Leaderboard

You might ask yourself, if the Air Force cared so much, why do they have to throw so much money at people to keep them? One may wonder how an organization can possibly suck the fun out of what 99.9% of Americans believe is the coolest job one anyone can have. Maybe these guys know the answer to that question.

Or someone else does

are they just making shit up at this point?

I hate to say it but promotions anywhere in world, civilian included, is about producing results. How you produce those results is a sign of some form of leadership. It might be with an iron fist or a graceful charm but either way results are results. Make your boss look good and you'll look good. So while strats may be relatively new, the idea of producing results has been first and foremost since the dawn of time. I've even seen an OG/CC who wanted to put a certain ADO (always applied for awards for himself and only cared about #1) in a DO position for a deployment but knew the dude was a dick. He wanted a CC there with him to "mentor" him on how to be a better dude. So eventually he will probably get promoted and put in a CC roll and continue the cycle of pain. If I were king for a day, I would make it so that nobody could apply for their own award. They had to be nominated by a supervisor (Flt CC, Chief Pilot/Nav, Chief Tactics Officer, CC, DO, etc.) and the nominees were then selected based off their deeds. It would bring more leadership back to the lower structures and actually employ them to be officers. The SQ leaders would also have to have to strat their dudes, justify why on each one (since the AF will never get rid of strats), and then brief the dude who's OPR is due what their OPR looks like and why. This would actually mean they would have to *gasp* give inputs into their performance (and a chance to make any corrections that need to happen) instead of being surprised on an OPR. The science part would remain (and always will) but the human part would be considered. My 2 cents.

Not only did I write my own PRF (for Capt, no less), it got kicked back multiple times to me from the O5 exec for word-smithing corrections. My Navy supervisor was amused since once they hand-off to an upper level all corrections take place their. Then I got to fill out the stupid f#cking paperwork for the SR to rack and stack. You know, the excel spreadsheet with PT score, Master's progress, awards, etc. Plus the other excel spreadsheet where I listed each line of the PRF, and which OPR they came from...then highlighted the lines on the hard copy OPR's that got routed up. I'd like to say this was because I'm joint right now. But the O5 is an AF pilot who had to do this for exactly 2 officers.

Bragging about poor judgement? Weird. GO PACK GO On a serious note, I second the Imperial War Museum. I'm not normally a museum nerd, but it was very well done and informative. Beyond that, find a good sidewalk cafe in Leicester Square, grab a pint, and people watch.

I have no idea how you got that impression from my post. That isn't what I think at all. In my experience, very few people are in the USAF strictly for the money. Sure, no one would do it for free but financial compensation is not the driving factor. Throwing money at that type of person is ridiculous. As has been said before, the only people who will take the bonus are people who would have stayed anyway. Indeed. "A rhetorical question is a figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked in order to make a point.The question is used as a rhetorical device, posed for the sake of encouraging its listener to consider a message or viewpoint...A rhetorical question does not usually require an immediate answer, but is meant to draw attention to and start a meaningful discussion on the matter." You're right, it is my personal perspective. I could go on a lengthy diatribe, citing dozens of examples of cronyism, people being sold out/used by their commanders, using bad assignments as tools to threaten people, and the list goes on and on. No one wants to hear yet another rant, which is why I stated my opinion which has been formed from watching this behavior over several years. I actually wasn't referring to my own career; I've had a pretty good run. I'm basing this comment much more on the AD people I run across year in and year out. Watching from a somewhat detached point of view, listening to their stories, and some of my own experience serving under these guys has led me to approach nearly every commander warily. Once in a while I am surprised, but not very often. I will. Like everyone else, I crave good leadership. I WANT to follow someone who has their shit together, looks out for their people, and gets the job done. The problem is those people apparently don't exist any more. You're damn right it is. The problem is that it's not an easy fix. We have been promoting the wrong people for years, if not decades. Rewarding the wrong traits and behavior. And now we are stuck with exactly what we deserve after years of eyewash OPRs, promoting ass kissers, and misprioritization of talents (i.e. valuing someones exec ability over flying ability, or ability to write OPRs over ability to inspire confidence/leadership among their crew, etc). Like I said, not an easy fix to get some people in place who can actually lead from the front. So in lieu of that, let's throw more money at people and hope we can dupe them into sticking around despite the poor leadership, shitty assignments, and lack of loyalty from the USAF. I have read all of his posts. And your comment is exactly why I prefaced my original post with, "I've been generally opposed to the verbal beating you have taken on here," because I think he has some great points and good information. But clinging to the bonus as a truly effective leadership tool damages his credibility.

I am of the opinion that, at the top, strats don't matter. The 1/40 CGO and the 1/200 CGO will both get schools slots and be on their happy way. The challenge comes in two areas: the 80th percentile and roughly the 10th percentile. How we compare dudes for that very last school slot and how we determine the lowest guy on the promote list are extremely grey in our system. How the 8/40 CGO compares to the 40/200 guy is where a PRF-writer should be making maximum effort... I don't think that's happening. Liquid, GC, or some other lurker GO: WG/CCs already have a DNP option for their lowest folks. I think they should also have a "Promote w/ DE in residence" container as well. If that were available for the top 10%, then their PRFs could go up blank... The top 10% stamp says all that needs to be said (a MLR scrub could confrim that a WG/CC isn't trying to sneak a guy through). Additionally, there should be an easy option for the middle of the road guys. Folks who are in the 25th - 75th percentiles (perhaps determined at MLR) should be promoted with little fanfare and maybe a one-liner or blank PRF. Commanders should be enabled to focus their efforts where it really matters. Under this scheme, PRFs should only be written for the 90th-75th percentile (those with clear future potential, but not obvious shiny pennies), and the bottom 25% (those with an unclear future in the AF). It bothers me greatly that we spend so much time writing PRFs on folks clearly far from the seams of the system.

Yeah...I wouldn't put a whole lot of stock into what that guy says. I know who you speak of.

BGen. Gina Grosso, former (and first) ABW/CC at WRI. [/thread derail]

I forget who it was but sometime during the beginning of the wars, there was discussion about martyrs and their perception in the Muslim world, but said something to the effect of "I want them to have so many martyrs they can't keep track of them" Off this dude and move on, the Muslim world will forget him in a week between Syria, Egypt, Afghanistan, and the Palestinians they'll probably have another martyr by the end of the day.

He's going to burn in hell, now or in 40 years when he kicks the bucket, one option doesn't mean my tax money going to pay for this POS housing, food AND medical treatment.

Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale Pretty damn good. It's more crisp than I was expecting from something this dark. It's hoppy, but it doesn't beat you over the head with it. The caramel is there, making it a little more sweet than most of their other brews. It tries to be several things at once and actually does a good job with it. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Unless it has to do with TP stalls or instrument flying, FAIPs have no idea what they're talking about and should not be trusted. (FAIPs: Don't be a SNAP and stroke-out with a sensitivity aneurysm. I was once you. It gets better.)

Its New York...glad I'm not a citizen of that state anymore! 'Nuff said!