[Peace-discuss] part time warriors to full time with no benefits

[Dlind49 at aol.com]

U.S. Reserves Take on Full - Time Duties
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

 
Filed at 10:04 a.m. ET

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) -- For the 174,403 reservists and National Guard 
members on active duty as of Sept. 10, the idea of being a part-time soldier no 
longer matches with reality.

While past reservists could serve decades-long careers without ever being 
activated, today's troops face lengthy, often difficult and dangerous duty.

The war in Iraq and broader war on terror has thrust a heavy burden on the 
nation's part-time soldiers, who make up about half of the U.S. military, and 
they don't bear it alone. There are families and civilian employers left to fill 
unexpected gaps at home.

``We're not weekend warriors,'' said Lt. Col. Mark Murphy, who also 
redeployed with the 914th on Aug. 28, about two months after arriving home from a 
four-month deployment.

Two months after the Sept. 11 attacks, Tim Szymanski left his job as a 
suburban Buffalo police officer to help fight the war on terror.

Nearly two years later, the Cheektowaga police still juggle to cover the Air 
Force reservist's shifts.

In August, Tech Sgt. Don Miller enjoyed a welcome home parade after a 
four-month deployment in Iraq with the 914th Airlift Wing. Two days later, the 
self-employed contractor learned he was leaving again.

Miller recalled the appealing ``one weekend a month, two weeks in the 
summer'' commitment the reserves touted when he became a citizen soldier in 1988.

``I just told my wife that they changed that now. A weekend a month and two 
weeks in the summer is how much we're home,'' the Vietnam veteran joked as he 
prepared again to ship out.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, about 300,000 of the 1.2 million members of the 
National Guard and reserves have been called on for a host of duties from 
cleaning up the World Trade Center site and patrolling airports at home to 
distributing food to Iraqi civilians, guarding government detainees in Cuba and 
patrolling in Baghdad and other world hot spots.

It has not always gone smoothly. An August report by the General Accounting 
Office blamed incompatible computer systems for the Pentagon's losing track of 
some reservists and keeping them on active duty longer than authorized.

Then came word last week from the Army that troops could be in Iraq a full 12 
months, to the surprise of some who had thought the clock started ticking on 
one-year tours once they reached mobilization stations in the United States. 
The Army said the policy, though perhaps misunderstood, is not new.

But the frequent and long deployments are ultimately not stopping reservists 
from joining, Defense Department numbers through the end of June indicate. The 
National Guard is on target to meet recruiting goals for the fiscal year 
ending Sept. 30, spokesman Mark Allen said. The same is true for Army Reserves and 
other branches of the reserves.

That's the good news. The bad news is concern that large numbers of current 
reservists could drop out of the military the first chance they get.

``Of course we're concerned,'' said Army Reserve spokesman Steven Stromvall, 
``and there are things we're trying to do to minimize that.''

In the works are policies to give reservists a better idea of how often and 
how long they'll be deployed, Stromvall said. Officials also are working on a 
restructuring to shift the burden from overused units.

While such changes should help retention, the nature of the mission will also 
influence the numbers, said military analyst Marcus Corbin.

``If people are deployed and received well and feel like they're helping 
people overseas and feel good about their mission, they'll have one attitude 
toward the hardships and danger they face in being called away from their homes and 
jobs,'' said Corbin, of the Center for Defense Information.

``If, on the other hand, they go to places like Iraq, they go on missions 
where they are not welcome particularly and they're getting shot at on a daily 
basis, that puts everything in a different context.''

Szymanski said his two-year activation -- including nine months in Saudi 
Arabia -- cemented his decision to retire from the reserves when he hits his 
20-year anniversary in a year.

The military police officer said he was honored to serve, but ``two years 
went way beyond my expectations.'' His 7- and 9-year-old boys grew ``like 
weeds,'' he said, and he can't make up missed birthdays and holidays.

``It kind of stunk,'' 9-year-old Matthew said.

``I'm just not willing to leave my job and family for two years again,'' 
Szymanski said.

Miller also is contemplating retiring when he reaches 20 years next year. He 
folded his 9-year-old siding business, he said, to avoid paying insurance and 
other costs for an indefinite period.

``If we get the business up and running again, I'll probably get out, only 
because to be self-employed and run the risk of having to be gone again for an 
extended period of time is foolishness,'' he said. 


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