worth reading

[Y85]

http://www.esquire.com/features/man-who-shot-osama-bin-laden-0313

[cory]

Is anybody wondering why he got out at 16 yrs, being so close to retirement?

[LRRPF52]

I read the whole article yesterday. 16yrs of service in any special operations unit as a shooter equates to about 64 years on your body, plus a lot of the guys would like to raise their kids and try to salvage their family life, if possible. SEALs have a 95% divorce rate, and the SEAL in the article only lives with his wife because of finances.

I don't think there really is a way to convey to civilians how much of a beating your body takes in even a combat arms unit in a conventional unit, let alone special operations community. Football players can start to relate, only compound that with a job where you're away from anything resembling the developed world, carrying ridiculous amounts of weight on your back, and doing it around the clock without sanitation or a change of clothes.

Running, jumping, falling, busting brush, eating spiderwebs in the night as you trek where no man has gone before through the woods, then setting in a patrol base where you might rest for the night after priorities of work, laying in the terrain as it is...mud, sand, soil, and rocks your bed. These are the realities of dismounted small units that actively patrol on extended duration operations. The SEALs actually try to keep their mission profiles fairly short, with a lot of Direct Action followed by exfiltration, but they still encounter the realities of light infantry quite regularly.

What I saw in units that have high OPTEMPOs and abusive physical regimens is that when a serviceman goes to retire at age 38 or 39, he is almost a geriatric-looking physical shell of a man often, while the soft-skills career management fields still look young after 20 years of service. If you were in an Airborne unit and combat arms, it's even harder on your body, as you get to fall from the sky with excessive weight strapped to you at night, from 800-900ft Above Ground Level.

SEALs are Airborne-qualified and frequently maintain their jump status for proficiency, in addition to a whole other skill set filled with hazards: swimming and diving, sub lock-outs, and military watercraft transport. They are told when they get to the Teams that "...25% of you will not see your 30th birthday." That was before 9/11. Additionally, many of the SEALs are Military Free-Fall qualified, and maintain the MFF Level I status involving 14 different types of free-fall jumps per quarter.

This same sets of hazards are shared by Army SF, MARSOC, Ranger Regiment, Force Recon, and Long-Range Surveillance Units, only you don't hear much about any of them, so there are quite a few servicemen out there who go through these same challenges, and work very hard competing against others to get and stay in those units. On top of that, families of these people make huge sacrifices, and have to bear their burdens in silence for many reasons.

It is a difficult adjustment to go from such a tight-knit community in an exclusive club of type A super-achievers, back into civilian life, where mediocrity and nepotism are often rewarded in the face of competence and can-do attitude. Many guys who get out before 20 years of service show up to a job and start performing like they're accustomed to, only to be told to slow down, don't rock the boat, learn your place...they usually end up back in the military or doing contract work back among professionals with the same work ethic.

I barely got out with my body relatively intact, and I have aches and pains every time I try to squat, bend, lift, walk up steps, etc., and I'm not even trying to seek disability or special treatment, especially when I think of the guys who lost their legs, arms, eyesight, hearing, or sanity. I have 4 extra holes in me, feet that went from size 11N to 12R, 37 jumps, neck injury, collapsed arches, significant hearing loss, etc., but that pales in comparison to the guys and gals who have suffered missing body parts, burns, TBI's, etc.

A veteran is pretty much on their own when they exit the military without retirement benefits, but the GI Bill and Army College Fund helped me out tremendously. Getting involved in shooting sports and continuing to associate with the military was good for me, but each person has their own unique set of challenges and opportunities. Considering the problem-solving skill sets and resolve found among career SOF operators, they are uniquely equipped to tackle the challenges of re-entering civilian life. The article leans towards a bleak outlook on life that I refuse to accept personally. I'm all about "Be of good cheer".

[montana]

Hans Ulrich Rudel's comes to mind. He's only lost who say's he's lost was his motto.

[cory]

LRRPF2 I agree with everything you just said. 100%! Not an hour goes by that I don't feel the corps from some point in my body.

That being said there's no reason he'd have to do his last 4 with a seals team. I find it hard to believe that somebody with his experience and training wouldn't have his choice of training units for his last enlistment, and if it's all about getting back to the family and away from the bullets (which is completely understandable) I'm sure he could find an admin unit or non deploying intelligence analyzing unit that's in need of a SNCO. I can only imagine for someone who did 16 years with the seals another unit would be unthinkable.

After the 16 year mark or for that matter 12 year mark it's (figuratively) all about hitting the mark for retirement eligibility, which means a pension a solid benefits for you and your family. I'm sure the last thing he'd want is a paper pushing job, but for the security it'd offer his family, 4 years or however long that equates to in the reserves, is a small price to pay.

I'm in no way trying to imply he hasn't done his duty, or he doesn't deserve far more than he's being offered after 16 years of service in the Seals. I'm just a little skeptical is all. It makes me wonder if the writer is sourcing the actual Shooter in the article.

I'm sure all the Veterans here run into imposters all the time. Either some admin come cook who claims to of been a Grunt, some POG(Personnel Other than Grunt) who claims to of been a scout sniper, or someone who claims a chest full of metals who never served. Due to these a**clowns I'm on alert for red flags every time I meet a Veteran for the first time. "I got out at 16 yrs" is a huge red flag for me, and 9 times out of 10, when I get a red flag someones full of s**t.

[BjornF16]

I nearly left at the 15 year point. The rigors of constantly moving every 2.5-3 years, long deployments from home, aggravation over REMF decisions, pressures from home, low pay, physical stress....get the picture? For some, it is a relatively easy decision. For others, it is a relatively difficult decision. It all depends upon a person's priorities and outlook.

I don't think he'll have a difficult time finding work, even if he wanted to get away from the combat arms arena.

It does sound like he got the raw end of a "transition program"...my experience was pretty weak as well. DoD needs to do better, or maybe get private industry involved in the "transition program". As per usual, government bureaucracy isn't as good/efficient as private industry.

[LRRPF52]

I was also wondering why he didn't just go be a BUDS instructor, or SQT instructor. I don't know what his rating was, but there are available positions for guys with his skill sets. It could also be that the only openings were on the West Coast, where BUDS and SQTs are, and they couldn't/wouldn't move away from Virginia.

The whole story could also be something else entirely if you stop and think about it.

[Variable]

He deserves a ton of respect (and my thanks!), but at the same time he is kind of complaining about his selling himself short. As has been noted, he could have finished up his 20 in a lighter role. No one made him quit at 16+. The article stated he had over 36 months to go. Okay.... Seriously? He walked out on a retirement? I believe he is seeking the "big bucks" (and I hope he gets them), and bailed early hoping to capitalize on his story while it's still commercially viable to tell it. That is hardly the fault of the USN in my opinion. I'm sure the reporter (also looking to capitalize on the story!), probably helped emphasize the "abandoned" portion of the story

I think saying that the USN "abandoned" him is bullshit. Period. He needs to get that corrected--- whether it was him or the reporter empahasizing that aspect... because it does him, his service, and his story a disservice in the way it's portrayed. He comes from better than that in my opinion.

Either way: I'd still shake his hand, buy him a beer, and thank him for his service to our country! I expect he'll be doing well pretty soon on the outside anyway.

[dukeboy_318]

Shoot, I feel for these SF guys and Seals. I'm not Airborne or SF or anything close to these guys. But nearing 10 years of service, I fee like I'm 40 when I'm no where near it. One's knees and backs really take a beating. I'm not that bad off, just 2 knee surgeries. My buddy is 30 years old, 3 combat tours in Iraq, 15.5 years, finally getting a medical discharge after 2 years of waiting for ruptured discs in his spine, he can barely pick up his 6 yr old son or a sack of potatoes. I feel for him. Don't get me wrong not complaining, just trying to say that for anyone who enlisted/served after 9/11, 20 yrs of service is going to be a big, hard to earn milestone from a physical stand point. Harder than the previous 20 years before 9/11.

[montana]

People in all lines of work such as logging, mining , construction have a lot of physical abuse without any retirement. Many of the world War 2 vets I have known were racked with war wounds, fingernail fungus, malaria and still managed working without any complaints. This is our new cry baby mentality that has permeated from top to bottom in our victim mentality society. The people I use to associated with appreciated everyday they were given and would have been too ashamed to belly ache about their problems. Vets who were disabled in service should be taken care of like the hero's they are .Vets deserve out respect ,and the way Vietnam vets were treated was a national disgrace, but let's not over due it.