Run! In the opposite direction as fast as you can!
Here is a little tidbit I came across in my surfing. Remember this picture and these words-the next time one of those briefing teams from the Bureau of Naval Personnel comes around and tries to tell you what a “good deal” Individual Augmentations (IA’s) are. (For the uninitiated this how the Department of Defense masks its manpower shortage by forcing members from other services- many of whom are not trained for the jobs they fill- to do jobs the Army would normally do.) Shamelessly stolen from this blog, because it bears passing along.
Today marks my 8-month anniversary of being in Iraq. Being a Navy “body-fill” for an Army Staff definitely has it’s perks. People don’t know what to expect of you and they don’t understand what the hell a Navy Junior Officer is doing in Iraq in the first place. This allows my superiors to forego any “career development” or “you should think about staying in” conversations that are always excruciatingly painful. My superiors actually appreciate my bitterness and despair, as long as it doesn’t affect my responsibilities at work of course, which I haven’t messed up too badly yet. I never go out on convoys and am lucky enough to be chained to a desk. However, one of my Navy chums that has to go out frequently with the senior brass describes it as “being like Ensign Ricky just waiting to get blown to smithereens” (note picture above). This dark humor may be disturbing, and if you were looking for someone embellishing their experience to doll myself up as some sort of “hero” who loves his country, I’m sorry, but you should look elsewhere. Sure there are American heroes in Iraq, but you’re certainly not going to find any amongst my group of peers. We are mediocre at best.