From: jac54@cas.org ()
Subject: Re: BBN II -- Murk-o-Vision World Update (Mau Mau)
Organization: Chemical Abstracts Service, Columbus, Ohio
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1992 18:36:47 GMT

In article <Bs99ry.BtI@wpi.WPI.EDU> mfriley@pacman.WPI.EDU (Margaret F Riley) writes:
>
>It should be noted for those of you not in the US that most of the Army
>personnel sent to the Gulf War were not the regular Army.

Margaret,
	You may have fallen over a wrinkle in the U.S. manpower accounting
	system.  Most of the U.S. military is on "active duty reserve"
	status with only a part of them being "active duty regular."
	Reserves can be counted as (reserve duty reserve + active duty reserve)
	and active duty as the comparatively small number of "active duty
	regular" forces.  Don't ask me why, that's the way they do it.

	Also, some of the less sexy tasks are moved to the reserves (a lot
	of logistics and things like that) so there were definitely a lot
	a lot of reservists in certain specialities.  Combat units often
	found that their reserve units were not combat-ready and were
	used in the rear.  Comparatively few Army and Marine reservists
	saw combat.  Air Guard and Reserve are a different case.

>Reserves were called in to provide personnel for the Gulf.   The first
>persons called in were medical personnel and medical support staff,
>thereby denying the US hospitals many of their emergency and surgical
>staff.  The US Army did not deplete its own medical staffing to provide
>personnel in the Gulf.

	The military has always been short of certain specialists.  Doctors
	have always been a particular problem (it doesn't pay very well).
	This is why they will pay your medical school costs in return for
	4-6 yrs service (and they will hurt you if you try to wiggle out
	of it).  These people are then used a lot in the reserves because
	that is the only way to keep within spitting distance of real
	requirements.

>Also, when additional specialty forces were
>called in, frequently both husband and wife were given 24 to 48 hours
>to report for active duty.   In a "real" war, no 2 persons from a single
>family were assigned to a similar area to avoid such problems.

	That's "should not", I suspect it's more honoured in the
	breach.

>Most
>of the "wriggles" were persons who had a legitimate reason to object

	Genuine hardship and policy cases (2 members from the same family)
	should not be a problem.  The ones that that were tightening jaws
	were the ones that suddenly discovered deep religious beliefs
	previously unknown to everyone including themselves.  You
	can't get out of it because you don't like the idea of being
	shot at.  If a conscientious objector case is shown to be genuine,
	the chances of it being accepted are very good.

>to their activation.   Boston City Hospital was left with one emergency
>room surgeon after the reserves were called up.
>
	Personnel and units train for specific parts of the world and
	for a limited set of options.  Combat readiness in some of
	these units is at the bare minimum and their equipments may not
	have been up to requirements.  VII Corp was brought in from
	Germany because it was combat ready and the equipments were the
	best to be had.  In addition, the inner German border has become
	a non-event.  Units earmarked for Korea were not sent because the
	38th parallel is still considered the most likely place for war
	to break out.  The units meeting these criteria and their
	attached reserves were sent.  Couples like to serve together
	in reserve units, despite warnings that this may happen.

Children were suddenly
>taken from schools and shipped to grandparents or other relatives in other
>areas while both parents answered the call.

	War and peace are both paid for with blood and treasure.


	Alec
Xref: sparky soc.culture.british:10626 rec.games.empire:2314 alt.war:1542