Free to Speak

It is interesting to hear my peers discuss how creative thinking is not always welcomed at the tactical level. Specifically, voicing how to accomplish some task or mission is not always appreciated. In some case, unless the commander is physically absent, those in positions lower in the chain on the battlefield cannot make the calls. In my current tour, I have been perched at the HQDA level in very secure surroundings (thank you soldiers forward), and it seems to me from this vantage point, officers throughout all ranks feel quite free and entitled to voice their opinions to those beyond their daily chain of command. I am constantly reading articles written by CPTS, MAJs, LTCs and beyond about how the Army should reorganize to address current threats, how Task Force X is tackling economic development in its AOR in Iraq, why the U.S. Army should invest more in biometrics, etc. Officers are being published everywhere I look and not just in military journals. It is not unusual to hear an officer say, "I am going to be submitting my article to Joint Forces Quarterly" or to see young field grade officers invited to D.C. to share their ideas from a paper they wrote at CGSC. Just today a CPT shared with me his blog that he created for a major news corporation while he was deployed in Iraq. True to my Army upbringing, my first question was, "were you told to do it or did you do it on your own?" I appreciate that much of what I read and hear, to include this CPTs blog, are not outlets to complain or insist that the Army has it all wrong (though those exist). In most cases, soldiers are sharing their stories or offerring suggestions about areas they genuinely care about improving.


Major Sam Reyna
Student
Command and General Staff College
ILE, Ft. Belvoir, VA

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Army, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government