You didn’t hear this back then because there was no “blogosphere”, no Youtube to get the story out.

Even during Reagan’s presidency the facilities were awful, and grunts always got the short end of the stick.

Of course, temporary barracks were the worst.

This is the condition they *GOT* The barracks in, not the condition after they’d been there a few months.

The building my Unit *just* moved in to (not barracks, offices) doesn’t have enough power to run our equipment, and we can’t *get* more power because the building has been condemned.

Yeah, the building we *just* moved in to (well 18 months ago) was condemned before we moved in.

There are things the military has to spend money on, and there are things that are complete wastes of taxpayer money. Things like some of the new ships the navy is building, they start building the boat, THEN start redoing the plans for the boat wasting tens of millions of dollars in the process. This serves no military purpose, but flows lots of money to contractors (like the ones many retired officers work for).

I’m not against this war. I’ve been part of the military on and off since I was 18 years old (over 20 years ago). I love my country and I want nothing best for my fellow soldiers.

Lt Col Rex, to blame the soldiers for this is an act unbecoming an officer.

You remind me of that prick XO I had when I was a marine 20 years ago. Used to go into the drains with a clothes hanger looking for crud. Drains that were screwed and we weren’t supposed to remove. Yeah, it need to be kept clean–the drain in the shower was horribly designed, but you do NOT put junior troops in the position of having to disobey one order to obey another.

It was a good intro to being harassed by tacs for six months.

IOW, don’t mean nothing. Not a trauma.

Good for bashing the military and, by extension, Bush. Never heard much of this when Carter and Clinton were prez. And those facilities were AWFUL.

But the one in the video……. Hoo boy….. Someone should get his or her head handed to them over that one. Maybe it couldn’t be fixed up in time for the arrival of the troops, but whoever “owned” it should have had the common courtesy to inform the soon-to-arrive occupants that the building needed lots of work. It at least would have allowed the company’s officers and NCOs to requisition the necessary materials and organize work parties.

A week or so of steady work on the basics (paint-scraping, sweeping, mopping, etc.) by a whole company of men can work a few wonders, and a company of soldiers is going to have at least a few men who know *something* about house-painting and plumbing.

Still, what a “welcome home” present. Yeesh.

Hale Adams
ex-1LT, AD, USAR
Btry A, 1-65 ADA (HAWK), 11th ADA Bde
Fort Bliss, Texas
1985-88

1 – leadership problem. Both garrison and commander to allow the barracks to deteriorate and be in this condition upon return. No excuse that no one in the chain went down there to check. How about taking the command chain and making them camp out on the parade ground till it meets standards that wouldn’t meet condemnation status in most communities.

2. The shift from eternal duty details to using troops as soldiers meant someone had to perform maintenance on these buildings. Most likely DEH who’s outsourced the function as a ‘cost and personnel savings’ initiative. This is what happens when funding for ‘outsourcing’ drys up. Still not an excuse.

3. Thanks for ‘in the old Army’ comments, but this isn’t the old Army. You want to keep expensively trained and experienced soldiers, you don’t treat them like crap. When they leave, they’ll let their buds know what awaits them in any possible ventures in the service and its not fun, travel and adventure. A troop remembers his first day and last day.