Ill Informed Blog Post at AM on Advisors

[Cavguy]

But in the article in question, the thesis that Polk will not be able to do a good job ignores the reality that the JRTC has been doing MREs for 5 years now and made a concerted effort to build MiTTs, PRTs, and other similiar complicating and bedeviing play into those rotations. The decision to move the MiTT effort here was well debated and studied. The drive to move the effort here was to stengthen the connections between MiTT and MREs. As you say you are not convinced Polk is the answer, exactly where do you think that answer might lie?

Tom,
Good points as always. In the long term it makes more sense than Riley for that particular mission (especially if NTC converts back to being primarily a maneuver center in the years to come) given its MRX integration. I know there is talk as well of moving the PRT training there as well (from Ft. Bragg). Integrations with MRX units rotating in the box would help reduce some of the friction that occurs in theater between TT's and their partner US units.

Kip does have a good point that the move will incur some short term pain as the new instructors (unless the current ones PCS to Polk) get used to a) their roles, and b) Ft. Polk. I imagine a significant amount of wheel reinvention (could be good in some cases) will go on.

Kip also highlighted what I think is an enduring excellent point. Like everyone else here, I have known many people who have cycled through Riley for training. The comments, especially from those who went 1-2 years ago, are uniformly negative, often scathing. They have moderated somewhat, but still remain critical from my peer groups. Most are along Randy's line - the instructors did the best they could, but had never been advisors and just didn't meet what the Army should be providing those going on this demanding mission.

One can look at the army's failure to provide such instructors as a measure of how much the Army values the TT mission in fact as opposed to rhetoric.

[Ken White]

...One can look at the army's failure to provide such instructors as a measure of how much the Army values the TT mission in fact as opposed to rhetoric.

They and the institutional culture...

The TT mission and those selected for it. I guess there are missions and then there are 'missions.' Sad.

Hmm. Maybe Gates could...