Ah the sun is back - glorious, bright, and warm. There's no place I've ever been where mud dries as quickly as here. By noon almost all the mud was as hard as concrete. Some of the larger puddles remained, which is a testimony to how much rain came down yesterday. By 1500 it was already starting to get dusty again. Dust doesn't stick to boots though so I'll take it any day.
With the weather improvement I was able to show the soldiers from Kuwait around LSAA. I introduced the officers to all my team members. I also gave a quick briefing on my team's functions, operations, and activities. Everyone seemed happy with the day's accomplishments. We were done by 1400. I dropped our guests back off at their billets and took a much-needed nap. After that it was off to the gym. Is this starting to sound routine? Well it is.
The NFL Draft was televised on AFN. It's actually ESPN but broadcast on one of the AFN channels. Speaking of, the BoSox-Yanks game I spoke of in an earlier entry was the NESN broadcast. NESN on AFN! Talk about awesome! Anyway, I was watching the draft when I decided to walk to the DFAC for supper. When I went to sit down I saw that the nearest TV was on another channel broadcasting CNN. I figured everyone wants to watch the NFL Draft but before I just assumed so and changed the channel I gave everyone the courtesy of asking. Everyone said yes (enthusiastically) except the last person I asked. He was this old and crusty civilian contractor. I said, "would you rather watch this or the NFL Draft?" He replied, "I'm watching this!" Then he said, "that's alright I'm finished, I'll just leave. Do whatever you want." His face had a look of total disgust. I replied in a very polite manner, "Sir, one is a majority here. If you're watching this then continue. I was only asking." The guy jumps to his feet, grabs his tray, and stormed off mumbling incoherently. I figure it must've been his agent orange acting up. Whatever! Everyone was much relieved to watch the draft instead. Anybody curious as to my take on draft winners for day one? Cleveland was the biggest winner - franchise tackle and QB within 22 picks. The Patriots did well again - plenty of picks to bargain on day 2 and picked up an extra #1 for next year. I'd say Arizona is a sleeper here to watch out for. They picked up a damn good tackle to pair with Matt Leinart. They are going to surprise a lot of folks in the NFC. The jury is still out on the Titans (I have to comment on my favorite team - Pats are my second favorite). They addressed needs but I don't know anything about the players they selected. Damn I can't wait for football season!
Overall the day would have been great except for something that happened down in Kuwait. One of my soldiers who had gone there for training was due to fly back. However, he had a "negligent discharge" of his sidearm in the clearing barrel at Ali Al Saleem airport. For the benefit of those who have no idea what I'm talking about I'll explain. All soldiers are supposed to have their weapons in a "green" status while on military FOBs. That means there are no rounds chambered, no magazine in the weapon, and weapon is on safe. To ensure weapons are green, clearing barrels are posted at entrances to FOBs, installations, DFACs, PXs, etc. A soldier will walk up to the clearing barrel (a barrel filled with sand), clear their weapon of magazine and rounds, and then point the weapon into the barrel and pull the trigger. So long as the weapon was properly cleared the hammer clicks forward meaning the weapon is clear. The soldier can now place the weapon on safe and proceed. Well if the clearing procedures are not properly followed a soldier may accidentally chamber a round before pointing the weapon into the clearing barrel. If that happens, resulting in a bullet firing into the barrel, it is considered a "negligent discharge." Automatically it indicates the soldier failed to have his weapon in a green status. A "negligent discharge" is an offense punishable by non-judicial Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ, Article 15). That means the soldier is detained, an investigation is completed, and the commander recommends non-judicial punishment. Punishment can include confinement, forfeiture of pay, or both. Bottom line is that my soldier will be retained in Kuwait pending the investigation and recommendation of punishment. It's unfortunate because he's a good soldier otherwise. My first question was "why did he have a magazine in his weapon?" That's everyone's question. Bonehead moments happen but can always be prevented. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. In the meantime, I'm down one soldier.
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