When Morale Falters and Battle Fatigue sets in, best Audit the Leadership
Written by a real soldier. for every body information and future action.
IT’S TIME FOR TRUE LEADERSHIP TO BE SHOWN
Like many Australians I have great empathy for commanding officers and their officers, Warrant Officers and NCO in our Armed Forces, who are slowly being stripped of authority by smothering directions from Canberra, on what can and can’t be done in preparing for war yet destructive PC is all systems go.
Unit commanders must be Disciples who carry bibles of needs to train hard, develop unit pride, loyalty, confidence, trust as well as physical and mental toughness, without being told how to do it within restrictive parameters. Such needs are key elements intended to achieve high standards of battle discipline.
Like others I am confused that despite clear lesson of past wars, our Special Forces are committed to continual tours of duty against a ruthless enemy in the most dangerous circumstances with little rest in between. It seems few Canberra Suits have read, for example, Anatomy of Courage by Lord Moran or lessons learnt from other campaigns pointing out the consequences to mental and physical health from constant combat. Equally is the need to understand there are limitations to physical and mental endurance in any bloody arena.
Fear and hate breed quickly when time after time our troops are exposed to the deeds of a brutal and cruel enemy. Too often, our troops see or hear of slaughtered women and children. Is it any wonder there is growing Indifference to rules of engagement when in action? Is it any wonder there can be temptation to end the threat when it is common knowledge that prisoners are often released to start all over again. For our troops in such dangerous circumstances, it is certainly not a place for Queensbury rules.
Thus, it becomes another war without ultimate victory, and always a price to pay. Youngsters killed, maimed and many who will have difficulty coping with life. Another serious casualty will be the drenching of spirit, loss off respect, trust and questionable loyalty; plus, a serious impact on morale and deficiency in military capability with 2 Squadron SASR being removed from the order of battle. The decision needs to be rescinded ASAP.
Only common sense and sound leadership will restore precious military assets. The madness of PC will surely continue to destroy them.
George Mansford May 2021
THE ANZACS WILL NOT BE HAPPY
We swore a sacred oath for very good reasons
For love of our country, not broken promises and false gold
Ready to give all, and many did in bloody seasons
We sighed and cursed when given tasks so dangerous and bold
Yet as one, we remained loyal, and united for all to see
Then bent our backs, gritted teeth, and did as we were told
Always going forward, confident, resolute and bold
If you want to win wars, that’s how it was, and always will be.
Soaking wet, hungry, weary and wary of the unknown ahead
Gasping, slipping, sliding on false crests or endless muddy tracks
Often, sad news of mates on a ridge close by, wounded or dead
Loyalty and trust all the way up to highest rank and then all the way back
So many restless dreams of safety with loved ones at home
Then sweet visions stolen by sharp spurs of duty, and no turning back
Camaraderie, trust, pride and purpose our armour, wherever we roamed
No matter when, or where, always together and never, never alone.
When danger loomed, we sucked in breath and did what we had to do
Such deeds were often rewarded with garlands of pride
As well, there were medals from Canberra, won by a few
Proud and deserving unit citations for battles in which heroes died
Such recognition must never be buried to mask military flaws
True leaders at fault would fall on swords, and for that, to be admired
Betrayal and shifting blame by any rank is unforgiveable, in peace or war
It’s a tenet that reaches the heart of soldiering and is shameful to ignore.
Who knows where our beloved Army goes from here
With crippling PC ***added to already bent backs
Such stupidity will hamper unity and battle efficiency, I fear
And soldering hate for a ruthless cruel enemy added to bulging packs
Who decides which actions by weary tortured minds are wrong or right?
Not Suits in air-conditioned space far away, and alien to those bloody tracks
Or Judges, divorced from mental and physical demands of war in day or night
If morale and battle discipline falter, best audit the leadership and get the rules right
George Mansford©May2021
VETERANWEB NETWORK
April 7, 2022, by Ray Payne
The Oh-So-Woke Department of Veterans Affairs
By Peter O’Brien
I am a client of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) and, as far as I’m concerned, they do a pretty good job. In fact, I’ve never had a complaint, but then I’m fortunate in suffering no major problems.
However, following the release of the infamous Brereton Report, the DVA – and indeed the Defence Department – came in for a lot of criticism from families of veterans who have taken their own lives. I daresay some of this criticism was justified since DVA is, after all, a bureaucracy and all that implies. But I think much of it was misguided — there is only so much anyone can do to help someone determined to end their life.
We are told that 500 veterans committed suicide in the last ten years and these are overwhelmingly non-serving. That puts them in a cohort of about 60,000 people, and about 6,000 people leave Defence each year, I believe. That is an astonishingly high rate of suicide – about four times that of the general population and much higher, I believe, than in previous wars. It would be interesting to know the correlation between these deaths and multiple deployments because operational intensity is the only reason, I can think of that might explain this.
The survivors of many, if not most, veteran suicides talk of feeling let down by Defence. This is understandable but probably in most cases, unfair. There is much I find disturbing about current trends in the military, but I doubt that lack of concern for the welfare of members past and present is a systemic failure. But there is no doubt that if this deplorable rate of suicide is to be brought under control, action must rest initially and overwhelmingly with the Department of Defence and DVA. But underpinning whatever programs are put in place – and there are many – is buy-in from the veterans. It is crucial.
However, it seems to me that the Department of Veterans Affairs goes out of its way to alienate that client base. A recent communication which signed off with coda reproduced below certainly offended me.
Just to save you the trouble of looking it up, the last flag on the right is the ‘trans pride’ flag. It’s hard to think of a woke meme these bureaucrats have overlooked. All that is lacking is the writer’s pronouns.
I have a suggestion for the Department for something more appropriate:
Those responsible for the current travesty would do well to study long and hard the last photo on the right. Here’s a closeup for their further study:
AHQ GENERAL STAFF = WANABE POLITITIANS
The higher the rank an officer achieves, the further they lurch away from being a soldier and the closer they become to being a hoop-jumping, wannabe politician. Subject: NO MORE ‘PC’!
With compliments
Ralph Wollmer
This article is from the May 3 issue of The Courier Mail Digital Edition.
JUSTIN HUGGETT IS A FORMER INFANTRY PLATOON SERGEANT AND A MEDAL FOR GALLANTRY RECIPIENT
IF YOU spend a long enough time as an enlisted soldier, you start picking up common themes that are shared within the enlisted ranks. One of the most common is the notion that the higher the rank an officer achieves, the further they lurch away from being a soldier and the closer they become to being a hoop-jumping, wannabe politician.
It’s hard to say at exactly what rank the transition from soldier to “suit” begins, but by the time you’re high enough up that chain of command, your uniform is now just a costume and you’re impersonating a soldier.
Let’s call a spade a shovel, this political correctness rot started with then-Chief of the Army David Morrison and his holier-than-thou “standards” speech after the Knights of the Jedi Council email incident, which saw six army members sacked for sharing emails about sexual exploits.
This speech and other actions later taken by Morrison sent troops the message that they should show no loyalty, no faith or trust in subordinates and declare them guilty before any proof is presented. This kind of morale-sapping political correctness from military men has potentially damaged the army to the point it may never recover.
The decision by Defence Force chief Angus Campbell to strip all Meritorious Unit Citations from about 3000 special forces soldiers who served in Afghanistan as “collective punishment” for alleged crimes uncovered by the Brereton inquiry is another example of this outrageous political correctness.
If the army is to recover though, it’s going to be because of hard-nosed men like Defence Minister Peter Dutton, Herbert MP Phillip Thompson and Assistant Defence Minister Andrew Hastie. In the last few weeks, these three men have taken it upon themselves to address our troops and reconfirm their mission; you are our country’s defenders and you are trained to kill our enemies and we have your back.
The embarrassing thing is this didn’t come from our current serving chiefs. It comes from two former soldiers and a tough old copper.
I got into my fair share of trouble as a young Digger and even as a non-commissioned officer. When that happens, you end up on the Command Sergeant Major or Regimental Sergeant Major’s “mat” with your heels together. For the uninitiated, that’s army speak for you’re about to get a good ripping that will leave you with your ears ringing.
Last month, Mr Dutton had a general standing fast on his mat, heels pressed together, and binned his abhorrent decision to strip our hero operators of citations and medals they bravely earned in Afghanistan.
In the veteran and military space, Peter Dutton just won best and fairest.
Why and how did it even get this far? How do officers end up in positions where they can make these woefully inept, morale-evaporating decisions? How is a high-ranking officer, the man in charge of the whole show, so weak of mind that he buckles to public pressure and the bleaters on the left?
Even worse he is more than willing to judge everyone by the alleged actions of a few. I’ll say that again – alleged. Nothing proven in a court.
Disbanding one of the country’s most elite fighting squadrons and blanket punishing thousands of war-fighting soldiers that have held the frontline for the last 12 years. Disgraceful.
Thank God Mr Dutton had the spine to do what his hopeless predecessor didn’t. And can you believe it, it’s taken a politician with no military background to fix a monumental military screw up.
It’s difficult to judge the true leadership abilities of commanders when bullets aren’t zipping past your face and the fear, confusion and fog of war is not assaulting and overwhelming all your senses. But when the basic concept of presuming one’s innocence until guilt is proven can’t be respected, it must call into question the competence of any leader.
I genuinely hope and pray the brilliant officers I know and served under can make it into positions of power to properly correct this ship’s course.
Mr Dutton, the enlisted men and women of the Australian Defence Force are the engine room. They do the sweating; they do the bleeding and they do the majority of the dying. Keep them happy and you’ll have a formidable fighting force.
Finally, Mr Dutton, I need to ask it. Can you give the Diggers back their skulls, their cross bones and their reapers, give them back their phantom flag? The wearing of these symbols was banned in 2018, but they are not “arrogant death symbols”. It’s just PC generals at work again.
Brilliant! If you know Huggett’s email address, or that of The Courier Mail Digital Edition. By all means forward the ‘bush ballad’ on our heroic woke ‘generals’
Campbell, Brereton & Burr must go – a year ago.
However, the evidence so far is that Hastie does not have the spine we all hoped for
Circulated widely!!!
Alistair Pope
- 0419-367-726
General Macavity:
A Modern Hero for Today …
by
Alistair Pope
31st December 2020
Macavity: A Very Modern General and the Hero of the Day …
With apologies to Andrew Lloyd Webber & ‘Cats’.
General Macavity’s a mystery officer, he’s called the buffoon’s paw
For he’s the deskbound hero who can defy the physics law
He’s the bafflement of common sense, the combat troops despair
For when they’re in the thick of battle Macavity’s not there!
General Macavity! There’s no one like Macavity
He’s broken every physics law, he can break the law of gravity
His powers of teleportation would make a wizard stare
For when you reach the scene of battle, Macavity’s not there!
You may seek him in a bunker, you may look up in the air
But I’ll tell you once and yet again that Macavity’s not there!
Macavity’s a modern General, he’s neither tall nor thin
You’d know him if you saw him for his eyes are sunken in
His brow is deeply lined in thought, his medals are all chromed
His dress is clean, with never dirt nor blood as it is often combed
He nods his head and proclaims: “I know which side to take!”
But when you think ‘he’s one of us’ he turns into a snake.
General Macavity! There’s no one like Macavity
He’s a villain and a fake, an ‘officer’ without honour or honesty.
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square
But when a battle’s at its height, Macavity’s not there!
He’s outwardly respectable, but I know he is a dud
He’s never found in any action where there’s danger or blood.
Be assured that when the fighting is at its very toughest
When the enemy is attacking and at his very roughest
When death is close and our bravest soldiers are in despair
There’s the wonder of the thing, General Macavity’s not there!
General Macavity! There’s no one like Macavity!
There never was a General who’s so perfected deceit and bureaucratic suavity
He always has an alibi and one or two to spare
Whenever a real battle was fought Macavity wasn’t there!
And they say that there are soldiers whose wicked deeds are known
For which Macavity collected medals, but claims it can be shown
Although he was the commander, like Napoleon in his time
He gets to keep his medals, because he knew nothing of their crime.
Brave soldiers who faced death, who they were willing to take risks and dare
Are condemned by tin-medalled Generals, who now deny they were EVER there!
General Macavity! There’s no one like Macavity
He’s a very modern General, with a ‘Doctorate in Dishonesty’
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square
But when a war crime is discovered then Macavity!
Macavity! Macavity! Macavity!
When a war crime is discovered then Macavity was not there!
Military leaders, security chiefs demand action on climate threat
By Nick O’Malley
April 20, 2021 — 6.00pm
The two existential threats that keep former chief of defence Admiral Chris Barrie awake at night are nuclear war, which he says the Australian government can’t do much about, and climate change, which he says the Australian government is not doing enough about.
Barrie is one of more than 30 current and former defence personnel and security sector staff to join the newly formed Australian Security Leaders Climate Group, which is calling on the Australian government to undertake a whole-of-nation assessment of the security risks posed by climate change.
Former Chief of Defence Admiral Chris Barrie is calling for urgent action on climate
“As ex-service members and experienced practitioners of national and international security who have witnessed up close the devastation of war and crisis, we recognise that climate change is a fundamental threat to the security and prosperity of all Australians,” he said.
“Yet Australia is ill prepared for climate impacts, with climate security risks not being fully assessed or understood in Australia.
“We are being left behind, with some of our closest allies already taking action. In the US, the Biden Administration has elevated climate change to a high-level national security issue, with significant stature within national security decision-making.”
A spokesman for Energy and Emissions Reductions Minister Angus Taylor said that Australia was responding to climate change by reducing its emissions faster than many of its peers.
“Between 2005 and 2018, Australia’s emissions fell faster than Canada, New Zealand, Japan, Korea or the United States. Over that same period, half of G20 members actually increased their emissions,” he said.
Admiral Barrie said he had seen scenarios which outlined the potential impact of Bangladesh’s coastal areas becoming inundated in the foreseeable future, prompting mass forced migration and resulting in tens of thousands of climate refugees attempting to reach Australia by boat.
“These are the kinds of prospects that we need some leadership over. It involves the whole nation, it involves every one of us. We all have to pull this boat. And that includes the federal government,” he said.
DYSFUNCTIONAL LEADERSHIP of the ADF
This paper is a kaleidoscope of the decision making, views and statements of high ranking ADF Chiefs and Officials, both present and past.
Originally, I put this paper together as a collection of six separate issues, but for easy on you the reader, I make this introduction page and the six topics will be each on their own.
It is intended as clear evidence that the thinking of our ADF CHEIFS and DEFENCE DEPARTMENT BUROCRATES is on far too many occasions ERATIONAL and IRRESPONSIBLE.
Collectively across recent decades the dysfunctional processes engaged by our CDF’s and Defence Department Secretariat shows how the focus has and is on anything but a ADF FIGHTING FORCE, that is FIT FOR PURPOSE, in that it is structured, equipped and manpowered to achieve the goal of DEFENDING AUSTRALIA
There has been a wave of extreme social views and alternative perspectives that have been allowed to dominate the focus of our “LEADERS”, in direct conflict and to the severe detriment of maintaining a strong and capable FIGHTING FORCE.
Unfortunately, the perennial attitude of almost all people in POWER and POSITION have no regard for the ideas, propositions and opinions of all people they perceive as being below them. This could be for many reasons but the primary hang up is they, that is the POWER and POSITION holders (PPH), fearing to be seen as not being in command and are always the ones that must be seen as making everything their idea. It is the worst and most detrimental form of SNOBBERY ever to evolve in mankind.
The proof of this conduct and attitude is everywhere you look and read. TV, radio, newspapers, defence journals and strategic defence analysists. Where there is no recognition shown by the PPH that something actually may be someone else’s idea.
My research, reading and questioning has proven to me that there are far more Defence Savvy individuals amongst the General Public than there are in AHQ.
Also, that this lot there are a group of seriously sincere and knowledgeable Australian patriots that write incredibly accurate and highly relevant papers putting forward ideas and propositions.
As this paper unfolds with the presentation (i.e.: actual copy/extract) of many articles and papers it will be seen that it does not matter where you sit outside AHQ / DEPARTMENT of DEFENCE, you impute is brushed aside or in most cases never goes past the INCOMING MAIL CLERK, who if you are lucky sends you an auto received email.
What you will read further into the MAN-UP Australia website is actual writings from numerous people and organisations such as the ASPI in Canberra, to an old Sapper in Perth WA.
Each, I hope, will be both interesting and illuminating to you.
WOKE GENERALS FAILING the TROOPS
For the first time in SASR history, a group of 12 current and former soldiers have stepped out from the shadows to remind the country what they are, and what they are not.
By SAS Soldiers – November 16, 2020 (Extracted as follows)
We are the soldiers, the ‘Operators’ as we are known, who have served or are continuing to serve in the Special Air Service Regiment.
We have decided to speak, as one, to the Australian public, who have trusted us and invested in us to defend our country for over 60 years.
All of us have been carefully selected for the privilege of serving our country in the SASR. Our government has invested millions of dollars of public money in each one of us to provide you with unique and specialised capabilities in the defence of our nation.
Our regiment is now the subject of the longest inquiry into allegations of war crimes conducted by the Australian Defence Force. Accusations and allegations of war crimes as well as failures of leadership cut to the very core of the SASR. Such actions go against the very purpose of who we are as an organisation, and against the very nature of who we are as individuals.
We are not indifferent to human suffering. We do not have a callous disregard for human life. We are, however, selected for our unwavering moral compass, on which we proudly hang our Sandy Berets. We are not out of control. In fact, we have spent the majority of our professional soldiering careers in the SASR drilling and exercising, specifically to avoid casualties among non-combatants.
We define SASR mission success by how precisely we can apply the minimum amount of force to achieve a desired strategic outcome with the absolute minimum loss of human life. This is evident in the tens of thousands of missions and programs we have carried out around the world.
We are all singularly bound by the principle of “truth in reporting”. This principle underpins our single most important regimental capability: long-range surveillance and reconnaissance. Truth in reporting enables the SASR to act as the operational eyes and ears of the Australian Defence Force and the Australian government. Without truth in reporting, we are nothing.
As early as 2006, it was our commitment to truth in reporting that instigated what has now resulted in the four-year-long Brereton inquiry into allegations of war crimes in Afghanistan. Truth in reporting is why we speak up then and now.
The matters before us are of an extremely grave nature, and we accept that the impact of the Brereton inquiry may adversely affect former and current serving members and their families, as well as our strategic relationships with other coalition forces around the world. Whatever the outcome, we prefer our regimental history to reflect hard truths over comforting fantasy. If it can be destroyed by the truth, it deserves to be destroyed by the truth.
We also believe that the same principle of truth in reporting should be embraced by the media, so as not to unduly impugn the reputation of the SASR as a whole, or inadvertently imply improper behaviour committed by former or current serving members. Equally, we applaud accurate portrayals of misconduct provided it is supported by appropriate context and evidence.
Just as we embrace truth in reporting, we demand our leadership to do the same. Leaders are bound in their duty to convey what we have seen and reported and we hold them to the same standards to which we hold ourselves.
We hold our leadership to the same unforgiving standards to which we hold our teams, and ourselves, individually. It is our relentless pursuit of individual and organisational excellence that defines us as an organisation and a regiment.
We lead by example. On combat operations, we were forced to sacrifice many of our technological advantages over highly adaptive adversaries who knew no rules or bounds. We accepted continually shifting goal posts and decisions made by governments in the absence of a defined campaign outcome in Afghanistan. We begrudgingly accepted these strategic decisions while attempting to effectively operate in an environment characterised by uncertainty, danger and our own casualties.
We are not war criminals, nor have we ever set our morality aside. We are professional volunteer soldiers who frequently upheld the values of the Australian Army during a 10-year expeditionary campaign in the Middle East, despite the absence of any clear definition of victory.
We believe in the same legal principles that underpin the very fabric of Australian society, something that we have sworn to defend with our lives.
We support unbiased investigatory due process, the rule of law and the burden of proof.
Having had full legal representation, should it be proven that any former or current serving individuals within the SASR have acted outside the law or the expected standards and behaviours demanded of an Australian soldier, we will support such cases of prosecution and removal from the regiment.
Then we will return to the shadows where we belong. We do not seek to be glorified for our actions or demonstrating our moral courage. We only seek the validation that truth in reporting is who we are and what we do.
We are proud of the internal examinations into our regiment that have highlighted a culture of toughness and professionalism of the extraordinary men and women who do extraordinary work under extraordinary circumstances.
We are the tactical, operational and strategic eyes and ears for the ADF and the Australian government, with strategic and innovative capabilities to reach out and strike our adversaries when required.
We are soldiers, we are professionals, and we are Australians. We are committed to upholding the values of the Australian Defence Force. We believe in truth in reporting, moral courage and constant vigilance from the shadows in defence of Australia.
We are the SASR. Who Dares Wins.
WOKE GENERALS DESTROYING MORALE and IMAGE of TROOPS
Why would any man want to join the ADF and be put under this scrutiny.
The ADF and the ARMY particularly is in a morale mess, two faced / double standard, archaic leadership and has lost the respect and confidence of the rank and file.
What logic does the CDF, Defence Department and the Minister for Defence Richard Marles apply, when allowing the persecution of our SAS / Special Forces to continue.
Australian troops accused of war crimes say enough to three years of being under siege from police.
By Charles Miranda January 15, 2023 – News Corp Australia Network
“The OSI does not comment on operational matters,” a spokesman said.
Inclusivity and acceptance – we’re all one team
For the first time since 2020, 60 Defence personnel took to Sydney’s Oxford Street, with more than 12,000 other participants, to celebrate the 2023 Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade.
CAPTION: Defence LGBTI Information Service President Lieutenant Rachel Cosgrove takes part in the 2023 Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade on Oxford Street, Sydney. Story and photo by Private Nicholas Marquis.
With Sydney being this year’s host of WorldPride, inclusivity and acceptance was at the heart of the colourful parade.
There wasn’t a gap in the crowds, with some onlookers spilling out onto the main street.
Attending his second Mardi Gras as an LGBTI Champion, and his fourth overall, Major General Anthony Rawlins said the event demonstrates that you can merge several identities.
“Being able to [march] in uniform shows you can seamlessly merge your professional identity with your personal identity,” Major General Rawlins said.
The Defence contingent was led by the ADFA pipes and drums, entertaining the crowd with their melodies and high spirits.
“Why would we seek to recognise artificial partitions that won’t make a lick of difference on the battlefield?” Major General Rawlins said.
“If you need help, you’re not going to care about a person’s race, orientation or political views.
“At the end of the day, we’re all a team.”
Defence celebrated four anniversaries at this year’s Mardi Gras:
- 30 years since the ban on open gay service was lifted
- 20 years since the Defence LGBTI Information Service was established
- 13 years of allowing transgender people to serve in the ADF
- 10 years of ADF members marching in the Mardi Gras in uniform.
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