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Final Thoughts

Thursday, 27 August 2009

By MG Mike Oates

As I depart Fort Drum I would like to ask you to post some ideas for the new CG, MG James Terry, on any topic you feel would make the Division or Fort Drum a better organization.

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FYI - We have compiled and examined all of your comments over the past year and will use the next couple of weeks to provide you a roll-up of your ideas as a way to provide feedback.

Thanks for your support of YOUR blog over the last year.

Comments (12)

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MG Oates I would like to thank you for all the things you did for everyone at Drum. My husband was deployed and served with you and reading your blogs and talking to you made the deployment easier. You are a great leader and very down to earth.

Alicia Coombs

Sir:
It was a privilege to serve under you during my brief non-deployed time at Fort Drum. Your down-to-earth style and emphasis on reward and punishment for the individual - not the group - was an example which aided me not only in my duties as an NCO but in my civilian life as well.
And of course I will never forget being "zonked," much to our brigade commander's shock and chagrin, at a brigade run.
Cheers, and best of luck, sir.

- A Commando NCO

What can civilians do for Army spouses? I think the Army spouses should submit what kind of support they want.....then it should be reviewed by the serving soldier for his/her approval. Not as a control but as a communication. If needs, NO MATTER WHAT THEY ARE, are open and honest, it would prevent alot of mental stress of wondering what that spouse may or may not be doing......Thus distracting our soldiers from their primary purpose. You men and women fight to keep quiet sunny days over here. Something that way too many people take for granted but may be slowly learning to respect. I would HATE to be in combat worrying about someone or something threatening my livelyhood back home while I was standing up for the old red, white, and blue in combat.

If you get "spiders" in your head from combat, do NOT be ashamed to get them exposed and cleaned out of your heads when you return. You have to transform your minds from war to love. A VERY difficult task sometimes. Others are OK with the adjustment. Lift each other up and do not tear each other down!!!! Be careful to realize people have feelings. If its in good humor, thats fine. As long as it doesn't create a grudge that goes unsettled. You are hurting the Army by doing this. See if your screwing around is hurting another. If it is, cut it out. Your on the same team.Every level. A super proud team.

Brass....be tough but merciful. After all, you'd want God having mercy on you, wouldn't you? Keep that in mind when you get a fiesty soldier, because they are usually the ones that will take the first bullet........God bless you all. Pray to God if you want to. He'll listen.

Signed,

Golden Eagle
Enforcer....Homeland security.....no gun
This ones for you from an "army of one"!!!!!!!!!!!!Keep the faith.

Thank you for keeping communication open and allowing us to respond to your questions and to post our concerns/ideas for improvement.

I sincerely hope your replacement will do the same!

MG Oates it has been a true honor to serve with you the last two years. I want to thank you and your wife for everything ya'll have done for the Soldiers, family members and civilians at Fort Drum. You and your wife are shining examples of a great Texans and I will do my best to follow ya'lls example. To MG Terry look to what MG Oates has started and continue to use it and improve upon it. Continue to keep an open dialouge between you and your Soldiers. I suggest getting junior NCOs out of barracks since we are starting to cram people into rooms and housing tells us we are short more often then not. Goodbye, have a safe trip and goodluck in whatever the future holds for you, Climb to Glory Sir. MG Terry welcome to Fort Drum and Climb to Glory Sir.

Sir, you don't know how I proud I am to have served under you in Iraq. Despite what some liberals might think, we're doing a lot of good over there. They welcomed us into Iraq as liberators for a reason. We have given them freedom and a sense of hope. It was such a honor to have served under you and GEN Petraeus. It's because of leaders like you that we continue to be a great nation.

When I got a chance to speak to the Iraqi children, I couldn't believe how pro-American they were. It was nothing like how the liberal media portrays the situation over there. We're viewed as freedom fighters not unwelcome occupiers. We've spread a lot of goodwill over there. We can't allow scandals to squander our efforts and lose sight of what's really at stake.

And we can't lose sight of the fact that there hasn't been any major terrorist attacks on domestic soil since 9/11. It's because our brave men and women in uniform overseas have been the target of Al Qaeda and Muslim extremist attacks, not domestic civilian targets.

As former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, retired GEN Peter Pace commented:

"People should be reminded everyday of what our enemies want to do to us ... the further and further we get away from September 11, 2001, the less we remember what our enemies are really all about. I cannot tell you why we have not had another attack here. I'm sure it's some combination of what we're doing militarily, what we're doing internationally with police forces, what the intelligence community is doing, and great chunk of luck."

This is why I'm proud to be an American Soldier, Sir.

SPC H

MG Oates:

Thank you from a regular civilian that doesn't even work at Drum. You have done an awesome job at Drum and have helped the civilians to respect it. There will always be complainers, but where would we be without it. Without the benefit to our economy, our communities, our friends we have made, etc.

I would like the next Commanding General to keep in mind the ARMY/CIVILIAN AIRPORT. There is no reason this could not be done and still maintain security to the base. Show your flight ticket, have a dedicated road (which is almost there already anyway).

Thank you for being you General Oates. It takes a real leader to go straight to the troops and ask for direct input, I know I fell out of the chair when I first saw your blog posted on Newzjunky. Pretty rare in any profession frankly as people at the top often tend to avoid criticism. I think you have set an example not only for top brass in the military but for those in our community as well. We wish you the very best of luck in your next posting and thank you for making the Fort Drum extended community a better place for everyone. May God bless you and your family.

Sir, it has been a great honor and privilege to serve under your command. You have raised the bar so high that it will be difficult for the incoming CG to fill your shoes. I, in all honesty, have not yet heard a single Soldier or civilian criticize your leadership publicly or behind closed doors.

I feel that Army leaders should stop trying to accommodate everyone. You should trust your instincts and do what's right irregardless. You're always going to encounter some gripes and discontent no matter what you do. The mission and the welfare of your men should always come first.

The best leaders that I've had were ones that put more precedence on taking care of their subordinates (Joes) than on pleasing their superiors. When I mean looking out for their Joes, I don't mean bending over backwards and acquiescing to their every demand. I mean that they genuinely cared more about their guys than on their own career progression and kissing a**. It's all about the men next to you. Or at least it should be.

I think that publicly exposing DWIs in the Blizzard was a great initiative, Sir. Soldiers need to be held publicly accountable for their actions if they're going to put other people's lives in danger. But I think that we also need to put into consideration the state of mind that they're in.

Whenever I'm counseled about alcohol and cigarette use, I think in the back of my head that I'm exposed to a much greater short-term risk by going into combat. Why should I care about running the risk of a DWI or lung cancer when I might just as easily get blown up or shot next year in theater? I'm not trying to justify this type of behavior but there is more to it than meets the eye. I think the same can also be said about the increasing prevalence of suicide in the ranks.

I honestly don't understand why more leaders (i.e. Company Commanders) aren't putting their units on lockdown in the barracks or at their homes as a disincentive. Restrict your units to remaining on-post for these indiscretions. It'll definitely send the message that the Army won't tolerate this type of behavior. And it may also help promote camaraderie within the unit from being punished collectively.

It may not be the popular decision but it may be the right decision.

Id like to thank you MG Oates, for keeping this blog open. It is a great way to get our opinions out there and give us a voice, when ICE comments do not go anywhere.

While I feel that families at Drum are given some perks, more needs to be done, given the repetitive deployments we face. I hope that CG MG Terry will go through the blogs and really see what we need here at Drum to feel taken care of.

My biggest gripe that has yet to be remedied is the fact that families who do not live on post have no where to take their children. A friend of mine who was stationed at Ft Wainwright had photos and wonderful stories of a military-family-wide community center-- it was open to ALL military families, not just the priveledged on post residents. Housing was not available to us, and after a few months at the Drum Inn, we were forced to purchase a home-- the most difficult financial hardship we have faced in the 19+ years in the military.

This rec center features lazer tag, an arcade, internet cafe, restaurant, large indoor playground, an exercise room with toys for spouses to work out, and a movie theater screen which plays movies for free viewing. Why would Drum, the most rapidly deployed post, as well as one of the most remote with harsh winters, not offer something like this? How about this-- lets get this thing started, and make it only available for off-post residents, since they already have community center ammenities that we can not utilize? I can imagine the outrage.

Thank you MG Oates for all you have done for the Soldiers, Family members and civilian employees at Fort Drum. You and Mrs. Oates will leave a lasting impression on the entire Fort Drum community and the North country. I wish you well! I hope that MG Terry continues the initiatives that you took on to take care of people. God speed!

My idea is for CG MG Terry to continue the work that MG Oates has started. There is still alot of work that would benefit our soldiers, civilians and the community. Maybe having an open house discussion would help the community more aware of what the soldiers might need. Also helping the Watertown lady get the pool built for the WTU would benefit all of Ft Drum.

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