Hood CSM: Army tired, undermanned but resolute

KILLEEN, Texas — A three-decade Army veteran called a “steel spine” by the defense secretary says he and most other soldiers would prefer never to deploy and fight again because they are tired, undermanned and under-equipped.

“We, the Army, have been rode hard and put up wet,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Neil L. Ciotola, Fort Hood’s senior noncommissioned officer. “We’re catching ourselves coming and going. ... In all honesty, ladies and gentlemen, I and the majority of us in uniform, and those that repeatedly support us are tired.”

Ciotola spoke at the Central Texas-Fort Hood Chapter of the Association of the United States Army where he was given an award for leadership Monday night.

Ciotola, who led III Corps in Iraq from late 2006 to early this year with Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, was called Multinational Corps’ “steel spine” during its 14 months in Iraq by Defense Secretary Robert Gates in February.

Ciotola said tens of thousands in uniform feel like he does about never wanting to deploy and fight again. Too many have “seen too much of death, sacrifice that cannot be measured on any scale, evil that cannot be comprehended by those who have not looked it in the eye.”

“Yet I willingly embrace the reality we still have confronting us; this is a long war, an era of persistent conflict and much is expected of us, both in and out of uniform,” Ciotola said, the Killeen Daily Herald reported in Tuesday editions.

Officials are well aware of the Army’s shortfalls: the lack of equipment, troops and recovery time before the next deployment, he said.

But America at large has failed to realize that the Army is resolute and not willing to throw in the towel, he said.

“Yet there is reason to allow one’s chest to swell with pride, reason to revel in all that we’re confronted with,” Ciotola said. “Yup — we’re tired; we’re undermanned, under-equipped ... but again, we are resolute.”

Ciotola said families and community leaders also shoulder the burden of the war. They “sustain us, comfort us, encourage us,” he said.

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/07/ap_hood_csm_070108/

quote:

Originally posted by IHAWKER:


the Army is resolute

we are resolute

Anyone stationed at that God forsaken Ft Hood has got to be resolute anyway.

This is just another variation on a story that's been going on for years. From officer shortages, to worn out equipment...the list goes on. The American military was not built to sustain large, long wars without a draft.

quote:

Originally posted by SignalSgtWilliams:

quote:

Originally posted by IHAWKER:


the Army is resolute

we are resolute

Anyone stationed at that God forsaken Ft Hood has got to be resolute anyway.

I can agree with you on that point.

If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

I ran into a friend of mine from high school.. from my same neck of the old RFD.. kind of amazing.. there's only about a dozen of us, fewer when you subtract those in jail, and we all scattered to the four winds rather than face jail time or starvation,so a couple of us running into each other is like two buffalo nickels showing up in the change box of the same coke machine... anyway, we served in GWI and he stayed in.. he's been pretty much everywhere including back to Iraq.. he's now a Master Sgt and about 18 months from the big 20, but said he intends to stay in for 24... guys like that are indeed the steel spine of the Army... God bless 'em all.....

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

quote:

Originally posted by SignalSgtWilliams:

quote:

Originally posted by IHAWKER:


the Army is resolute

we are resolute

Anyone stationed at that God forsaken Ft Hood has got to be resolute anyway.

During WW II, I was stationed at then Camp Hood. We slept in WW I pyramidal tents, drank water from water bags that got heated in the damn Texas sun, food was served from field kitchens and eaten from mess kits -- it was the pits. We had to be resolute back then. I guess that not much has changed over the years.

quote:

Originally posted by outlaws93:

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

Why does flashbacks of Heartbreak Ridge and Gunny Hiway keep flashing before my eyes?????????

If I had not the teachings from likes of 1SG Nicola P Niccoluci, SFC Jack Jackson and later re-enforced by 1SG Cleo J Wayman, I would have been lost when I first entered the NCO ranks. I don't give a shite what books teach, it's experience that is passed on that is an NCO's number one training tool.

quote:

Originally posted by outlaws93:

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

You're both ignoring what else he said:

“Yet I willingly embrace the reality we still have confronting us..."

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

The CSM said nothing derogatory or disrespectful about the Service Members or even the administration. If anything, his attitude of resolve was inspirational. To lie about the state of affairs and paint a rosy picture of situation that has become a genuine national security concern would be recognized by the troops as a line of BS. However, acknowledging their sacrifices and the obstacles they have and must overcome, and acknowledging their resolve, IMHO is exactly what a conscientious Command Sergeant Major should be doing.

If everyone who acknowledges weariness with the deployment cycle and the equipment and personnel shortages quits (as you imply), I hope you’re ready to ruck-up.

quote:

Originally posted by outlaws93:

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

Outlaw...you know NOTHING! There's a fine line between inspiring soldiers and blowing smoke up their collective a$$es. I personally feel the CSM did a fine job of inspiring his folks. You live in a GD fairytale world. You have absolutely no idea what the troops and thier families are going through. You have no idea what commanders are going through. They don't even know for sure how many boots they can put on the ground until the SRP!

Go back to what you know...neoconservative talking points!

I guess everyone reading the article picks and chooses the piece that makes whatever point they wish to make. I pick this one:

quote:

“Yet I willingly embrace the reality we still have confronting us; this is a long war, an era of persistent conflict and much is expected of us, both in and out of uniform,” Ciotola said, the Killeen Daily Herald reported in Tuesday editions.

CSM Ciotola will still be the "steel spine" on his next deployment and I would be confident having my daughter in his charge.

quote:

Originally posted by I_M_Qwerty:
I guess everyone reading the article picks and chooses the piece that makes whatever point they wish to make. I pick this one:

quote:

“Yet I willingly embrace the reality we still have confronting us; this is a long war, an era of persistent conflict and much is expected of us, both in and out of uniform,” Ciotola said, the Killeen Daily Herald reported in Tuesday editions.

CSM Ciotola will still be the "steel spine" on his next deployment and I would be confident having my daughter in his charge.

quote:

Originally posted by Ol_Doc:

quote:

Originally posted by outlaws93:

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

Outlaw...you know NOTHING! There's a fine line between inspiring soldiers and blowing smoke up their collective a$$es. I personally feel the CSM did a fine job of inspiring his folks. You live in a GD fairytale world. You have absolutely no idea what the troops and thier families are going through. You have no idea what commanders are going through. They don't even know for sure how many boots they can put on the ground until the SRP!

Go back to what you know...neoconservative talking points!

Ditto to that

Everyone is tired - that doesn't mean that we are quitting.

I respect that he pointed out the truth. Having worked logistics under III Corp. in 2006-2007 - he is dead on. We need NEW equipment BAD.

quote:

Originally posted by foxred03:
This is just another variation on a story that's been going on for years. From officer shortages, to worn out equipment...the list goes on. The American military was not built to sustain large, long wars without a draft.

The current military was setup to fight and win small to medium size short wars or to be able to fight a large war long enough to EXPAND the military. The current admin REFUSED to expand the size of the military (for example Rumsfeld kept saying the military was large enough) until the Republican party lost control of Congress.

quote:

Originally posted by Ol_Doc:

quote:

Originally posted by outlaws93:

quote:

Originally posted by Duster6:
If this CSM is tired then he should retire.

yup time to move on and let someone else go the job...

Outlaw...you know NOTHING! There's a fine line between inspiring soldiers and blowing smoke up their collective a$$es. I personally feel the CSM did a fine job of inspiring his folks. You live in a GD fairytale world. You have absolutely no idea what the troops and thier families are going through. You have no idea what commanders are going through. They don't even know for sure how many boots they can put on the ground until the SRP!

Go back to what you know...neoconservative talking points!

Outlaw likes to talk tough and deride others because he KNOWS he will never have to back it up because of his injuries.

quote:

Originally posted by rayld2:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by foxred03:

The current military was setup changed to fight and win small to medium size short wars .

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Rumsfeld should be made to write that 1000 times on a blackboard.

Indeed, that man was criminally foolish. But after 7 years of war, we need more troops than we have now.