Comments on: Army Widens Probe Into Bad Barracks

Video Shot By GI's Dad Showed Horrid Conditions At Fort Bragg, Sparking Worldwide Inspections

[thelambs4]

When George heard those truckers protesting the high price of fuel, George was heard to have said, "Mission Accomplished"!

[bequialife]

to: IT_oldtimer
Thank you for your service, however, it has been 36 years since you were in these same barracks. Mold, sewage and peeling paint is miserable, unhealthy and hazardous no matter how many memories you had; these places have so deteriorated since then and our servicemen do not deserve those kind of living conditions.

[thelambs4]

Why does this not surprise me? A government that doesn''t take care of their own? This is nothing new.
Behind all the flag waving, the patriotism, the "Duty, Honor, Country" stuff, all you have, is a soldier/human being, who is disposed-of, like used toilet paper. And everyone knows, we have no need for used toilet paper...right? The cold, and very hard facts are, your son or daughter, is that piece of used toilet paper...at least to the ruling class, who start the wars, but never fight them. To this day, the ruling class, still think, we could have won the Viet Nam war, if it weren''t for the protesters, at home, who wanted out, with no more casualties. Viet Nam, was the "war of choice", to my generation, and todays generation, has their own "war of choice"...Iraq! Just as then, we now have the same class of people, the "chicken-hawks" who get deferments for their children and "allow", someone else''s child, to fight their wars. As Bush and Chaney said, "they are all volunteers" who joyfully, "serve their country" in its'' "hour of need".
There is also no "winning" scenario for the war on terror. Bush keeps on jamming down our throats, this concept of victory. Yeah, as long as none of the Bush family does the actual fighting with bullets and bombs flying over their heads. Oh, I almost forgot, Bush and his "partners in crime", always "support the troops"...from afar...do you?

[sara48909]

We are spending $744 million per day in Iraq and we cant spend $70,000 to build a new barracks. The Iraq''s have $30 billion in US banks. Do you remember Bush saying that this war would cost the US nothing because Iraqi oil would pay for it? Don''t you think its time that we give the Iraqi''s the bill?

[it_oldtimer]

I lived for about 8 months in those very same barracks in 1972, while with B 2/505, 3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.

We all spent a summer and one winter in those barracks while they renovated our regular barracks in the 3rd Brigade area. They were not "bad" barracks at all -- in fact, the memories of the time we all spent there are among the most memorable (and happiest) of my military career.

It''s really not the place that you live in that you recall so fondly afterward, it''s the experiences that you had there, and the memories of the people that you were with, at the time, that truly matter.

Those were great times with a truly great unit. I didn''t complain then, and I''m not about to complain about those outdated barracks now. They were "home" to us all, in every sense of the word. We felt very much at home there, because we soldiers that lived there MADE them feel that way.

[samrensho]

Just another example that the Bushit regime could care less about our troops. They''re just pawns in an elaborate game of gouge the taxpayer.

[mikekleber]

How in the heck is the army going to keep the US safe when they can maintain a bathroom????

I''m sure that Haliburton would be more than happy to repair the problems.

[pensacola88]

Military budget planners have their priorities and weapons are always higher on the list, than barracks and base amenities. Base closures are often political and hard choices are made. It has been clear from the start that money is being spent as close to the war theatre as possible, not back home. These barracks problems wont'' go away with remodeling and remediations. New ones are needed and better designs are required to replace the old ones. In Pensacola NAS, they have built the finest barracks I have ever seen for enlisted persons. The design is modern and efficient. They still have mold problems, because the frequent field days keep humidity levels high and they are already in a coastal climate. The Army base showing the Korean Era barracks clearly has attained age and needs replacement. The plumbing was designed for two soldiers per room and the Army, and Marines are housing three per room. That alone is the reason, why a plumbing problem persists when it has 50% more load to handle than it was designed for.

Health and sanitation is drilled into each person at basic training, but the overcrowded conditions they are exposed to defy understanding. It seems that from the start, the soldiers are told they will have health and sanitation challenges and are trained to survive them on a continual basis.

[andrew_693]

After all the millions the military is wasting in iraq and afghanistan they got the nerve to ask for more money. Bankrupting the country is not enough to some.

[rosesnpearls]

It was Bill Clinton who first cut funding for the military. I remember seeing pictures right after he left office of water standing in the floors of military buildings because of plumbing problems.