Mazra wrote:
That's just silly. What kind of mistakes are we talking here? Someone accidentally discharging a weapon? Someone being unable to complete a physical training course? Someone misunderstanding an order?
If its during training? They'd be yelled at and PT'd for it all. More Physical Training to complete that course, and probably some yelling for misunderstanding an order. If you discharge your weapon accidentally, you can kill someone. There is no gray area here. In the Army, not only is the soldier punished for accidental discharge, but so is his team leader and probably even Squad Leader and above. We don't tolerate acts that can get yourself and your friends killed.
Its slightly different when in the real Army. A misunderstood order will get discussed. No screaming, no PT, unless the kid just can't get it through his head. I had a soldier that just refused to tell me where he went off to. I
have to know where my soldiers are at all times. He just refused to tell anyone and would wander off, usually to the gym. I took him aside, and started to PT him in private. Pushups, situps, etc. All the time I was calm, and kept explaining that if I don't know where he is, I don't know if he's alive or ready for a mission or anything. I didn't care
if he went somewhere, just that someone knew where he was. Physical training, I've done PT along with soldiers to help them. I like to run. No, I love to run. If one of my soldiers can't pass their PT Test, I take them with me running. It isn't easy, but no screaming, no "abuse." But they are tired afterwards.
I get it, outside looking in it looks cruel. If yelling is going to cause light mental trauma, what the hell is having explosives and gunfire going on all around going to do to them? Its best to try to build up someone's tolerance for stress while in a training environment so (
hopefully) when something really DOES happen they handle it better.
I don't care if it makes me look like a horrible human being, but I won't let my soldiers die because someone didn't follow orders and left a round in their weapon and it went off. I won't let my soldiers die because one of them didn't feel like following orders, or left us undermanned because he felt like going to a gym. I won't let them die because they didn't have the stamina to run from one alley to another when someone was firing at us. If I have to be an ***
hole to assure everyone comes back alive, then I'll
proudly be that ***
hole.
US Army isn't a business.