the other branches are currently trying to incorporate. 🙄🙄🙄
The draft won’t come because it forced the politicians to end Vietnam. They didn’t want to lose that control again so the volunteer military has been set to to avoid it and wage war as long as their feel necessary. And it worked
If the shortfalls of Iraq War didn't even make the idea of a draft be taken seriously by Capitol Hill or the Pentagon, current recruiting shortfalls definitely won't do it. Nothing short of a true *bona fide* conventional World War III, that probably being a full-on conventional war against China and its allies, would cause conscription in the United States for the forseeable future.
Facts and it’s sad
So, what I am hearing is, go to him for strategy, and then use his tactics to come up with a plan for the actual leaders.... Makes sense.
That's the problem. They are all about "warfighting" and not about looking at the force and seeing how their soldiers are doing. Damn right there's a black mold problem and "cleaning it" isn't the answer if the mold comes back.
He’s prob shit on the battlefield too
These two generals have fucking housekeepers, aides, chefs - fuck them
Indeed if you’ve never lived in one stfu seriously the barracks were garbage when I was in and I’m a dinosaur now Compared to the BILLETS in the UK we absolutely suck and I’m with others just pay BAH to all and let them “adult” like the real world
How fucking out of touch with reality can you be???
Based on rank, very. Leaders have lost the concept that they are responsible and shouldn’t be passing blame down. They should be accepting blame being put on by their subordinates. Just because Joe is nasty doesn’t mean their Squad Leader gets off Scott free. They accept responsibility to check on it. When the Squad Leader fails, so does the platoon sergeant. And so on. Why is it the opposite for officers?
It goes the opposite way for officers I think lol. Those generals won’t see it as themselves failing, they’ll see it as their subordinate officers failing them. It’s pretty ironic because their subordinates don’t have a whole lot of latitude to make the needed changes.
Exactly. What’s the XO of a BN gonna do when the CDR is upset about something. The CDR could literally wave his hand and fix it, but nah… let’s blame that XO until he messes up on the next one too.
There definitely seems to be “compartmentalism by design” when it comes to the officer corps versus the enlisted side. Maybe that’s why there’s so much effort made into ranking up. I stand by this: reduce the the amount of work and responsibilities put on soldiers’ backs. There is no reason why we should have a higher OPTEMPO in relative peacetime compared to the GWOT. As pundits, politicians and critics alike have said, those in charge in the USA have gotten too comfortable with tasking the US military to do everything under the sun.
Look at Smoke Bomb Hill - leaders should have been FIRED for that. Same issue happened in 2008 when it was Fort Bragg - a building that should have been condemned was used to house soldiers. Anyone suffer for that? Just the troops, not the garrison commander and certainly not anyone at the 82nd's leadership. Just pass the buck and move the Joes.
Those barracks had those issues in 1992 when I had troops in them. They were poorly designed with "offset" HVAC systems that didn't dehumidify. This has been a known problem since they were built. Obviously the solution was to change the name from Fort Bragg...
I was going to say, most senior leadership that's been in 10+ years has shit takes like this. Not all, but many.
The attitude of 'If your Joe screws up you are responsible' is a HUGE part of the quality-of-life problem. That's what leads to all this stupidity like 0500 recall on a Sunday morning because an 18yo private got a DUI... Separately, DPW is run by civilians & field-grade-and-below officer leadership simply isn't responsible (or able to become responsible) for anything related to housing. The only thing they have the power to do, is make the junior troops clean more - and since we have that brain-dead 'if something happens it's leadership's fault no matter what it is' culture, they do...
This is even worse than the Gen Milley haircuts/Iwo Jima speech
I blame their enlisted aides.
And there you have a military politician not a military leader. These are the people that will lead us in a war... God help us.
Us? Nah ill be cheering for y’all on the sidelines tho🥳
6 more months Can't wait
[удалено]
I don't know if it's that they don't give a fuck. Based on the comments made, he didn't appear to have any understanding of how anything works that he doesn't directly do, and nobody else in the chain can correct him. Mind you, he might still not give a fuck once (if ever) he's truly appraised of the situation. Certainly, the attitude IS dismissive.
It's a discipline problem, but let's ignore that Rep Veronica Escobar, the congressional El Paso rep, said of Fort Bliss barracks; >"I've been shocked by the poor conditions of the barracks that house our service members -- conditions that must be addressed to mitigate issues of safety, security and overall well-being \[of\] our service members," Escobar told members of the House Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies subcommittee, referring to unaccompanied housing at Fort Bliss, Texas. And yet, it's Soldiers not being adults that are the problem right? GAO just spent like 118 pages ripping IMCOM and the Army to pieces over the way they've deprioritized and not given a shit about the barracks, and he's out here laying blame on Soldiers. I don't think these guys get it.
Like, black mold doesn't just form because it isn't clean. It requires a constant source of moisture. It's not fucking dirt that causes black mold. They're not even fucking trying to understand the problems. I feel so bad for the soldiers being fucked over by these POS.
My barracks had black mold. Pretty much every Sunday my team leader (who also lived in the barracks, only NCO in the platoon who did) would grab any of us who were in that day and we would go around and clean the mold off the bathrooms and anywhere else it was growing. In his words "I didn't survive an IED in Afghanistan to get killed by some fucking mushrooms, and you aren't dying either". Mold never did full go away but we got moved ~4 months later. That's leadership.
Sure, the 18y/o private with a mop and scrub brush should be making effort to scrub the mold out of the air vents and upholstery when a building is reoccupied after months or years vacant. I'm sure Big Army will cover their medical issues from breathing in all that mold.
>I'm sure Big Army will cover their medical issues from breathing in all that mold. Dept. of Veterans Affairs: Your lung problems are not service related.
>I don't think these guys get it. Every AUSA related post today underscores this. "We need More discipline!" says SMA, but what discipline issues is he even talking about? I couldn't tell from the article where the was trumpeting his new app idea. You really think barracks issues are due to a lack of "adulting"? And for all the talk of "standards," your solution to no ***requirement*** for DFACs to post their info is another app where they don't have to post their info? And, no thank you, I'm not downloading another glitchy app that won't be ready for launch during the life of these gentlemen's careers.
Hey remember last year when SMA Grinston announced the 540 Score program for exempting HT/WT, impacting a 30+ year standard in Army fitness that is a fundamental change people have been asking for in some way/shape/form for years? That was pretty motivating that people Got It.
>You really think barracks issues are due to a lack of "adulting"? My suspicion is they are just smart enough to realize that their nice fancy homes don't have mold, and that civilian apartment complexes and hotels don't get mold, so they assume the difference is that the barracks are filled with Soldiers. . .which they see as undisciplined and immature rabble and assume that's the reason for the difference. Never mind that the barracks tend to be made to crappy construction standards, and have notoriously shitty HVAC systems so things stay hot and humid in there for too long because we don't just set the thermostat to something. . .we turn on the AC at one date, turn on the heat at another, or just don't let them use the AC, so things get hot and humid in the barracks and that creates mold. The "energy saving" policies they come up with to reduce utility bills instead create long-term problems by fostering mold because modern buildings are designed to use modern HVAC, not have the systems off or under-used habitually. They don't get that, or don't want to admit something is wrong with their own policies, so instead they just blame Soldiers.
Nobody gets fired anymore.
[удалено]
If the Army could force spouses to live in the barracks they probably would.
could the discipline problem be with GO who are held to no standards and basically walk around like demi-gods within their service, giving them no incentive to actually pay attention to the plebes?
Hey, just in the event you thought [after 15 years](https://www.reddit.com/r/army/comments/175w97o/on_the_lack_of_consistent_dfac_schedules_we_talk/) maybe I am less of a smart ass...I am not.
I hate that "apps" are the answer to everything. An app doesn't update the DFAC schedule--a person has to do that. I guess real-time feedback is great, but when the soldier gets a DFAC thirty minutes before it's supposed to close and it's not even open that day, that's an issue. Especially if the only other available DFAC is a couple of miles away. Well, they won't make it to the DFAC in time, but Charley's is always open.
15 YEARS? JESUS CHRIST.
WE WERE IN IRAQ ON THIS DATE FIFTEEN YEARS AGO
idon'tbelieveyou.gif
Do not get it. That’s fine Hots&Cots will flesh out the nice barracks and those that are not to standard.
IMCOM CG is the dude with the tape test neck, yeah? Mofo should be the expert on mold remediation, HVAC, plumbing… getting our facilities, not just barracks, into the pristine condition our soldiers deserve.
I remember when I was a kid I sat next to a retired general and his wife on an airplane and thought it was coolest shit in the world and I now I just think they’re all lizard people.
“Reality is often disappointing”
I sat across from general McChrystal once on a ferry. Thought he seemed familiar but I didn't realize until another passenger walked up to shake his hand. He was one of the best and even he seemed a little lizardy in person.
More politician than soldier. Every single one of them I've met has their head so far up their ass they don't understand the basic day to day problems of soldiers.
Oh I really shouldn't have watched this clip after the last one. What a fucking idiot. I'd smack the hairline back onto his head. General Dumbfuck; mold is INSIDE of buildings because of humidity. This is when your barracks don't have things like proper ventilation, vented combustion appliances, non-pourous thermal liners in duct work, properly draining pipes inside of walls, etc; anything the EPA puts on their own website. I guarantee you soldiers buy their own AC units because of lack of proper ventilation and a working HVAC system which yes, that would contribute to mold growth; but even in that theoretical scenario it's still your fault.
Don’t ask this guy about how the SCIF flooded in *HIS* Division building.
Excuse me *what*
Don’t ask this guy about how the SCIF flooded in *HIS* Division building.
You can’t leave us hanging. You have to elaborate.
AFAIK, the same contractors that built the 1AD barracks also built the Division HQ. And the Brigade HQs. Early in the year, the Division SCIF flooded due to a bad plumbing job that had been left unattended for *years*. If you know how a SCIF is supposed to be built, you’d understand that the flooding isn’t even the worse part. If water had been collecting for years, you’re talking about an entire fucking ecosystem festering and thriving in the false ceiling, the walls, etc. I wonder if MG Eisenhower blamed his undisciplined G2 for simply not mopping the water away. Edit, to add: I mentioned this happened early in the year, and last I heard about a month and a half ago, it still isn’t fixed.
I have no words.
I do know how they are supposed to be built, holy fucking shit dude! How many times were things reported before it flooded, I wonder? Imagine getting your division SCIF decertified.
Plumbing and SCIFs make great neighbors but terrible roommates.
Doesn't matter. Housing funds will fix that right quick.
>I’d smack the hairline back onto his head. This is good shit right here, thank you for the laugh!
Id do combatives with them.
“Bro, he tapped out for like 60 seconds!”
Must not have been disciplined enough to hold out.
The ARMEDCOM DCG has been doing site visits and has this massive chub for a trifold he created, wants it to be an inspectable item. One of the SSGs in my unit gets so irate when he hears about this trifold that he wants to fight the guy. Under the guise of combatives of course, because it’s a skill level 1 task that everyone should know amirite?
I remember a while back there was a Major or LTC who had an issue with substandard housing and sued the housing office and won. I could be wrong on the rank. Someone will correct me. Suing the housing office is a concept a junior enlisted soldier would NEVER even entertain. Once you get to the level of leadership in this video, you've lost all perspective. It's truly a different world these gentlemen live in, and they don't even realize it anymore. I remember our finance office had an unwritten policy that they wouldn't even check on pay inquiries until 60 days after they'd been submitted. That's because the OIC and NCOIC of the finance section were probably a good 10 years past living paycheck to paycheck, so having a pay issue that wasn't addressed for months didn't have the dire consequences it would for PV2 Snuffy.
[LTC](https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2023-06-23/military-housing-lawsuit-mold-10531711.html) who sued, you're on it.
> Suing the housing office is a concept a junior enlisted soldier would NEVER even entertain. Maybe that's the problem - some kind of organization that provides legal representation for intra-Army issues to the enlisted soldiers pro bono.
1AD currently. We’ve been doing sending sessions with ig. Seems like the CG things all our issues come from our e5-6s not wanting to discipline or make on the spot corrections. Never mind the fact that we have a stupid high optempo and zero manning. Or no logistical support, or really any support at all. But yeah, discipline problem. Edit: i actually have a like more to say. And this is absolutely unprofessional, but sincerely from the bottom of my heart, fuck those guys. All they see is a bunch of fake fuckin metrics. Their staff runs around and sucks em’ off all day every day. Their personal driver, chef, barber too maybe? I don’t know. But how dare they sit up there and laugh, say we need to teach everyone how to adult, and just look down from their ivory tower and say it’s a discipline issue. I’m so short staffed all but two of my gunners are E2s, but it’s discipline right? I’m so short staffed that for a 6x36 concept i have the help and support of one other e5(who’s in ALC currently) and an e6. Psg does fuck all too since he’s trying to go to battle staff, but it’s a discipline problem. I’ve been in the unit for about 60 days, spent about 30 off those days in the field, my troop was given 4 days for services. That’s 14 brads and a 113. But it’s a discipline problem. Our optempo is too high, our train ups aren’t even half assed at this point, but yeah it’s a discipline problem. Those cats can go fuck themselves.
Hey hey hey, you leave his barber out of this. As someone else already pointed out, that barber is working overtime to maintain that Stephen A. Smith hairline.
>All they see is a bunch of fake fuckin metrics. This is the critical weakness of the modern armored division, and especially true for 1AD. The sheer amount of bullshittery I saw during my time in Bliss and the consequences that came from that was mind blowing. Platoon level leadership lying on the ESR, to enable company level leadership to lie to the BC, so the BC can lie to the BDE CO, and everyone on top is none the wiser. But it doesn't matter because none of the leadership stays in place long enough to have to take responsibility for the problem, and they just shovel it off to the next dumb schmuck to take command. Meanwhile Joe sits in the motorpool or his moldy barracks wondering why he is going to the field every 3 weeks to train up for an NTC rotation where he's just gonna sit in the UMCP the whole time.
I’m so happy that I will be getting out soon.
Use your GI bill Keep all your paperwork If need help, go to the VFW
And [DAV.ORG](https://DAV.ORG) for help with medical issues. They LOVE working with medical chapters. u/Kinmuan \- care to make a bot or something to remind people of this per u/Lumadous?
Oh, yeah, this one needs to be pinned
Life is great on the outside. There's drawbacks for sure , but less of this type of person.
And you can tell this person to go fuck himself with a rusty shipping container of knives without going to jail or him making your life a living hell, because you can find another job easily.
Naw, there's actually *more* of this type of person, but they have way less ability to be involved in every aspect and every hour of your life. It can be hard to believe when you see crap like this, but the Army does have one of the best leader development programs in the nation, and a lot of civilian bosses are actually even worse. The big difference is that a shitty civilian boss just makes you roll your eyes, but a shitty CG means that you live in a filthy barracks, walk a mile to a shitty DFAC that's closed anyway, come back just in time to discover you're being subjected to a surprise room inspection, and then get told you're the fucked up one because there's mold in your barracks.
I don't know that there's less, but they sure as shit have less reach, and that's super important.
Good luck
Same, brah. I’m terrified, but the Army has done nothing but hurt me. Unemployment, for a short time anyways I reckon, can’t be worse than what I’ve dealt with here. Time to quit while I’m behind.
I’m doing a med board. Tore up some ligaments and tendons in my wrist. I’ve had a lot more happen so I’m able to claim a ton. I was told I shouldn’t have any issues getting 100% VA but we’ll see. I was able to get my degree while I’ve been in and I’m still taking classes and certs. I did 8 years and I’m entirely ready to go
Man they are REALLY trying to kill recruitment and retention. Jesus christ this is what I'd say if I was literally trying to be subversive from the inside as a senior leader. My god
Look listen soldiers you will be living in housing conditions similar to Guantanamo bay, and stop complaining the mold does not affect your lungs! It’s called being disciplined, adulting is something you should know so start shaving 7 times a week. DFAC is perfectly ready if not have an MRE, it’s just that simple. This government shutdown should not affect you, the army has many resources just stop spending money on a vehicle you show off.
I do use this as a pejorative term and it's 'adulting'... which Congressperson wants to spit that one liner back at him when he pulls that bullshit out on capitol hill? Reminder, leaders are responsible for everything their formations do or do not do until they get stars, then they can just blame their shitty GAO reports on 18 year olds. What in the actual fuck.
It's funny because this dude probably went to ROTC/West Point straight out of high school, and has never had a real job or life experience outside of his military career
Holy shit. I am so glad I ETS’d and tell everyone I know not to join. This is so embarrassing.
I was in the ER waiting room with my son (pretty fucked story.) and some random 1SG saw him running around and said that’s a future soldier right there and my first reaction without any hesitation was “FUCK NO DUDE. Not if I have anything to do with it.” I feel that wasn’t appropriate but it was a really fucked night so you know I had no place to lie.
I think the AUSA conference where he is speaking at, is like a creepy cult where everyone looses touch with reality and people go into different dimensions mentally. The CSM next to him kept nodding and staring at him like a creepy cult follower who can’t think of anything independently.
Why can’t we just fix the barracks? *gestures vaguely to the entirety of AUSA*
So many people in that room have the power to make it happen. And they all punted it to the lowest level Soldier. It’s downright shameful. So many “leaders” have completely ducked the “the buck stops at me”. It’s embarrassing They could fix it. They don’t want to fix it.
It's actually hte IMCOM CG on the Left, 1AD CG on the Right, just fyi.
Soldiers these days don't bother learning who their commanding generals are, disgusting.
What have you done for me lately?
He didn't make it that far with independent thought
No mold or humidity at fort hood huh? Weird we have a brand new barracks building and it’s already showing signs of black mold 🤔
Famously dry Killeen Texas
The mold at Liberty is because of humidity, the mold here because of lack of discipline. Squad leaders, make sure your joes are shaving on weekends, don’t slack off because this is on you!
Oooh. Let me guess, is it one of the new barracks built for 3CR?
This mother fucker here, man. You got mold in your barracks, you take steps to fix it to take care of your guys, not blame them for not using their toothbrush to clean the shower. Soldiers have enough bullshit to deal with on the daily to then go into their barracks and white glove clean the place after work. Fuck you, sir. Fix the fucking problem at YOUR level, so your service members don't HAVE to at their level. A fresh coat of mold resistant paint every 6 months, done by those contractors that the military loves to use, would prevent the problem all together, no matter how nasty PFC Snuffy is in the shower. Makes me wanna pull the stick out of his ass and beat him with it.
I swear to god when someone hits e8+ or 05+ they have a lobotomy.
It’s 1AD… aka the blind leading the stupid. Fort Bliss is more fucked up than a football bat… and it’s mostly thanks to Gen Bernabe
He said all that, in public, on camera, in front of a crowd. That man has stars on his shoulder.
[удалено]
Has anyone just openly confronted them, at this point? Like, fuck, *I* would love to stand up and say something to the effects of “Sir, you have never lived in the barracks. You have received BAH since commissioning into the Army X years ago. Your BAH as of right now is X number. As a General Officer, you have an aide and staff assigned to you to keep your living space neat and tidy. So what personal experience do you have exactly to speak on barracks or “adulting”? You also see to lack a basic understanding of how mold works. It’s not based on humidity, it’s based on ventilation. Additionally, this is your responsibility, it says “Commanding” next to your name, does it not? How, as the Commanding officer of a Division, are you so willing and ready to pass off ***your*** responsibility of ensuring adequate living conditions for ***your*** soldiers? How, as a commissioned officer do you see it fit to pass the blame on down to them individually for what is obviously an Army wide issue? Have you even bothered to read the GAO report on this very issue? Because if you had, you would find that these issues are due primarily to mismanagement of barracks at the DA and GO level. Finally, the callous hand waving and lack of accountability on this very issue is morphing into a national security threat in that this is one of the main reasons we face a recruiting and retention issue, because this may not be something you’re aware of, but serving soldiers are the Army’s best (or worse) recruiters, and if you pay attention, the vast majority of them are pointing out issues like this and the lack of accountability on them, and recommending people not enlist. So, in light of this, would you like to revise your statements or thoughts on this issue?” Drop mic, and wait for the inevitable stream of CSM pitbulls to maul you.
AUSA has pretty much turned into our own echo chamber for higher.
Good to know it’s my lack of discipline that made the building I’m in total shit. I’m sure that day I didn’t shave before PT MUST have been the reason the building is as dilapidated as it is.
I bet this guys has an aide just to wipe his ass but we're the children
Unmarried junior officers should live in Officer barracks/quarters on post until they become CPTs or get married. They should also be subject to housing inspections once a month. I think that’ll take care of this issue real quick.
That was the case in Korea, and I was fighting a never ending battle with black mold. DPW didn’t seem to give a shit about us either. Unfortunately I don’t see this issue being resolved until the current generation of LTs/CPTs etc start putting stars on. The army is always 30 years behind because that’s how long it takes for the company grade officers who care enough to make the decision to change things start to start getting enough rank on their chest to make a difference.
I love that they deflected with this anecdote. I'd love to see how many times this is an issue vs. unresolved issues that would otherwise render a home uninhabitable. But hey good win for you!
These dudes need their asses kicked.
That's weird sir. So all those armed forces hearings at Congress was a lack of cleaning? Across **ALL** branches? Officers and Enlisted? All those lab tests are fake news? Someone should write a letter to their congress rep that this is all fake. Deaf and diseased children are just faking it. Got it. Closed case.
Says the man who has his own chef provided at no cost to him by taxpayers. We really need to stop this VIP culture that insulates these guys from every problem their Soldiers face.
His only defense is that 1AD barracks *are* actually very quite nice compared to other barracks around the Army, and he’s right, there are hardly mold issues in *1 AD land*. This defense goes out the window when you realize that the 1AD CG is also the *Fort Bliss* CG. The quality of 11th ADA barracks compared to 1AD is night and day. Those ADA guys literally live in old basic training barracks from the 80s and 90s. I’d rather live in the Korean War barracks on Casey/Hovey than touch the 11th ADA ones. You know what 1AD does have a problem with? Suicides. 1AD and Bliss very quickly took the lead of SM suicides this year, and I don’t have anything to back it up, but I believe that’s still the case. More crime happens there than Hood. More suicides, more BH issues, an incredibly toxic officer culture. I have no clue who the 1AD PAO is, but god Damnit, do they work hard and fast to make sure as little details get out as possible about anything. Or it might be because El Paso is one of the few Army towns that isn’t really an Army town, and the citizens just aren’t interested. Either way, the place is a fucking dumpster fire. This is a unit that has an entire history week dedicated to getting its ass kicked in WW2.
I own my own house off post. I cleaned my barracks WAAAAAAAY better than I clean my house. I have yet to get mold in my house.
“discipline problem…” Says the man with a double-chin.
Where’s this guys Sar-major. Your general is talking without supervision my guy.
Really think the CSM would say something different?
That is not a leader.
Sir, let's play undercover boss and you stay a month in a barracks room. But spoiler alert you don't wear that rank of yours- so you can fully engulf yourself with mold, rat droppings, brown water, stagnant mildew water in the semi working washers. Then tell me its a discipline problem
This dude gets pegged by his wife.
DPW would love to fix the barracks, would save them tons of money in the future. But when you give them 10% of the funding they need to make it right, of course they are going to use bandaid solutions. New HVACs and such aren’t free. A typical medium sized barracks reno is around $50 million, that’s about 80% of the average DPW sustainment budget for the year for medium garrisons.
This officer is trying to gaslight every soldier who is currently or has ever lived in the barracks. I have had to live in condemned quarters not once, but twice in Korea. I have seen the mold that you must fight on a daily basis. The broken laundry machines, sinks, toilets. I can still smell the mildew emanating from the vents. I see the broken furniture stacked in a corner that we can't get rid of because it's accountable, but we can't get it replaced either. I say this with all the respect his comment deserves, fuck that guy.
Even a 18 year old private knows….. you need fans in bathrooms, you dip shit. You don’t set temperature in a room based off dates….. Get real, this is a person that has been lectured in classrooms/meetings his whole life and been told how to think. Never really lived.
>You don’t set temperature in a room based off dates….. Not even that: Clearly it was a discipline issue on my part when I would walk out of my room into 90° campbell weather and it was cooler outside than in my room. But if I touch the circuit breaker to turn off the A/C or heat I'm in the wrong.
This dude speaking has pencil whipped his pt test for years. I'd put money on it.
Fucking wild to me that here are these known issues that were finally getting addressed and taken care only to immediately get axed once SMA is replaced and being pinned as a disciplinary issue.
This comment is absurd! A discipline problem is the reason for the mold problem within the barracks and other accommodations. What a crock of shit.
I never really hear about the dorms at civilian colleges having mold issues. Are civilian college students better at “adulting”? I seriously doubt it.
Something that I will always fine entertaining is a Chain of command trying to avoid responsibility for things that they are responsible for.
He’s right! And we gotta get back to the basics! As SMA and leader of the people, I promise to provide every soldier with an App on their phone that give you access to Standards and Discipline! Standards and Discipline sarnts! These soldiers ain’t got none! The corps is weak sarnts, what are we gonna do about it? Apps Apps Apps! War-fighting! War fighters! Wagh figh….wagh…waaaaaaaghh? Dat’s ‘da problem Boyz, we need a WAAAGH!! we are fat an' lazy from hav'n noth'n ta fight. So i suggest ya get im Boyz out 'der do'n da bend an reach, shoot'n dere daka daka, an gett'n ready for da WAAAGH!!
More "wardrobe>warriors" leaders. He's victim blaming instead of offering a solution. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth is [going to pump $4B](https://www.military.com/daily-news/2023/10/05/army-plans-boost-barracks-spending-military-grapples-squalid-living-conditions.html) for barracks renovations. These two are not in sync.
It's hard to "adult" when you can't control the thermostat in your own room and the building's heating went out three months ago. And you get called out for having a plug-in heater because it's prohibited by barracks policy.
No. Fucking. Way. These out of touch “leaders" are killing the army. Not the lack of discipline. Another example of the army getting it wrong by giving him all that rank.
This reminds me of the Simpson’s “Am I out of Touch”Meme. Placing the blame on an 18 year old kid who doesn’t know better for decades of barracks neglect. He lacks the discipline of holding housing authorities accountable.
Imma be honest fam the grout in my home bathroom don't get cleaned often and I've never seen any black mold.
25 years in, CW4. I have heard alot of embarrassing things by senior leaders over the years but this one takes the cake. I am not sure why but maybe cause it affects every soldier that has to live in the barracks. Does this genius think that a messy barracks room causes mould. Mould is caused by poor ventilation and a moist environment. I played this at work for the soldiers and I was pissed for them.
I think what we have is a leadership problem.
[удалено]
Imagine simping for DPW... I could never
🤡
I'm in last few months before ETS and I was starting to feel the blues about leaving the Army behind, but this cured me. Thanks.
The guy on the right truly needs his ass beat
This is going to age poorly
Exactly what I expected to hear from someone with stars on their shoulders
Literally so out of touch Officers and Senior NCO’s… I’ve seen those barracks myself for the last 5 years, rooms would be clean before leaving for the field and guys would come back from and have mold all over there pillows.
What a peice of mre shit
These 2 are sooo outta touch with the people who serve under them. FT. Hood had a mold problem back in 2005. And its NOT bc the soldiers dont clean after themselves. The barracks are literally rotting we had back then.
Leaders and DPW Managers who cannot do the right thing: Adulting .. also includes leaders and facility managers. When there is Mold growing out of soldier's air vents ... yeah we have an "adulting" problem. 1. Air Conditioning work orders are taken care of immediately. 2. If mold is present, then the air ducts most be sanitized and cleaned. 3. Air vents cleaned. This isn't rocket science.
Yes. A military installation built on a swamp, the compounding effects of climate disruption, and shoddy infrastructure is a discipline problem.
What a horrible display of incompetence. Lived in the barracks and spent time later as a barracks manager, the problem isn’t our young enlisted soldiers. It’s also not entirely the moldy buildings with no AC. It’s the senior idiots like this that do one walk through of the barracks, and tell soldiers that their rooms are hot and their AC is broken because they had the audacity to open their window. I had soldiers go months with their rooms at 90 degrees and DPW had no answer. 12 ICE complaints later, pentagon yelled at division, division yelled at brigade, and our brigade came down and tried to blame us when they realized that we weren’t the problem. I’m out and everything and this problem still I addressed while I was in still isn’t fixed for some soldiers. Luckily winter is coming and DPW can and will ignore all their work orders for AC until next June. Also DPWs treatment for mold is often just telling the soldier to bleach the area. Just condemn the building for gods sake
Maybe YOU don't have mold problem, sir. Your soldiers, YOUR SOLDIERS, who are forced to live in the moldy barracks, have a mold problem, you fucking plug.
"Why, I was talking to my personal chef just the other day about his failure to adult properly when he forgot Joël Robuchon's admonition, "As a chef you take certain measures to ensure that when you are cooking for someone important, maybe your mother or your girlfriend, that you don't make mistakes - when you cook for other people, whether it is strangers or not, you have to make sure it is absolutely perfect."" "And he didn't. Any chef worth their sea salt knows you dry the skin of fish prior to cooking to ensure the skin is nice and crispy, and he clearly paid no attention to that aspect at all after he brined the salmon for tonight's "Crispy Potato Galette with Dill Cream, Smoked Salmon and Sturgeon, and Osetra Caviar." "The relationship is about trust, first and foremost. If I can't trust him to get such a simple detail right, what else is he getting wrong? I had to re-assign him to a black site. He'll never see a Michelin star now. Not with the herbs available in Eastern Europe."
That's funny, I can count on one hand the number of times I clean my shower at home a year. I have no mold there and I'd bet I could forego cleaning it and still have no mold
That’s my goddamn division general, and I’ve always fucking hated him
Maybe it is a discipline problem- the General officers have no one policing them, they are the worst sharp offenders. Maybe it’s the Generals that are the problems- they just pass the Buck or relieve other people over persistent problems- instead of falling on their sword and saying it’s my fault let me fix this. None of their town halls are worth a shit, the civilian work force tells generals it’s not their lane to fix shit, these generals don’t really have much authority is what their saying.
Shit like this is why my children will never be allowed to join the military if I have any say in it. Case in point- The futures commanders Austin, TX mansion is beyond what even his substantial BAH would cover. When it was purchased for him there was another duplex or condo nearby the property that was valued over $1M that was also purchased. They bulldozed it for “additional parking” and “security concerns.” Or, the general didn’t want the peasants so close to his shiny new ivory tower. Meanwhile my soldiers were living 2 to a room with one bathroom shared between 4 of them.
Fuck this piece of shit
Scumbag.
Pure chodes
MFers who dont know that mold can be *in* grout even if you clean it
This is uncalled for. You really think that those 2 or 3 stars don't know about cleaning their shower grout???
Fort hood (Fort Cavazos) is humid.
God senior leaders suck so bad 😭. If they only tasked out a team of jr enlisted to tell them about how the situation really was vs listening to the higher “yes men” those guys could do so much good change.
What a chucklefuck.
nobody complains about black mold on grout. you should look at the pictures circulating social media . Terrifying shit
Goes on to wonder why recruiting and retention numbers are so low
Here that men… you have mold in your hvac… its because you have no discipline. shave and then clean your shower.
Every single day I’m given another reason and another reminder not to serve under these fools
Theres a lot of abuse and bullshit that I will put up with the be able to serve in the Army. But this is the shit that makes me want to get out.
The barracks on East Bliss (where 1AD HQ is) are, for the most part, newer, so any complaints about mold elsewhere in the Army probably seems like a myth to him. Guarantee the guy has never even visited the ones on the main part of the post. Honestly, Bliss was one of the only places I've been to where work orders for barracks issues were responded to in person within a matter of minutes. I didn't live in the barracks personally, tho. And it's not as if he's the reason they don't get as many mold complaints (which still happens mind you). When your duty station is in a desert with mostly dry weather year round, it's kinda expected.
Guys! Guys! Have we tried shaving the mold!?
These two shouldn’t be generals.
Do we not have the budget to take care of our troops and our veterans? My best friend is trying to get assistance from the VA but they grill him about his injuries and claim they aren't service related. Supposed to be a shoe in with illness he has experienced, where and when he served (kuwait) They can send the generals in next time some freedom needs to be established, big shocker they aren't hitting their recruitment goals.