Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[RED-DOG]

Tony,

On your return make sure you look up "Frontline Medicine" on Iplayer

Stunning documentary of the military medical teams in Afghanistan

Geo

I'll take a look tomorrow, Geo, today has been catch-up day.

There seems to be quite a lot of high quality BBC documentaries on the Military of late, & I've tried to catch them all - very good they are, too.

Whilst I was in Vegas, they had two "Vets Days" (as in "Veterans", not animal doctors). Not sure if we do that over here, but it seems that in the USA, a "Vet" is ANY serviceman recently retired. So there were all these American Marines wandering around the Casinos in "full dress", quite an odd juxtaposition.

The Military obsession with cleanliness & tidiness is a thing of beauty, I love to see it, with those shiny shoes & glistening brass belt buckles. All part of instilling discipline, self-esteem, & pride, I suppose, qualities which are vastly under-rated now imo. The Sandhurst documentaries showed that at it's best.

I got a phone message in my Room @ Mirage, some trilly voiced woman in a pre-recorded message, inviting me to partake in "A Walk of Thanks for the Vets".

A "Walk of Thanks"? Seemed a bit cringeworthy in a way, but I went & watched it, & the pride the Americans have in their Servicemen & Women is quite something. Does that level of pride & gratitude towards the Services exist in the UK, do you think?

Over the last few years it has improved greatly. The great media resources now available has brought the real horrors of conflict into our living rooms including soldiers on the front line with headcams and as you mentioned there has been a stream of really good programmes recently based on our servicemen.

It hasn't always been like that though. There have been many posts throughout the forum regards discrimination and in years gone by our forces suffered greatly, at times even in their own home towns.

I seen and suffered discrimination towards soldiers and their families during my time. Kids picked on at local schools, not allowed into certain bars (even in Edinburgh where I was born and bred.) Higher Insurance, not being entertained for "normal" mortgages  Wives finding it difficult to be employed etc etc.

3 years ago they initiated Armed Forces Day each year now in June and a different city is chosen to host the main gathering and events. This year was Edinburgh and I proudly took my place with other veterans on the march down the Royal Mile.

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

Good for you Geo. Great pics.

I see you have the most medals.....

[pokerfan]

I know you like a good book Tony, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041097/New-SAS-book-tells-story-regiments-WW2-heroics.html

If i had a spare grand i would buy one. Not sure it would too comfy in the lap weighing 25lb though !

[gatso]

geo, can you tell me about the trousers some of the guys with you are wearing please. are they a substitute for a kilt? I've never seen them before, or at least not as part of a suit

[tikay]

Tremendous photos, Geo, wow, how proud were you?

And how grand is the Royal Mile? Few streets (thoroughfares?) in the UK have such presence, such charisma, such variety. The Castle at the top (imagine the difficulty building THAT back in the day!), that dreadful new grandstand excepted, slowly downhill via some wonderful cafes & dreadful tack shops, all those intriguing little side alleys, some fantastic Churches, then, at the bottom, the contrast between the new Parliament Building - whoops - & Holyrood Palace. 

[tikay]

What are the Medals you are wearing, for, Geo, if I may ask?

[Geo the Sarge]

Tony,

On your return make sure you look up "Frontline Medicine" on Iplayer

Stunning documentary of the military medical teams in Afghanistan

Geo

I'll take a look tomorrow, Geo, today has been catch-up day.

There seems to be quite a lot of high quality BBC documentaries on the Military of late, & I've tried to catch them all - very good they are, too.

Whilst I was in Vegas, they had two "Vets Days" (as in "Veterans", not animal doctors). Not sure if we do that over here, but it seems that in the USA, a "Vet" is ANY serviceman recently retired. So there were all these American Marines wandering around the Casinos in "full dress", quite an odd juxtaposition.

The Military obsession with cleanliness & tidiness is a thing of beauty, I love to see it, with those shiny shoes & glistening brass belt buckles. All part of instilling discipline, self-esteem, & pride, I suppose, qualities which are vastly under-rated now imo. The Sandhurst documentaries showed that at it's best.

I got a phone message in my Room @ Mirage, some trilly voiced woman in a pre-recorded message, inviting me to partake in "A Walk of Thanks for the Vets".

A "Walk of Thanks"? Seemed a bit cringeworthy in a way, but I went & watched it, & the pride the Americans have in their Servicemen & Women is quite something. Does that level of pride & gratitude towards the Services exist in the UK, do you think?

Over the last few years it has improved greatly. The great media resources now available has brought the real horrors of conflict into our living rooms including soldiers on the front line with headcams and as you mentioned there has been a stream of really good programmes recently based on our servicemen.

It hasn't always been like that though. There have been many posts throughout the forum regards discrimination and in years gone by our forces suffered greatly, at times even in their own home towns.

I seen and suffered discrimination towards soldiers and their families during my time. Kids picked on at local schools, not allowed into certain bars (even in Edinburgh where I was born and bred.) Higher Insurance, not being entertained for "normal" mortgages  Wives finding it difficult to be employed etc etc.

3 years ago they initiated Armed Forces Day each year now in June and a different city is chosen to host the main gathering and events. This year was Edinburgh and I proudly took my place with other veterans on the march down the Royal Mile.

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

Good for you Geo. Great pics.

I see you have the most medals.....

There are young soldiers nowadays sporting as many as 8 now, all richly deserved albeit a sad reflection of our Governments eagerness to "get involved."

For the record, left to right General Service Medal (GSM - Northern Ireland) - 1st Gulf War - Accumulated Service Medal (accumulating more than 36 months on "operational" duty) whilst I completed 23 years service you will have no doubt noticed the absence of the Long Service and Good Conduct medal (LSGC)  

Geo

[tikay]

Tony,

On your return make sure you look up "Frontline Medicine" on Iplayer

Stunning documentary of the military medical teams in Afghanistan

Geo

I'll take a look tomorrow, Geo, today has been catch-up day.

There seems to be quite a lot of high quality BBC documentaries on the Military of late, & I've tried to catch them all - very good they are, too.

Whilst I was in Vegas, they had two "Vets Days" (as in "Veterans", not animal doctors). Not sure if we do that over here, but it seems that in the USA, a "Vet" is ANY serviceman recently retired. So there were all these American Marines wandering around the Casinos in "full dress", quite an odd juxtaposition.

The Military obsession with cleanliness & tidiness is a thing of beauty, I love to see it, with those shiny shoes & glistening brass belt buckles. All part of instilling discipline, self-esteem, & pride, I suppose, qualities which are vastly under-rated now imo. The Sandhurst documentaries showed that at it's best.

I got a phone message in my Room @ Mirage, some trilly voiced woman in a pre-recorded message, inviting me to partake in "A Walk of Thanks for the Vets".

A "Walk of Thanks"? Seemed a bit cringeworthy in a way, but I went & watched it, & the pride the Americans have in their Servicemen & Women is quite something. Does that level of pride & gratitude towards the Services exist in the UK, do you think?

Over the last few years it has improved greatly. The great media resources now available has brought the real horrors of conflict into our living rooms including soldiers on the front line with headcams and as you mentioned there has been a stream of really good programmes recently based on our servicemen.

It hasn't always been like that though. There have been many posts throughout the forum regards discrimination and in years gone by our forces suffered greatly, at times even in their own home towns.

I seen and suffered discrimination towards soldiers and their families during my time. Kids picked on at local schools, not allowed into certain bars (even in Edinburgh where I was born and bred.) Higher Insurance, not being entertained for "normal" mortgages  Wives finding it difficult to be employed etc etc.

3 years ago they initiated Armed Forces Day each year now in June and a different city is chosen to host the main gathering and events. This year was Edinburgh and I proudly took my place with other veterans on the march down the Royal Mile.

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

Good for you Geo. Great pics.

I see you have the most medals.....

There are young soldiers nowadays sporting as many as 8 now, all richly deserved albeit a sad reflection of our Governments eagerness to "get involved."

For the record, left to right General Service Medal (GSM - Northern Ireland) - 1st Gulf War - Accumulated Service Medal (accumulating more than 36 months on "operational" duty) whilst I completed 23 years service you will have no doubt noticed the absence of the Long Service and Good Conduct medal (LSGC)  

Geo

Well you have answered my belated question, but now you have to tell us now why no LSGC!

[Geo the Sarge]

geo, can you tell me about the trousers some of the guys with you are wearing please. are they a substitute for a kilt? I've never seen them before, or at least not as part of a suit

The Lowland Regiments (Royal Scots, KOSB and Royal Highland Fusiliers) wore Trews rather than kilts in their Regimental tartan. The pipers still wore kilts whilst the drummers wore trews also.

Some vets choose to retain the trews, usually with blazer.

Geo

[tikay]

geo, can you tell me about the trousers some of the guys with you are wearing please. are they a substitute for a kilt? I've never seen them before, or at least not as part of a suit

The Lowland Regiments (Royal Scots, KOSB and Royal Highland Fusiliers) wore Trews rather than kilts in their Regimental tartan. The pipers still wore kilts whilst the drummers wore trews also.

Some vets choose to retain the trews, usually with blazer.

Geo

Oh my, ignorance ftw - I had never heard of "Trews" before. (And what a great educational resource the Internet is, it takes but a click to find an answer).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trews

[Geo the Sarge]

Tony,

On your return make sure you look up "Frontline Medicine" on Iplayer

Stunning documentary of the military medical teams in Afghanistan

Geo

I'll take a look tomorrow, Geo, today has been catch-up day.

There seems to be quite a lot of high quality BBC documentaries on the Military of late, & I've tried to catch them all - very good they are, too.

Whilst I was in Vegas, they had two "Vets Days" (as in "Veterans", not animal doctors). Not sure if we do that over here, but it seems that in the USA, a "Vet" is ANY serviceman recently retired. So there were all these American Marines wandering around the Casinos in "full dress", quite an odd juxtaposition.

The Military obsession with cleanliness & tidiness is a thing of beauty, I love to see it, with those shiny shoes & glistening brass belt buckles. All part of instilling discipline, self-esteem, & pride, I suppose, qualities which are vastly under-rated now imo. The Sandhurst documentaries showed that at it's best.

I got a phone message in my Room @ Mirage, some trilly voiced woman in a pre-recorded message, inviting me to partake in "A Walk of Thanks for the Vets".

A "Walk of Thanks"? Seemed a bit cringeworthy in a way, but I went & watched it, & the pride the Americans have in their Servicemen & Women is quite something. Does that level of pride & gratitude towards the Services exist in the UK, do you think?

Over the last few years it has improved greatly. The great media resources now available has brought the real horrors of conflict into our living rooms including soldiers on the front line with headcams and as you mentioned there has been a stream of really good programmes recently based on our servicemen.

It hasn't always been like that though. There have been many posts throughout the forum regards discrimination and in years gone by our forces suffered greatly, at times even in their own home towns.

I seen and suffered discrimination towards soldiers and their families during my time. Kids picked on at local schools, not allowed into certain bars (even in Edinburgh where I was born and bred.) Higher Insurance, not being entertained for "normal" mortgages  Wives finding it difficult to be employed etc etc.

3 years ago they initiated Armed Forces Day each year now in June and a different city is chosen to host the main gathering and events. This year was Edinburgh and I proudly took my place with other veterans on the march down the Royal Mile.

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

Good for you Geo. Great pics.

I see you have the most medals.....

There are young soldiers nowadays sporting as many as 8 now, all richly deserved albeit a sad reflection of our Governments eagerness to "get involved."

For the record, left to right General Service Medal (GSM - Northern Ireland) - 1st Gulf War - Accumulated Service Medal (accumulating more than 36 months on "operational" duty) whilst I completed 23 years service you will have no doubt noticed the absence of the Long Service and Good Conduct medal (LSGC)  

Geo

Well you have answered my belated question, but now you have to tell us now why no LSGC!

Was too busy being unrevered in local pubs.  

There is no Long Service Medal, only the LSGC. If you had served more than 10 days I think it was in the pokey then you did not qualify for the good service bit. You could also default by having a long list of minor offences without accruing time in the jail.

Was never one for keeping my nose clean.

Geo

[Geo the Sarge]

Trews and an example of the medals collected by young soldiers nowadays. This is my son (4th from left) with a group of mates at Balmoral. None of them above 25 years of age but a wealth of operational experience between them

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

[pokerfan]

Trews and an example of the medals collected by young soldiers nowadays. This is my son (4th from left) with a group of mates at Balmoral. None of them above 25 years of age but a wealth of operational experience between them

Geo

Click to see full-size image.

Did he always want to sign up Geo ? How did you feel about it ?

[Geo the Sarge]

My wife and I had no inkling that he was thinking of joining up, he had never shown any interest. My wife was absolutely against it.

He came home one day and told us he was joining up and the missus says "no way, I won't even let you go to the recruiting office and I'll get Dad to make sure you don't get any interview." I was one of the Sergeant Recruiters in Edinburgh at the time.

"Too late" says he "I have already been accepted." I just laughed saying "you fool, you need to go through interviews, tests and a 2 day visit to the recruit selection centre before you can be accepted"

He then dropped the bombshell (no pun intended) that he had approached a friend of ours also working in the careers office and had finished and passed all of the above and had been given his date for the Army college at Harrogate. He had done this without me ever knowing as he knew his mum would be against it.

She eventually relented but it was awful watching the turmoil she went through each time he headed to Ireland/Bosnia/Iraq and Afghanistan.

Thankfully he left about 3 years ago and is now settled back in Edinburgh.

Geo

[nirvana]

She eventually relented but it was awful watching the turmoil she went through each time he headed to Ireland/Bosnia/Iraq and Afghanistan.

It's so hard to imagine how this must feel. Easy to forget how tough this must be on parents with kids in the forces.

When my Dad was in he had medals for Aden, Falklands and a few others but either we were oblivious (cause he was in Air Movements, rather than frontline) or it never seemed as scary in terms of the real scale of conflicts the forces were engaged in then.

Really can't imagine watching my son head off to some of these places - the courage it must take is extraordinary.

[Geo the Sarge]

She eventually relented but it was awful watching the turmoil she went through each time he headed to Ireland/Bosnia/Iraq and Afghanistan.

It's so hard to imagine how this must feel. Easy to forget how tough this must be on parents with kids in the forces.

When my Dad was in he had medals for Aden, Falklands and a few others but either we were oblivious (cause he was in Air Movements, rather than frontline) or it never seemed as scary in terms of the real scale of conflicts the forces were engaged in then.

Really can't imagine watching my son head off to some of these places - the courage it must take is extraordinary.

Spot on Glen, the wives deserve a hell of a lot of credit

I have 3 boys  - 23-26-29 and they are all good lads, had their share of trouble but well mannered and respectful. This was totally the wives doing, she was the one who brought them up and taught them whilst I was off on Ops. I make sure anyone that passes good comment about the boys knows this.

Geo