[lksteve]

Originally Posted by dennisw

Also, if we use the gem cutting analogy, how much of the metamophism is related to the training, and how much relates to the team experience?

depends on the individual...depends on the team...the process of metamorphism is never completed...never...at least in my case, i believe i am still evolving, based on my experience, my training, my associations...not unlike NDD, i apply everything i learned throughout my time in SF to my life beyond the Army...

Originally Posted by dennisw

Without being dissarespectful, I would imagine some folks coming out of the pipeline can be a bit cocky or rough and the team provides the group discipline to polish the stone.

first trip downrange usually knocks cocky out of even the brashest...the team he's with on that first trip determines whether the gem is polished or simply rubbed on...

rough...i dunno...don't think that ever goes away...some of us are more suave and debonaire than others...BTW, the correct pronounciation is swave (as in wave with an s at the beginning) and deboner (as in one who removes meat from a bone)...i would not make these things up...