Totally agree.

GreatfulService: I can say without a shadow of a doubt that after reading your post, you are not not the guy the SF Regiment needs or is looking for. Thank you for your service but find somewhere else to do it. This will not be a good fit for you or us.

Let this be a lesson on how NOT to make 18X announcements.

TR

Team Sergeant,

Is this to say that if at any point someone had a Facebook or Myspace page (in high school for example) that they will never be eligible for secret or top secret missions, and/or units carrying said missions?

You read what I wrote and I'm sure you understand it.

To add to what I wrote "facial recognition searches" are on the horizon. Soon you'll be able to upload a picture of your high school girlfriend and say "search" and the search engine will recover any and all pictures and videos of that individual.

That's going to be a game changer for a whole lot of people who thought no one would ever see little Susie Fudpacker having sex with six guys and one of them uploaded the video to the internet.

Once your face is on the internet it never comes off, even if you delete it, it's already archived somewhere. And that "hostile intelligence service" we spoke of, they know it.

FB Messenger App
 

Pretty scary what the terms and agreements say behind this application. Apparently people downloading this are either are to lazy to read the terms or just don't care or a combination of both. According to the new app it states you must download this app in order to IM your Facebook friends from your mobile. Be sure to read up on the several bullet points in the link that touch up on what this app is apparently capable of doing to your mobile.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/t...ery-other-app/

It is interesting how the intell community changes through the years. It used to be that you shouldn't have social media accounts. Now, it is considered a red flag if you don't have some kind of social media. It is about being the grey man.

Not having FB when the rest of your circle (family, friends, ect.) have one draws a lot of attention particularly if you have any documents back ground in IT (kind of hard to explain your lack of social media and computer use when your undergrad degree in information technology is sitting on the university website). The idea is to have social media but be very strict about what you put out there and keep in mind that nothing is 100% locked down or able to be 100% deleted.

Great post.

Disinfo opportunity
 

Yes, not having a social media profile can set you apart unless you're an 80 year old grandmother (I'm guessing the algos have age considered). So have your FB profile, but assume anything you post can be seen by anyone at any time. Or, just post a bunch of disinfo, or contradictory info to make it interesting.
Why let the government have all the fun?

Word on the street from one of my guys going through basic training as a prior service 18X- 18X's are not showing up to basic ready to go. 92 18Xs started in his company and it is now down to 65 left after only six weeks. Everything from PT failures to tobacco.

Take this as a wake up call. Basic training is no longer a give me. If you have signed an 18X contract you better show up to basic near 280 PT score, and you better be doing your pre-ship checklists. They will find out if you don't. The recruiter can only take so much of the blame for making you ready to ship- it is up to you to get where you need to be physically and mentally.

An update from an 18X currently at Airborne School:

First week of Airborne school complete. Utterly embarrassing for a lot of people. We had people here, who already went to selection, got selected and washed out of ABN school due to PT test failure. Just embarrassing. Hand quite a few 18Xs got kicked out due to failure to comprehend training. Basically, after tons of PLF practice and 32ft tower jumps, they couldn't get the form down and got dropped.

I noticed a common theme of this group, was their lack of understanding what they truly are getting into. All they have our hopes of earning their Green Beret so they can grow beards, wear after market gear and walk around post like they are hot shit. They were the guys that ran out and bought the JFK ABN unit patch day one, yet PT and act like they still belong in basic or a support MOS. We went from a class of 419 to 330 in a week. Not to mention, basic rule following. We get told not to stay out or drink/ go off post because our pass was cancelled, yet these guys don't have the discipline to follow these simple instructions. A few got caught, and they are gone.

Also, supplements are a big problem also. Guys can't hit the gym without taking 10 scoops of 4 different supplements that are unauthorized anyways and a few have already been caught with more to follow. Believe it or not, a few even failed the 20 second flex arm hang. Bias is shown towards other branches, foreigners and officers, so it puts a spotlight on all 18xs and other young Army guys.

-BREAK-

A few thoughts-

1-Supplements are not going to get you to where you need to be. They might provide that edge to put you over the top, but you WILL NOT have supplements to rely on when you are on your 30th mile of the trek.

2- As you can see, these 18x's who failed the PT test are likely the ones who blew off PT in OSUT. Their fate was sealed when they thought they would be good to go.

3- It is absolutely comical that guys WHO HAVE BEEN SELECTED are failing the Airborne PT test. Are you kidding me? You HAVE NOT made it until you have spent a year on an ODA. Not when you get selected, not when you walk across that stage, and not when you sign into your unit. You are probationary and you should keep your mouth shut until you have been through at least a year on your first ODA.

4- Too many guys are showing up to the teams with shitty attitudes. You would think most of them have deployed and are BTDT kind of guys, but it is really quite the opposite. I have no idea where this entitled attitude comes from, but if it continues it will get guys killed. Currently, you cannot tell these new guys ANYTHING.

5-Being humble goes a long way. The same guys who want to show the world that they are SF, or even in SF training are the first ones to go. DO NOT count your eggs before they hatch.

Its the same old song, you think guys would start to listen. :boohoo

Great comments.

Those attempting to go SF would be wise to heed them, but realistically, those who need to most, will not.

And that is fine as well. Guys who have attitude and who blow off PT don't need to be in SF anyway. The Regiment certainly does not need them.

TR

Great post,

IMO our recruiting is being affected by the unprofessional perception the recruits see on T.V. , in articles, internet etc....something as simple as team hats, beards, and mixed uniforms are the visual attraction to these types and this is not much different to what I see of the guys here on Bragg the prima dona image is in. It kind of reminds me of the Gen X attitude era of WWF. Today it is all about the image being SF is "cool" and in style.

NEWSFLASH, what you see on T.V. are team going native for the sake of the mission, growing beards is a cultural thing in Afghanistan, mixing clothes eliminates the formal appearance and breaks down barriers between us and their culture.

Fitness!?!? Failing an Airborne school PT test???????? I am glad they were caught then and I hope they were not retrained and put back into a hold status somewhere. These troops have maturity and character issues.

Sorry about the rant.

I imagine most of this behavior is simply because of the way the majority of 18x recruits obtain their contract.

USAREC has an 18X special mission, the recruiter gets "2 points" for a special mission contract. Anyone 20+ years of age, with GT score over 110 will likely have an 18x contract offered to them. And that's about all the prep / explanation they get until SOPC. And even then the SOPC TACs only have 4 weeks to create any real mentality change before SFAS.

USASFC does not see the need to get involved at the front end of the Initial Entry recruiting pipeline, and of the 85%+ of 18x washouts (most in basic training), the Army gets a smart 11-Bravo, who I imagine the 82nd will mature just fine.

S

We have more than our fair share of maturity issues and it's one of the most common reasons a lot of us aspire to go SF, CA, and PSYOPS.

Xrays should definitely heed all of this and and make the 82nd one of your many reasons to make it through. Unless your all about signing songs on Ardennes, enjoy weekly rituals of picking up trash, and area beutification...

Builds character, discipline, and a heartfelt appreciation for why SF is worth the pain required to get your foot in the door (NTM - an incentive to succeed - so you never have to go back :p). Looks like a win/win to me!