Active Duty

Well well well... lots to talk about on this one so excuse the length.

First of all lets talk about the Dead To Red Ultra Marathon Relay. What an experience THAT turned out to be. To begin, everyone on the team was so stoked about finally getting to the race that I don't think anyone got a good night's sleep the night prior. We all showed up with smiles on our faces at the starting point. It was great to finally lay eyes on the Dead Sea... looked more like a big lake across which you could see the West Bank. It was kind of cool to think "over there is where all the news has been about all these years". I couldn't really see much in the way of civilization on that side, but I knew it was there. The weather was PERFECT for a distance run, could not have asked for better. There were 26 teams of 10 competing in this year's race, which meant there was at least 52 vans, trucks, and at least one very annoying tour bus scampering throughout the night to get to the next hand-off point without running over a runner. We started out with our planned 2-km legs but quickly decided after one full iteration that we needed to cull that down to only 1-km legs. Therefore, whereas there originally was going to be time to sleep in between legs if you needed to, now there wasn't really enough time. All for the better... the one time I did try to grab a quick nap (sometime around 3am) my body went into repair mode and when I got out for my next leg I logged the slowest time in history. No more napping after that... just stay up and keep the legs warm between legs. I still don't know where we placed, but it was somewhere in the top half I believe, with a final time of 19 hours 31 minutes. It was a great time, and an interesting way to see the western edge of Jordan. Oh... and lets not forget all the bafoonery along the way... BBQ Pork Rib gel packet anyone?

Me in front of the very southern part of the Dead Sea just before the race kicked off. Smiling here... not so much at the finish!

If you are going to spend 20 hours running 242 km with a bunch of lunatics, might I suggest Aqaba as the finish line?

On to training with the Jordanians. It has been quite the eye-opening experience. I can't really get into great detail here, but suffice to say that I've learned a lot in two weeks with them. There is so much to take into consideration when working as a new advisor to another culture. You are getting as much if not more advise than you are receiving, actually. I'm finding it challenging to strike a balance between being myself and adapting to another way of thinking. For example, we Americans have a very type-A take-charge attitude towards a lot of things. That doesn't always win the hearts and minds of Arabs. Sometimes it takes a little strategy to finesse your will into the picture. I'm not very good at this at the moment. My impulse is to try to be a good example of an American officer, to set a good example of how WE behave. But that isn't always what is needed. Sometimes you have to go against your instinct and join the chaos in order to better understand it. I still have a hard time letting go of the old standards. I'll continue to work on this.

The commander I work for is turning into a good friend already. He and I share casual conversation as much as we do business talk. I asked him to describe Jordan's relationship with its neighbors and the rest of the world, and I thought I'd share his comment with you. "If you want to survive, you have to be a friend to the lion and to the mouse... the lion will eat you and the mouse will ruin all your things." An old Arab saying, but it really sums up the political landscape that Jordan is in. He also said I needed to find a "long-haired dictionary" to help me with my Arabic. I almost fell out of my chair. Didn't see that one coming.

Now to Egypt... this will be the first regional travel I've conducted since arriving in Jordan, and I have to say I'm really excited. I will be traveling with one of the other FAO's and his wife and we have quite the trip planned. Two days in Aqaba kicks it off, then we take the ferry to Egypt, cross the Sinai Peninsula, and then on to Cairo, Alexandria, and a Nile river cruise to catch all the tombs and valleys of kings and such. I can't wait to lay eyes on one of the oldest civilizations on the planet. Of course, we will be spending some time at the embassy in Cairo to get a little education on the country and our role there as well. Plus... I get to see my old buddy Tom from DLI who is there doing ICT with his family. Should be a great trip. I'll be gone for about three weeks, so there might be a long delay before my next entry depending on what the internet situation is as we hop around.

As always... be sure to check out the videos on my YouTube page: UncleTravelingWayne. I should have a couple more up there shortly.

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  It has been awhile since my first post, Recruiting Command demands a lot of my time!

  I last left off talking about my first unit, the 514th Ground Ambulance Company at FT. Lewis, WA.  I was there from 1994 to 1999, and I had a good time.  Finally though, it was time for me to move on.  I was a newly promoted E-5 and I wanted to challenge myself both mentally and physically.  The opportunity arose for me to Reenlist for Germany!  I jumped at the chance, and willingly rose my Right Hand.

  My unit of assigment was 2nd BN, 2nd Infantry Regiment, part of 3rd BDE, 1st Infantry Division.  I was proud to be a part of the Army's most prestigious and battle tested Division.  I arrived in Germany to find out that my unit was in Kosovo.  My first deployment!  I was excited to go!  I was made a Platoon medic in Aco, 2-2IN.  I LOVED my job, it was everything I was hoping it would be.  I was "Doc", the guy to come to when you were sick, or injured, or just needed to talk.

  I spent 6 months in Kosovo and returned to Germany to refit and train for our next deployment, which ended up being back in Kosovo, to the same place as before.  By that time I was the Senior Medic for Aco.  I was the head medical authority of the Company, the Commanders right hand man when it came to his Infantrymens' medical health.  I was in charge of 3 Platoon medics, and two M113 Tracked ambulances and the crews.  We had another succesful deployment in Kosovo, and watched the initial invasion of Iraq on the T.V.  our deployment was extended by 3 months, and we just knew that our turn would come to go to Iraq.

  February 2004 we were on a plane headed to beautiful sunny Iraq.  We all knew that this would not be like our deployments to Kosovo, this was the real deal this time.  The Big Red One was ready, we were going to make our mark in Iraq, and in the history books.

  We were based at FOB Normandy, near Muqdadiyah, in the Diyala province.  The BN had many fights during our time there, and always came out victorious.  We lost many good friends and leaders, especially during Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah, but they did not die in vain.  The 2nd BN 2nd IN regiment will forever be in the annals of history, and in my thoughts.  I am proud to have served.

  My medical skills were tested the whole year in Iraq.  I had a great Physicians Assistant, and BN Surgeon.  I learned so much there, that I could operate independently if the need arose.  I knew my stuff, and the men of Aco respected me and trusted me with their lives.

  I reenlisted in Iraq, and upon our redeployment  I was moving back to FT. Lewis.  My next blog will be about my experiences as a medic in one of the Army's newest units, a Stryker BDE............

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Hello,

     I want to start off by welcoming you all. Take the time to look into my link, I will cover all events that the United States Army Drill Sergeants Exhibitor Program will support in the upcoming months. I thank you all for your support and look forward to corresponding with you on any questions you may have about the United States Army, what opportunities and benefits the Army can provide you, your families and loved ones.
     I am Sergeant First Class (E-7), Miguel Medina Jr. I am currently a Drill Sergeant stationed at Ft. Benning Georgia, currently assigned with the United States Army Drill Sergeant Exhibitor Program. We are on numerous assignments, educating future Soldiers, young men and women as well as families on various things such as, Physical Fitness, Education, Opportunities, and Values.
     I am an Infantry Senior Leader, served over 17 years and held numerous positions of responsibility.

Stay Army Strong. 
 

SFC. Medina Miguel Jr.

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Greetings from Haiti!

This is my first post and I am very excited - so excited, I don't know what to write!

I have been in Haiti for about six weeks, providing public affairs support  for the Joint Task Force - Haiti command team. It has been very interesting for me (this is my first deployment) and I am in no rush to leave.

My job responsibilities here are to gather command information products and distribute them via electronic means.  I am also assisting in the publication of the JTF-H twice-weekly newsletter, The Responder, and provide photographic support.

My unit, the XVIII Airborne Corps, based out of Fort Bragg, N.C., was a first responder to the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake that rocked the nation of Haiti. The Corps, as the command and control element, doesn't have a large public affairs team, so we had to tag two members of the Fort Bliss, Texas-based 16th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

Our team currently includes a joint forces team of public affairs officers, a public affairs sergeant major, a broadcast journalist noncommissioned officer and two print journalists.  We are in the process of changing PA support over the U.S. Army South and the 11th Public Affairs Detachment.

I wish I would have started this earlier so that I would have been able to share the last month or so of my Haiti experiences.

Some of the products that we have put out can be accessed here,the 18ABC facebook here, and the JTF-H facebook here.

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Sometimes we catch ourselves asking this very fundamental question about military serivce:

"Why did I sign up to wear this uniform and serve my Country with my life?"

For me all I have to do is look around my office and see a few poignant reminders of what this protection of my beloved USA is all about.

Today it is as simple as this little hand-made tie created for me last Father's Day by my little angel 8-year-old Helena, which hangs prominently on my "love-me" wall. Check out the photo below and tell me if there is a better reason than leaving my little girl a better America than the one I was given by my Army-serving father before me....and to pass this legacy and love affair with America and my deeply held love for my family on down the line to generations still unborn.

Honored to keep on "rocking" for the ones I love, like all my band of brothers and sisters who wear the uniform alongside me, just as my little Helena reaches out to love me for what I do…(you have to love the green tie against that white shirt collar she drew)
 

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So,

      This is my first blog while on DSEP ( Drill Sergeant Exhibitor Program) the purpose of the program is have a active duty Drill Sergeant on location where all types of event are held to help spread the Army message. Recently we have participated in the 2010 Chicago auto show, Viva LA, and a MLB event held in Compton California.  All of the events are top quality and recieve help  from the local community and the Army. The last event I went to was in California held at Lincoln HS were we helped by interacting with JROTC and students intrested in engineering. Of course we had a guest speaker a CSM of the engineer corps we spent the day building structures that can with stand a earth quake, Of course they had a platfrom that simulated earthquakes. Most the buildings held up pretty good some not so well. Just goes to show a engineer needs to know what there doing. Our next events will be Texas, Brownsville and San Antonio and Six Flags. So if your in the area and want to here about Army life or just have some questions stop on in and talk with the drill sergeants. Yes drill sergeants talk also were not always yelling. Untill next time

DS O

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Saturday was the birthday ball for the North Atlantic Regional Command at Ft. Belvoir.  The guest of honor for the ball was Major General Czerw.  You can see from COL Pannes' posting that he is a busy guy trying to support the Corps.

At the ball were several other current and retired general officer's as well as current American Dental Association president Dr. Ron Tankersley.  With it's location in the national capital region, there were many attendees from other services that came out to support.

We were also able to have many HPSP students (dental students on Army scholarships) that were able to attend.  The students came from as far away as VCU on the south and Tufts on the North with many others represented in between.  Hopefully they had a fun time and look forward to coming on active duty.

This was the receiving line prior to the ball beginning.  Starting on the right.  COL Priscilla Hamilton was the mistress of ceremonies (current regional commander - incoming DENCOM Commander). Next to her was MG Czerw, and COL Ted Wong (outgoing DENCOM Commander).

My wife had to attend a function for my son, so my daughter became my date.  Standing in front of the windows in the ballroom with the Potomac in the background.

Standing in front of the birthday cake.

Dr. Ron Tankersley current ADA president with retired Major General Bill Lefler.

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Another great reason for looking at the Army as a "long-term" career plan has been implemented within the last couple of years.  In 2007 Congress implemented a loan forgiveness program that individuals can use if they are employed in public service for 10 years.  The military qualifies for this loan forgiveness.

This program combined with the Post 9-11 GI Bill that allows you to transfer educational benefits to family are great enticements for a career in the Army.

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Thursday was great.  We have several dentists that are/will be gone for training.  Because of that things will shift a little at the clinic.

Thursday I was able to treat one of the tallest patients I have seen. He is completing training in AIT and will be graduating this summer and going on to play college ball.  He was 6"7".  Not sure why he wasn't smiling - he was happy both before and after the picture :)

In the morning I was on exams, and we did 16 exams.  In the afternoon we did: pulp testing and placed desensitizing material on two teeth, extracted 2 teeth, delivered 1 crown, 6 fillings on 3 patients. 

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(All information posted below is publicly available and unclassified)

“…if we had better understood the Iraqi culture and mindset, our war plans would have been better than they were, [and] the plan for the post-war period and all its challenges would have been far better..We must improve our cultural awareness…to inform the policy process. Our policies would benefit from this not only in Iraq, but…elsewhere, where we will have long-term strategic relationships and potential military challenges for many years to come.”

-Ike Skelton, in a letter to Donald Rumsfeld, October 23, 2003

(An expert in cultural awareness speaking to a student at the Functional Area 30 Qualification Course during their two-week multi-echelon at the Battle Command Training Center. Click on the picture to view the website and learn more)

Cultural Awareness is a hot topic in today’s Army, but are there any more effective ways of learning about foreign cultures rather than “death by power point” or a long fact sheet such as the one below published by Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC)? FA 30 (Information Operations) personnel in the picture above attended classes, but what about mobile training for all MOS's and the troops on the ground?

Arab Cultural Awareness: 58 Factsheets

The U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) G-2 Intelligence Support Activity (TRISA), in conjunction with the University of Texas at Dallas, has developed a virtual Iraq cultural awareness simulation.


(This simulator uses the same engine as America's Army, but is no video game. Click on the picture to visit the website and learn more.)


The above picture was taken during the early stages of development, and the complexity and the graphics have improved. The entire program can fit on a single DVD, which will allow for mobile training for troops "down range". Not only is the system mobile, but it is comprehensive and up to date. Dr. Marge Zielke, the professor leading the student development team states, “Much of the cultural data is being developed in real time by the military. By having it in a systems-based approach that is composable — in other words, we can generate culture in certain aspects of the game on the fly — we can respond to the data as soon as it becomes available. We could change it overnight if we needed to.”

The effectiveness of such simulators still lack substantial studies, but virtual training is employed in many commercial sectors, and has effectively reduced training time in Wall Street from 2.5 years, to 1 year. No classroom or simulator is a perfect substitute for first hand, real world experience. Yet, the very point of training is to provide a mock environment to safely demonstrate key principles that may be "fine tuned" out in the field. There are ways to potentially increase effectiveness even further through technological means.

(Transcranial magnetic stimulation can temporarily knock out a brain function or artificially stimulate one, and has recently been FDA approved. Click on the picture to visit the website and learn more.)

Learning performance enhancing drugs such as Adderall, are legal with a prescription, but may contain adverse physical affects for the general populace. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a safe, non invasive means of effecting the brain. While the technology has not yet sufficiently progressed to specifically target all the areas associated with learning, exciting the frontal cortex causes the patient to feel more intense about their current experience. In fact, there are many investigations currently studying the use of TMS in depressing the frontal lobe to treat veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD).

Though there are currently no such plans to compliment virtual simulators with TMS, such a combination might increase effective training by making the experience seem that much more, "intense, realistic, or memorable." Virtual Environments and Brain Computer Interfaces are a growing field so expect to see more of their use in the future in both the military and commercial sector (and in this blog).

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