My 50 year-old uncle has been backdoor drafted.

[CactusCarlos]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2973862

My 50 year-old uncle has been backdoor drafted.
Posted by angrycarpenter on Fri Mar-07-08 07:44 PM

Two days before X-mas last year My uncle received a registered letter from the Army. The letter said that he was to report to an army base 250 miles away in 5 weeks, he had been called back to active duty.

My uncle had been put out of the army after 16 years of outstanding service. He was a ranger. He had served with distinction in the first gulf war, winning the bronze star. He had been stationed all over the world and went to every school the army would send him to. After all of that he was put out prematurely at the end of the first gulf war sometime in mid 1991. He had wanted to serve 20 and retire but he was given a small yearly stipend rather than full retirement benefits.

Flash forward to 9/11. He was about 42 and like everyone else he freaked out over the attacks. He went right down to the recruiting office and demanded to be called back so he could go after Bin Laden. They basically laughed in his face and said he was too old.

So he then and there gave up all hopes of going back. He had already started a business that does alright.A year ago he bought a lot and started planning his retirement home. His youngest has moved out of the house and gotten married.

So here he is 50 years-old and starting to look forward to his retirement and being able to spend time with his wife and family when this letter lands in the mailbox. He was dumbstruck. It gave him 5 weeks to report for active duty. He was able to get an extension on it, he now has to report this Easter Sunday.

This backdoor draft for him means financial ruin. He has a pest control business to run and payments on his house and a nice wooded lot he meant to retire on. He gets none of the large re-enlistment bonuses we have heard about. The army has no sympathy for what this will do to him. They won't even tell him what they want him to do or where he will be.

So he will report as ordered and do what he is told to do because he signed a contract to do it. He has remained in the ready reserve all these years in return for a couple of thousand dollars a year. No one I have talked to has ever heard about an arrangement like that but that is the deal he had. He gave his word and will not go back on it.

I want to hear some conservative hawk explain how this is a good thing for America. How they can laugh in a mans face when he wants to serve and then force him to go when he should be sitting in his porch, in a rocker, with his wife, watching his 6 grandchildren playing in the yard.

How about a conservative calling you a ****ing liar?

[Odin's Hand]

Heh,heh. Whoops...

http://www.usarec.army.mil/hq/apa/download/40-20Kbonus-age%20limit%201-06.pdf

Now, shut the **** up, angry carpenter.

[Airwolf]

They can call you back anytime they want to as it fits their needs even retirees like me. I doubt if it would do them much good but I could use that 3500/month check like I was getting after 9/11 till they say otherwise.

[Uhhuh35]

So he will report as ordered and do what he is told to do because he signed a contract to do it... He gave his word and will not go back on it.

So the DUmmie thinks it's not a good thing to keep you word? To keep promises? To follow through with commitments? To honor signed contracts?

Typical.

[formerlurker]

Wow, he was RIFed in 1991 and in 2008 they recall him? 

Why am I have a hard time believing that? 

Why am I having a hard time believing that an Army ranger with 16 years was RIFed? 

It must be true though right?


Good Lord,   Noah needs to direct his ark to these lost souls.

 

[formerlurker]

He is forbidden to say exactly what he did in the war nor is he allowed to say how he won the bronze star. He has never to my knowledge ever violated the oaths he took.

I would love to get on the phone to him and get all of the details and post them here to get the opinion of someone who is in the know about these things. But he has no intention of talking about the details of his war service or of his forced semi-retirement. He was no run of the mill soldier, not with the clearance he had.

The 1st time you posted this story (12/31/07) he was to report by mid january, (3 weeks from xmas)This time he had 5 weeks (feb 1st) but got a delay til Easter Sunday? He can't even get Easter Sunday off?

Hope all goes well for your uncle.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

But last time I posted it I had some people doubt me because the story has some pretty odd points. Also my unwillingness to give details made it seem like I was making it up. The story made it over to the place whos name I will not speak and they basically thought I was full of shit. Not that I really cared what they thought but no one likes to be called a liar.

peace.

 

[NHSparky]

"Secret" awards?  Uh, I call bullshit.  If in fact the award was classified it 1--wouldn't be awarded in the first place, 2--you wouldn't be allowed to wear it.

I've been on ops on the boat where we signed non-disclosure statements, but I can say I've been out there.  Duh.  Something ain't passing the smell test.

BTW--the uncle had to VOLUNTEER to take early retirement back in 1991.  They weren't showing everyone the door, and certainly not those in critical ratings or MOS's.  As far as Navy went, yeah, they offered a few early retirements, but not to anyone in a nuclear/SEAL source/a whole shitload of other NEC's.

[daveman]

"Secret" awards?  Uh, I call bullshit.  If in fact the award was classified it 1--wouldn't be awarded in the first place, 2--you wouldn't be allowed to wear it.

I've been on ops on the boat where we signed non-disclosure statements, but I can say I've been out there.  Duh.  Something ain't passing the smell test.

BTW--the uncle had to VOLUNTEER to take early retirement back in 1991.  They weren't showing everyone the door, and certainly not those in critical ratings or MOS's.  As far as Navy went, yeah, they offered a few early retirements, but not to anyone in a nuclear/SEAL source/a whole shitload of other NEC's.

Yup.  In '91, he volunteered to take the money and run.  He wasn't put out. 

[TheSarge]

So the DUmmie thinks it's not a good thing to keep you word? To keep promises? To follow through with commitments? To honor signed contracts?

Typical.

It's the result of having a belief system that says there are no absolutes...no black and white...only millions of shades of gray.

[TheSarge]

Wow, he was RIFed in 1991 and in 2008 they recall him? 

Why am I have a hard time believing that? 

Why am I having a hard time believing that an Army ranger with 16 years was RIFed? 

It must be true though right?


Good Lord,   Noah needs to direct his ark to these lost souls.

 

Actually...it's very feaseable.  Bush 41...shortly after Desert Shield started reducing the military as part of the "Peace Dividend".

Clinton sped up the process and cut more deeply when he took office.

Also as a side note...depending on this guys rank and skill set...he can be recalled at any time.  I remember in 1990 reading about a bunch of angry retired Colonels from the medical field getting late night calls...after having been out of the service for manyyears...telling them to report to the nearest military post because they'd been called back to active duty.

[SSG Snuggle Bunny]

"backdoor drafted"

Silly DUmmies and their gay euphemisms.

[NHSparky]

Wow, he was RIFed in 1991 and in 2008 they recall him? 

Why am I have a hard time believing that? 

Why am I having a hard time believing that an Army ranger with 16 years was RIFed? 

It must be true though right?


Good Lord,   Noah needs to direct his ark to these lost souls.

 

Actually...it's very feaseable.  Bush 41...shortly after Desert Shield started reducing the military as part of the "Peace Dividend".

Clinton sped up the process and cut more deeply when he took office.

Also as a side note...depending on this guys rank and skill set...he can be recalled at any time.  I remember in 1990 reading about a bunch of angry retired Colonels from the medical field getting late night calls...after having been out of the service for manyyears...telling them to report to the nearest military post because they'd been called back to active duty.

Perhaps certain officer fields, and retirees (while they're in IRR, before they hit the "retired" list).  I know that they can, under certain incredible circumstances, call you up to the "official" retirement point, which last time I checked was the 30-year point.

Example--my last LPO retired at 21 years, but he was IRR until the 30 year point where he officially became "retired".

But even then, do the math--the bouncy is claiming his uncle did 16 years before retiring in 1991.  That means, 1975 was his initial enlistment date, therefore if the Army does things similar to the Navy regarding retirement, he can basically tell the Army to GFT.

Now if he's National Guard or reserves, guess what?  All the way up to age 60, baby!

[Airwolf]

"Now if he's National Guard or reserves, guess what?  All the way up to age 60, baby!"

And that is where I am at. I'll get my benefits and my first retirment check in or around  Jan. 2018. I turned in my paperwork to retire in Feb. 2003

[formerlurker]

Wow, he was RIFed in 1991 and in 2008 they recall him? 

Why am I have a hard time believing that? 

Why am I having a hard time believing that an Army ranger with 16 years was RIFed? 

It must be true though right?


Good Lord,   Noah needs to direct his ark to these lost souls.

 

Actually...it's very feaseable.  Bush 41...shortly after Desert Shield started reducing the military as part of the "Peace Dividend".

Clinton sped up the process and cut more deeply when he took office.

Also as a side note...depending on this guys rank and skill set...he can be recalled at any time.  I remember in 1990 reading about a bunch of angry retired Colonels from the medical field getting late night calls...after having been out of the service for manyyears...telling them to report to the nearest military post because they'd been called back to active duty.

Retired Colonels?  yes, as they are retired.

RIFed personnel?  no.   I can't see a ranger being subject to RIF either.  Their skill set in high demand, the amount of training enormous.    

Personnel

Active duty and civilian personnel bore the brunt of the cuts in the Army during FY 1992. To encourage voluntary departures from the service and thereby reduce the number of involuntary losses, the Army turned to several programs, notably the Voluntary Early Transition (VET), Voluntary Separation Incentive (VSI), and Special Separation Benefit (SSB). In the end, these programs were so successful that the Army actually encountered shortages of personnel in several specialties.

Reductions in Active Military Strength

With the end of the Cold War, the Army contained more soldiers than were authorized, as reductions in force structure exceeded losses from normal retirements and completed tours of service. The Chief of Staff and the Secretary of the Army accordingly approved a plan for fiscal years 1990-95 to reduce Army end strength primarily through voluntary separations and secondarily through involuntary measures. During FY 1992, the Army used a number of programs to reshape the Army, including Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC), Retention Control Point (RCP) changes, Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) mandated reductions, and Enhancement of CONUS Contingency Corps (EC3). The most important programs, however, were the VET, VSI, and SSB. Approximately 64,000 soldiers took advantage of these three programs during the fiscal year.

Under the VET program, soldiers who had completed three or more years of service could request voluntary separation without regard to expiration of term of service. Soldiers who possessed critical skills or served in Cohesion, Operational Readiness, and Training (COHORT) units were ineligible. The first lieutenant colonel in the soldier's chain of command approved or turned down the application, and any recommendations for disapproval had to go to PERSCOM. The program was intended to run from 7 October 1991 through 30 March 1992.

The National Defense Authorization Act, adopted in December 1991, provided for programs to assist in maximizing voluntary separations. In January 1992, the Army added the VSI, SSB, and the Excellence in Retention Program (ERP) to the VET. The VSI offered an annual annuity payment equal to 2.5 percent of the soldier's base pay multiplied by the number of years of active service. A soldier would receive his VSI payment for twice the number of years he had active service. The SSB provided a lump sum payment equal to 15 percent of the soldier's annual basic pay times the number of years of the soldier's active service. To be eligible for the VSI and SSB, which the Army lumped into a common program, soldiers must have completed at least six years of active federal service as of 5 December 1991 and have served at least five years of continuous active duty immediately prior to the date of separation. The VSI/SSB stressed maximum approvals while accepting the inherent risk of a personnel shortfall, especially in the ranks of staff sergeant and sergeant. To maximize voluntary losses and reduce involuntary separations, the Secretary of the Army extended the VSI/SSB application window from 29 February to 1 May 1992.

The results of these programs exceeded the Army's expectations. Approximately 100,000 soldiers left the Army during the fiscal year, with more than 52,000 of them departing under the VSI/SSB and VET programs. These actions left the Army's end strength closer to 610,000 than the anticipated 640,000. Personnel readiness and Authorized Level of Organization (ALO) decreased significantly during the summer, when the bulk of the soldiers separated from the Army under these programs. Because the Army could not match the unexpectedly rapid reduction in personnel with a corresponding decrease in authorized positions, it faced a shortage of soldiers to meet requirements. MOS shortages were expected to continue in future fiscal years.

http://www.history.army.mil/books/DAHSUM/1992/ch07.htm

A 16 year Army Ranger wouldn't be subject to RIF.  They usually target the 8-12 year personnel -- and they target year groups, not individual people.   Can you see them RIF a 16 year personnel group of Army Rangers?

This guy took a voluntary separation, and he could have went into the IRR.   If he did they he would indeed be long retired (as he was a 16 year Army ranger when he left), and he would refer to himself as retired, not a RIF'd Army Ranger.

Bizarre.



I really can't see the recall on him though.  

[DumbAss Tanker]

They didn't have a RIF but they did give lots of incentives to get out for career enlisted and also raised the retention bar for officers so a lot of officers were in a vulnerable position on schools or other issues and failed to make the greatly-narrowed gates for further service to retirement age, if he was a company grade officer it is possible he was squeezed out by the up-or-out system.  There are classified award citations, mainly a SOCOM thing, the award will be on the 214 but the citation for it is classified - it does happen, though it's a lot more common for actual SF than for Rangers.