Special Forces or really really special forces

[kgbsquirrel]

What is CAB?

Combat Action Badge. It's the one with the knife. You get it for getting shot at but not being in a position to actively shoot back, ala getting rocketed and mortared back at base or getting IED'd driving down the road. (The 1st class I was with at Salerno opted not to put us in for it because he considered it too petty to put in for such an award when all that happened was a 107mm rocket hit and detonated about 10 yards away. Had a piece of shrapnel from it, but an Air Force E-3 customs SOB confiscated it because it was "UXO.")

[Devonai]

You should have told the A1C that it was highly radioactive, and you needed to put it back in your special lead-lined ACU trouser pocket.

[kgbsquirrel]

You should have told the A1C that it was highly radioactive, and you needed to put it back in your special lead-lined ACU trouser pocket.

Those pricks were just picking stuff out of guys gear that they wanted for themselves. Another fellow had a pinup calender that he bought at the local PX (which is controlled by .mil and doesn't sell prohibited items). All the girlies were (skimpily) dressed, but the A1C decried it as teh prons and forced him to put it in the amnesty box or face the prospect of not getting on the C-17-Of-Freedom. Twerp also confiscated a local style knife that I bought at the bazaar but not the huge 1907 Enfield bayonet I also had (!?), both of which were perfectly legit.

If you're curious what customs was like leaving A-stan in 2006, take your three neatly (crammed full, 70lb) duffel bags, and one likewise stowed ruck sack, and dump them out all over the ground. Then push all the items around into a nice wide mess. Now you have 5 minutes to repack it and get on the plane.

[Phantom Warrior]

Devonai:  Whatever.  The CIB vs. EIB debate is endless.  For every "CIB by proxy" there is someone who got a "FreeIB."

kgbsquirrel:  Again, I don't have the reg in front of me but I think the CAB is basically a CIB for everyone else.  I'm pretty sure it can be awarded for shooting back too.  Customs can have a slice though.  At least we got to send our A bags back in our conex.  Customs sucked enough with just a ruck and an assault ruck.  I can't imagine doing it with your A bags too.

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

What, no PT badge?

[Bogie]

I knew a guy in basic who'd been an SF medic, and then pulled the plug... Didn't like the civilian world, but it was the 1980s, and they made him go through basic again.
 
He'd been an e-6 or an e-7 or somesuch. He was right at 35 years old.
 
And he was good - we went to him before we went to sick call, except for when we were purely determined to be on goldbricking status... And he got dragged around the running qualifications, because his knees were shot.
 
Most of the way through basic, since we were the #1 platoon in the #1 company in the training battalion, we got an on-post beer pass. And the DIs let the prior service guys get any sew-ons that they deserved. So we took him over to clothing sales, got him his stuff, and then boogied to the e-club and played catch-up drinking...
 
And then some MP trainees came in, saw a shaved-head basic trainee with a bunch of sew-ons, and proceeded to try to remove them. It was just a beautiful thing to watch.  

When we weaved back to the company area, we got screamed at for an extended period of time because some MP trainees had been damaged, and they didn't know who did it. The screaming was administered by the first sergeant, with the bill of his cap about 1/4" from the guy's nose...
 
I'm pretty sure the DIs got a gigglesnort out of the incident.
 

[kgbsquirrel]

What, no PT badge?

Hey now, this aint the airforce. 

Had one air force 'lady' who was fresh out of boot camp in my crypto school class. She already had a full row of ribbons and received the volunteer medal while in class. Here's one to bend your brain around: The Air Force canex'd their Good Conduct Medal because "they are supposed to behave themselves anyways, it not special enough to deserve an award," but they have a ribbon for graduating boot camp. Figure that one out.

[Strings]

Wait a sec: I thought we were talking about the military? Why bring up the Chair Force?

[Matthew Carberry]

He just got convicted up here.

http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/man-fairbanks-guilty-check-fraud-posing-army-captain

[French G.]

Why convict him? Give him what he wants, Uniform, plane ride, and a gun. Let him man some isolated OP with several others of his kind so the only inconvenience to real troops will be the loud noise that warns them that the OP just got killed.

[Perd Hapley]

Sometimes, if you wait long enough, you get what you knew you deserved all along. Good for him.

[Hawkmoon]

Why convict him? Give him what he wants, Uniform, plane ride, and a gun. Let him man some isolated OP with several others of his kind so the only inconvenience to real troops will be the loud noise that warns them that the OP just got killed.

Seriously -- would you want him in YOUR unit? Or anywhere near your area of operations, for that matter?

I've known about his antics for several years. It's especially gratifying to see that he has been convicted.

[Hawkmoon]

kgbsquirrel:  Again, I don't have the reg in front of me but I think the CAB is basically a CIB for everyone else.  I'm pretty sure it can be awarded for shooting back too.  Customs can have a slice though.  At least we got to send our A bags back in our conex.  Customs sucked enough with just a ruck and an assault ruck.  I can't imagine doing it with your A bags too.

But the CAB has only existed since 2001. Since I was at Division HQ in Vietnam, even though I came under mortar fire, engaged in night fire fights when on sentry duty, and pulled patrol duty, I was n't in a small enough unit to qualify for the CIB nor was I an 11B (I was a Combat Engineer). I would be eligible for the CAB -- but it didn't exist in 1968.

[French G.]

Seriously -- would you want him in YOUR unit? Or anywhere near your area of operations, for that matter?

I've known about his antics for several years. It's especially gratifying to see that he has been convicted.

Every troop can  be an EOD tech once. Put him out front.

[KD5NRH]

Every troop can  be an EOD tech once. Put him out front.

As a friend once put it, the highest honor in EOD is a non-medical retirement.

[seeker_two]

Seriously -- would you want him in YOUR unit? Or anywhere near your area of operations, for that matter?

Sure....but not for long....

 

[sanglant]

and here i am giving myself a hard time, for thinking about buying a black out flag for my bob.

oh, and they have some odd balls as well.

[kgbsquirrel]

There's so many to choose from, I don't know where to start! 

[KD5NRH]

and here i am giving myself a hard time, for thinking about buying a black out flag for my bob.

Just gotta add one of these: http://www.lapolicegear.com/milspec-regular-guy-patch.html

[sanglant]

  pity they don't make a straight one. the shoulder thing that goes up, would look out of place on a bob.

this one might get the point across.

this one would work but i don't really like the whole thing.

seeing as how, no one that doesn't know me sees the thing. odds are i'll just go for the flag. and probably a WINNING! and "Kentucky Windage" if i have room left. then if someone says, "you a vet" etc. say my normal, "are you joking?" and look down.(at myself) amazing how well that works.

[Balog]

I'm still amazed FBI agents took orders from this *expletive deleted*che.

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

I'm still amazed FBI agents took orders from this *expletive deleted*che.

Many people will take orders from someone with an authoritative bearing and tone.

[Devonai]

It's the only way I can get anything done at my job (military armed security).