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Somalia Vet
Seaman Recruit
Joined: 18 Nov 2004
Posts: 5
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 Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:32 pm Post subject: Re: OK, I am fed up with the Army |
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| Nutso wrote: | Now he is in Iraq, serving his country and doing his job, however his commander just informed him that because he does not meet the old height-weight standards he will not receive the awards he has earned or medals for service. He is also no longer eligible for advancement.
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There are two standards for individual weight that the US Army uses to measure fitness of US soldiers. The first is a height/weight standard. US Army fitness standards use a chart to determine what the maximum height and weight are for all soldiers.
Now, if a soldier exceeds the height/weight bodyfat standard then they are taped using a specific formula to determine actual body fat content. The reason this is done is because the frames of some men do not apply to the chart so when taped as long as they are a certain percentage below the body fat percentage, they are fine.
It is inconceivable and shameful to me that his Company Commander would use his body fat content in a war zone as a disciplinary action against your son to prevent your son from receiving awards that he is due. The easiest fix is for your son to quickly drop his weight because personnel actions involving weight are temporary and his Company Commander will not be able to permanently stop his awards. The commander may be trying to use the weight program and the deferment of awards as a motivator to get folks to lose weight, which I view as a peacetime activity and a bureaucratic tool not to be used in a war zone, having spent time in them myself. It is shameful, in my opinion, but not unusual for army leaders to get carried away with such standards.
Your US Senator has a military liason working for him as all elected senators do. They will be able to do a Congressional inquiry quickly and I presume in this case they will not want to embarass the Army nor your son's loyal service over a body fat percentage issue while there is a war on. To me it is a leadership failure and bullying and your son should not be subjected to that activity while he is overseas. The Senate liason will get the facts and I am sure they will do all they can to help your son through this situation. When I served in war we were never tested for body fat, nor taped. As I said, that is a peacetime activity generally speaking and this is the first example that I have ever heard of where such devices are being used in a war zone.
Good luck and let us know what happens. |
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PhantomSgt
Vice Admiral
Joined: 10 Sep 2004
Posts: 972
Location: GUAM, USA
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| Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 6:29 pm Post subject: It is a different military |
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Recently I worked with a young troop that had been left behind by the system. He had not completely qualified for his job and was awaiting reclassification. He was assigned to Guam on a fifteen-month tour and when I ran into him he was in his twenty-second month on Guam and still waiting.
This troop was really depressed about his situation and had told me in my office he wanted to speak with the IG about his case. I recommended to him that he leave the IG out of it as it was stalled at a higher level of command and you never ask an IG to go up the chain. I then asked him what state his home of record was, and he said Kentucky.
I turned to my computer at the desk and typed in www.firstgov.gov and found the e-mail address for Senator Bunning. I then typed up a statement for him and the email address handed it to him and said; “Go call your mother and have her send this exactly as written.”
He did as I asked and two weeks later to the day, an assignment came down for him. He had only eight days to out process the base and be on a plane to his next assignment and his new Air Force job in the CONUS.
The statement his mother sent to Senator Bunning was: “Senator Bunning can you find out why the Air Force is holding my son hostage on Guam?”
Believe me, when parents (voters) ask questions they get action!
_________________
Retired AF E-8
Independent that leans right of center. |
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jataylor11
Vice Admiral
Joined: 10 Aug 2004
Posts: 856
Location: Woodbridge, Virginia
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| Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 6:37 pm Post subject: |
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The contrary point of view is that there are a number of reservists that have not maintained physical standards...
My SO was managing one group of reservists and was told by one "I don't have time to lose weight" ... this Officer consistently failed the physical and has not be on any promotion boards, etc. etc because of it...
My So has many stories such as this .... those that appear overweight are measured/taped...
There is no way of knowing if your son was always big and previously passed his physicals or just recently gained weight...
The military has to have standards to keep people in shape. |
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Somalia Vet
Seaman Recruit
Joined: 18 Nov 2004
Posts: 5
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| Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 11:42 pm Post subject: |
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| jataylor11 wrote: | | The military has to have standards to keep people in shape. |
Sure they do and they are designed for peacetime operations in preparation to go to war. Once in a war zone, to me, makes the whole matter sort of a moot point. If a Company Commander can't get their soldiers in shape during peacetime, is it logical to deny soldiers awards they are due while serving in a war zone? I would never do that to soldiers that were my subordinates in war. Never.
There is no crisis in dealing with body fat and there never was, especially in a war zone. I find it a hard pill to swallow that it suddenly becomes a crisis after deploying to the combat zone, when the Company Commander had years of opportunities with the soldier to prepare that soldier in peacetime prior to deployment. It is too late to worry about fitness when you deploy to war. If a soldier is not fit in peacetime, they won't be when the bird flies into Iraq either, well, unless the CO is harassing his troops with garrison standards in a war zone, which I find highly unusual. |
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redleg2
Seaman Recruit
Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2004 6:19 pm Post subject: |
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| If you are in such great shape, a photograph in your bathing suit in a Charles Atlas pose might be included in your appeals. This is one of those stupid bureaucratic issues that can only be overcome with a letter to your senator or someone else with political clout. As we have seen there is nobody in the chain of command who has any sense. |
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rb325th
Admiral
Joined: 21 Aug 2004
Posts: 1334
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| Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2004 6:40 pm Post subject: |
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The Standards for Height and Weight have always been an issue. Many Soldiers did not or could not meet them because they were just plain built like brick houses. Of course many more did not because they were sloths. The trouble is some anal retentive administrator (not leader) is incapable of being able to tell the difference.
All the suggestions in here are good calls. Especially requesting the Body Fat Test for the purpose of recieving a Waiver. This is done for Army Athletes and should apply to your son also. As long as he is able to pass a Physical and the PT Test, I do not see what the problem is here. Does not sound as though he is obese or a sloth.
Though I am not sure that they could rescind any Awards made to him based on his weight, I think that is an utter BS Scare Tactic and should definately be addressed in any Congressional Inquiry.
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U.S. Army 1983-1995, 11C1P/11H2P NBTDT |
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