Colin Powell on National Guard

[ArtKramr]

Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who “wrangle slots in Reserve and
Guard units.” Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a Guard
unit.
By John Greeley


In his autobiography, Colin Powel is truly revealed as a man of honor.
Certainly his military career provides us an example of what is best in
American society and also in the man himself. His rise to the heights of
military command speaks volumes on both counts. This is especially true since
he is a man of color. Perhaps in no other country in the world could this
happen, and it should make us all proud.

In particular, one comment he makes in his autobiography comes to mind at this
time because of something he just said while giving testimony on Capitol Hill.
It was in response to some questions Rep. Brown, (Dem, Ohio), had concerning
the ongoing problem of President Bush and his Air National Guard attendance
record.

The Secretary of State fairly bristled at the comment that President Bush might
have been AWOL towards the end of his Air National Guard career and told the
Representative in no uncertain terms, “Don’t go there!” along with an
admonition that if the Representative wanted to turn this into a political
fight, there was a time and place for it.

From where I sat, it was a ferocious and threatening display of raw,
confrontational, Executive Branch power. It immediately reminded me of
something I had read in his autobiography in which he wrote:

I am angry that so many of the sons of the powerful and well-placed ... managed
to wangle slots in Reserve and National Guard units .... Of the many tragedies
of Vietnam, this raw class discrimination strikes me as the most damaging to
the ideal that all Americans are created equal and owe equal allegiance to
their country (Colin Powell, My American Journey, p. 148)

We are all entitled, of course, to change our minds about important issues over
the course of our lifetimes. But there is the unmistakable ring of truth, I
think, in that quotation from his book. Here we have a man dedicated to the
honor and glory of the Army and the terrible sacrifices those who serve in it
must make. He is justly outraged at the prospect of wealth and privilege
trumping the need for sacrifice in the cause of this great nation. He reveals
himself as a genuine, life-long soldier. A man imbued with duty and honor.

Yet the face he shows as Secretary of State is entirely different. Here, he
defends his President from the slings and arrows of the political fray no
matter what the cost to him personally or to those ideals expressed above.
Perhaps if Colin Powell had done his duty in his capacity as Secretary of
State, that “allegiance to their country” he spoke of so eloquently might
have saved us from the unwarranted invasion of Iraq and thus preserved
thousands of lives. That failure certainly is “…damaging to the ideal that
all Americans are created equal…”

It must be hard to reconcile the two positions, but that is what happens at the
top of the pyramid where all power coalesces and moral clarity is sharpest. On
the day the invasion of Iraq began, there should have been resignations
tendered at the highest levels because those men, of all people, understood
what a betrayal of our basic American principles it was. To stay meant to
acquiesce in the lies and now there is nothing left to do but to bristle at the
criticisms, even the very timid ones such as Representative Brown offered, and
hope that is enough to save your job and your dignity.


John Greeley is a Marine Corps veteran of Vietnam, a graduate of St. John's
University Law School and a contributing editor at Intervention. You can email
your comments to John at




Arthur Kramer
344th BG 494th BS
England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer

[t_mark]

"ArtKramr" > wrote in message
...
> Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in Reserve and
> Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a
Guard
> unit.

More like he defends Bush against bull**** accusations. There's a
difference, you know. (Or maybe you don't.)

[Pete]

"ArtKramr" > wrote

> Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in Reserve and
> Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a
Guard
> unit.
> By John Greeley

Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to avoid other
duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that Bush
"wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined the
Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".

Pete

[George Z. Bush]

"Pete" > wrote in message
...
>
> "ArtKramr" > wrote
>
> > Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in Reserve and
> > Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a
> Guard
> > unit.
> > By John Greeley
>
> Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to avoid other
> duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that Bush
> "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined the
> Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".

There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his application found
its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of turn. How
would you explain that? Even the Bush camp doesn't argue too hard that it
didn't happen.....there are records of phone calls made by the congressman to
friends, who then made similar calls to highly placed officers in the TANG (I
believe in their AG's Department), and suddenly a slot is offered without much
waiting while other previous applicants continued to wait. And it wasn't
because his AFOQT scores were so high that they didn't want him to get
away.....they were the minimum available that they accepted for one of their
slots (25th percentile).

I think "wrangling" is a reasonably accurate adjective that describes what went
on.

George Z.

[Tarver Engineering]

"George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Pete" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "ArtKramr" > wrote
> >
> > > Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in Reserve
and
> > > Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a
> > Guard
> > > unit.
> > > By John Greeley
> >
> > Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to avoid
other
> > duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that Bush
> > "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined the
> > Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".
>
> There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his application
found
> its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of turn.

Sons of decorated pilots always get that treatment.

[John Kunkel]

"Tarver Engineering" > wrote in message
...
>
> "George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "Pete" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > >
> > > "ArtKramr" > wrote
> > >
> > > > Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in
Reserve
> and
> > > > Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into
a
> > > Guard
> > > > unit.
> > > > By John Greeley
> > >
> > > Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to avoid
> other
> > > duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that Bush
> > > "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined
the
> > > Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".
> >
> > There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his
application
> found
> > its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of turn.
>
> Sons of decorated pilots always get that treatment.

Kinda meets the "well-placed" definition doesn't it?

[Tarver Engineering]

"John Kunkel" > wrote in message
news:2%OZb.375879$na.567260@attbi_s04...
>
> "Tarver Engineering" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > >
> > > "Pete" > wrote in message
> > > ...
> > > >
> > > > "ArtKramr" > wrote
> > > >
> > > > > Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in
> Reserve
> > and
> > > > > Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself
into
> a
> > > > Guard
> > > > > unit.
> > > > > By John Greeley
> > > >
> > > > Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to
avoid
> > other
> > > > duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that
Bush
> > > > "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined
> the
> > > > Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".
> > >
> > > There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his
application found
> > > its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of
turn.
> >
> > Sons of decorated pilots always get that treatment.
>
> Kinda meets the "well-placed" definition doesn't it?

Yes, much like the Legacy Admissions to Yale John Kerry and George W Bush
both received. GW's ANG duty is similar to the way John Kerry was three
band aids to home in four months. There is nothing about this mud slinging
that is good for either man.

The quagmire in Vietman was possible only because LBJ didn't call up the
Guard, not because there is anything wrong with the Service. If you want to
know who killed JFK, just follow the money.

[George Z. Bush]

John Kunkel wrote:
> "Tarver Engineering" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>>
>>> "Pete" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>>
>>>> "ArtKramr" > wrote
>>>>
>>>>> Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in Reserve and
>>>>> Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into a
>>>>> Guard unit.
>>>>> By John Greeley
>>>>
>>>> Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to avoid
>>>> other duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there that Bush
>>>> "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined the
>>>> Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".
>>>
>>> There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his application
>>> found its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of
>>> turn.
>>
>> Sons of decorated pilots always get that treatment.

I'd be willing to bet that there were scores of applicants in that pile of about
700 as I recall whose daddies were decorated WWII or Korean War vets.
Congressmen, senators or governors would be another kettle of fish.
>
> Kinda meets the "well-placed" definition doesn't it?

[Tarver Engineering]

"George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
...
> John Kunkel wrote:
> > "Tarver Engineering" > wrote in message
> > ...
> >>
> >> "George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
> >> ...
> >>>
> >>> "Pete" > wrote in message
> >>> ...
> >>>>
> >>>> "ArtKramr" > wrote
> >>>>
> >>>>> Colin Powell was once outraged by elites who "wrangle slots in
Reserve and
> >>>>> Guard units." Now he defends George Bush, who wrangled himself into
a
> >>>>> Guard unit.
> >>>>> By John Greeley
> >>>>
> >>>> Powell should be outraged at people who "wrangle" Guard slots to
avoid
> >>>> other duty to which they have been called. What evidence is there
that Bush
> >>>> "wrangled" (used undue influence) his Guard slot? Many people joined
the
> >>>> Guard/Reserve during that period without "wrangling".
> >>>
> >>> There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his
application
> >>> found its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out
of
> >>> turn.
> >>
> >> Sons of decorated pilots always get that treatment.
>
> I'd be willing to bet that there were scores of applicants in that pile of
about
> 700 as I recall whose daddies were decorated WWII or Korean War vets.
> Congressmen, senators or governors would be another kettle of fish.

Let me clue you. My Grandmother was on the election board in Anadarko
Oklahoma and that was enough to keep my brother, who was in California, from
having to honor his draft notice; had he pleased. LBJ's draft was only for
the willing and the poor. It took very little political power to avoid the
draft altogether.

> > Kinda meets the "well-placed" definition doesn't it?

[Cub Driver]

>There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his application found
>its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of turn.

You don't know this. It's only an accusation. Believe me, I read
everything that has been published on the subject of Bush's ANG
service, and there is no evidence that he was vaulted ahead of others.

It may well be true, mind you, but that doesn't give you the right to
repeat a baseless assertion as if it were fact.

Think of how effective your sentence would be if you wrote (all that
you are justified in writing): "I suspect there was a waiting list
...."


all the best -- Dan Ford
email: (requires authentication)

see the Warbird's Forum at www.warbirdforum.com
and the Piper Cub Forum at www.pipercubforum.com

[Al Dykes]

In article >,
Cub Driver > wrote:
>
>>There was a waiting list for those slots at that time, and his application
>>found
>>its way to the top of the pile in no time flat and clearly out of turn.
>
>You don't know this. It's only an accusation. Believe me, I read
>everything that has been published on the subject of Bush's ANG
>service, and there is no evidence that he was vaulted ahead of others.
>
>It may well be true, mind you, but that doesn't give you the right to
>repeat a baseless assertion as if it were fact.


"The crew members, supervisors, technicians and support staff.
Sgt. Donald Dean Barnhart, who still serves in the Guard, said that he
kept a waiting list of about 150 applicants' names. He said it took up
to a year and a half for one name to move to the top of the
list. "Quite a few gentlemen were wanting to get in," he recalled. For
Bush, there was no wait. He met with commander Staudt in his Houston
office and made his application-- all before his graduation in
Juner. [LAT, 7/4/99]

"Inquiring about Guard admission, Mr. Bush went to an Air Force
recruiting office near Yale, where he took and passed the test
required by the Air Force for pilot trainees. His score on the pilot
aptitude section, one of five on the test, was in the 25th percentile,
the lowest allowed for would-be flierst. [LAT 7/4/99]

"chief of personnel in the Texas Guard from 1972 to 1980,
remembers no pilot shortage. "We had so many people coming in who
were super-qualified," he said. [LAT 7/4/99]

--
Al Dykes
-----------

[Cub Driver]

> "chief of personnel in the Texas Guard from 1972 to 1980,
>remembers no pilot shortage. "We had so many people coming in who
>were super-qualified," he said. [LAT 7/4/99]

Wonderful!

The Los Angeles Times takes a factoid that explains why Bush went off
flying duty in 1972 and uses it to demean his acceptance in 1968.

all the best -- Dan Ford
email: (requires authentication)

see the Warbird's Forum at www.warbirdforum.com
and the Piper Cub Forum at www.pipercubforum.com

[KeithK]

In article >,
(ArtKramr) wrote:


> From where I sat, it was a ferocious and threatening display of raw,
> confrontational, Executive Branch power. It immediately reminded me of
> something I had read in his autobiography in which he wrote:
>
> I am angry that so many of the sons of the powerful and well-placed ...
managed
> to wangle slots in Reserve and National Guard units .... Of the many tragedies
> of Vietnam, this raw class discrimination strikes me as the most damaging to
> the ideal that all Americans are created equal and owe equal allegiance to
> their country (Colin Powell, My American Journey, p. 148)


"The only thing we regulars are good for is to keep the guns clean for
your reserves, and to lead you into battle."

Chesty Puller, General, USMC