Words mean things
Basics
- Plural Noun: the essential facts or principles of a subject or skill.
- synonyms:fundamentals, essentials, rudiments, (first) principles, foundations, preliminaries
The current leader bumper sticker slogan is "back to basics" which, just like any other slogan, means different things to different people. Unfortunately, many confuse basic with lack of technology instead of skills. when it comes to shooting and land navigation the trend is to pull out the iron sights and compass to meet the vision of "back to the basics."
This is well short of the mark. Soldiers and Marines should be proficient in their individual skills which include their primary systems. By turning off the GPS and removing enablers from weapons they are semi proficient in their degraded conditions skills with little knowledge of what they will actually be using. Some say that "if I shoot X well, I will shoot Y well" Maybe. That is a generalized statement that is not true just convenient. Trained people can use a system with the same genre because they have baseline skills. Any generation of radio does certain things like transmit and receive. For mil use, it probably has some way to encrypt it. A trained radio operator can pick up any generation or type of radio and look for the things he knows are need to cover those basic tasks. That does not make him an expert in the latest and greatest system.
Leaders must prioritize valuable training time and resources to get the most out of it. Iron sights and compasses are back up systems for use in case of emergency. Of course they should be trained but sacrificing proficiency on primary systems. Doing otherwise is criminal. No American should ever be put into harms way with minimal training on primary systems.
Get back to the basics of skillsets needed to win wars.
Law Enforcement and Defense professional with overseas operational experience | Open to new career opportunities within security and firearms training industries
6 年Well said, Ash. I have often said that a return of training of the basics is desperately needed. ?In the past, I must admit that I too was one of those, whose mindset was to take the GPS and the technology away from "Joe" in order for them to "understand" the basics. ?I think its incumbent that agencies and organizations need to emphasize the importance of the "why" versus "just do it," or "just get it done." ?The "why" provides that enduser the foundational motivation as to how the particular task fits as the spoke in the wheel in the total concept of the operation. ?Great bombs of truth here.?
Trainer at Directorate of Training and Doctrine
6 年Dropping bricks of Truth!