The Department of Defense has recently announced their goals for the amount of time Army National Guard and Army Reserve Soldiers should spend at home between deployments. Under the new plan, the Secretary of Defense must personally approve deployments that are longer than 400 days or unit deployments with fewer than 48 months of dwell time. Additionally, mobilization orders published less than 180 days before the mobilization date must be approved by the SECDEF.
The Army Reserves has the goal of giving Soldiers five years at home for every year deployed. The Guard's plan calls for four years at home for every year deployed, with a long-term goal of five years dwell time. The services are already meeting these goals in most cases, with the exception of National Guard high demand units, such as the brigade combat teams, engineers, military police, and transportation units which average around three years dwell time. Both services aim to have their forces spend two months of pre-deployment training, followed by 10 months deployed "boots on the ground" overseas.
The Army Reserves has the goal of giving Soldiers five years at home for every year deployed. The Guard's plan calls for four years at home for every year deployed, with a long-term goal of five years dwell time. The services are already meeting these goals in most cases, with the exception of National Guard high demand units, such as the brigade combat teams, engineers, military police, and transportation units which average around three years dwell time. Both services aim to have their forces spend two months of pre-deployment training, followed by 10 months deployed "boots on the ground" overseas.
this is crap because I left over seas in 2005-2007, redeployed three months later in 2007-2008 then not but 6 months later deployed again I am currently over seas I just got back this year I find this bull crap becasue I never volunteered for this what do I go about my actions I thought about looking into a lawyer and sewing the state of texas
It is crap because I have been notified to deploy again, 4 months after coming home off my last deployment in 2007-2008. “They” claim there is not such thing as dwell time or I will have been home a year when they we do deploy again. This is on top of multiple ATs or other required training. My employer is looking for an excuse to get rid of me and I cannot blame them.
Plans and goals are not cast-in-bronze policies…not that those policies are always carried out in uniform fashion. Anyone who has been in the Military knows, or should know, that plans, goals, and policies are carried out at the behest and pleasure of the Government. These concepts are nothing new, yet, when faced with the harsh reality, people insist on displays of total surprise and indignation.
All that being said, the big question remains…”is it right”? Of course not. Is there any other “humanistic” way for the Government to conduct massive mobilizations? I think not. The concept of the Reserve Components being a part-time, arms-length activity vanished a long time ago. Those who would enlist, thinking that their “situations” are somehow different from those of the literally millions mobilized over the history of armed conflict probably never learned that reality is not merely an inconvenience with which others must contend.
SUCK IT UP, SOLDIER, AND DRIVE ON!
Godspeed
Sarge
Telling guys who’ve served like this to “Suck it up and drive on” is insulting. They ARE sucking it up and driving on, but at the same time they’re shining the BS light on this stated policy that, like many other politically-motivated things, appears to be put out there as a “feel-good,” superficial solution to a much deeper problem. If I was one of those guys and someone flippantly told me to “suck it up and drive on” after 3 nearly back-to-back rotations in the Reserve components – ESPECIALLY if that guy hadn’t experienced the same thing – I’d be struggling to maintain my professionalism and composure long enough to NOT throat-punch the loud-mouth.
Seriously…when your state is fielding three brigades that it likes to deploy one right after the other, and your brigade had to borrow copious amounts of soldiers from the other two and the IRR, individuals know that this “dwell time” is like a mf-ing unicorn.
Sarge, if it pleases you to be a livestock NCO that bleets and moves along with the crowd, I feel sorry for any troops serving under you. To just accept this nonsense is ridiculous, and you have every right (perhaps even a duty) both as a leader and a citizen (soldier) to broadcast your discontent with the way you are being poorly used. There are reservists that are seeing more deployments than the active duty, and that is just unacceptable.
Says another Sergeant (not degrading my rank with cute forms of disrespect) hopping from mobilization to mobilization.
for real….drink water and drive on. you are a soldier dont enlist if you dont want to go to war. plain and simple. ive been home for about 8 months and am itching to deploy again. i hope to god you dont have a blue cord and cross rifles and a CIB then complain about being deployed to much
Guys, listen up…especialy you, JR. Now are these deployments extremely tough, particularly on families, not to mention civilian educational goals, jobs, professions, etc…you bet they are. Is the way this entire circus is being managed, at the Federal level, the best way…probably not. Been there done than, guys…three tours in the bad lands, not to mention extensive “good will” tours which were neither good nor of good will.
BK, when you and I took that oath to “support and defend”, I don’t recall anything about “at your leisure, in your spare time, or as the spirit moves you”. And I certainly don’t recall anything about “bleeting with the croud”.
When our fathers and grandfathers heeded the call of the toxin, some 60-odd years ago, I believe their commitments were for the duration. Is this to imply that today’s American Fighting Man (gender neutral) has it better, in terms of dwell time? I honestly can’t answer that…I only know that I agreed to do a job. The conditions under which that job was to be performed was not stipulated.
JR, please accept my profound appology for attacking your sensibilities and insulting you and yours with my “Suck it up…” remark. Believe it or not, like it or not, we wear the same uniform for the same purpose. That purpose does not include “throat-punching” those with whom you neither understand nor agree. If you cannot understand and do not agree, than please find your own way of accepting, and dealing with the realities with which we must all contend.
Godspeed, men
Sarge
Drive on MEN. Well, I am a FEMALE SOLDIER in the Army Reserve with six years in, who has spent four of the last six years on Active Duty, including two tours to Iraq.
I understand the concept of Soldiering On, but the plain fact of the matter is that if you are a responsible adult with a family and a civilian career, being deployed every other year has a tremendous impact on family and work. Guard and Reserve Tour Babies who are “itching to deploy” should go Active Duty, because that is what AD is there for. The Guard and Reserves is theoretically here to backfill AD when the needs of national defense warrant it. The Guard and Reserve are not designed, equipped, or supported to be maintained on continuous AD status.
This misuse of Guard and Reserves has had a huge negative impact on military families and ultimately the state of readiness of our defense force. The AD has a strong network of support programs in place for AD service members and families that is non-existent on the Guard and Reserve side. All of these things should be taken into consideration when you glibly tell people to suck it up.
V/r,
Melanie Walker
1LT, USAR
(formerly a “Sarge” myself)