Chuckling over Air Guard experiences
...I had in Tennessee, my growing up home area.
I was from Nashville, back from 6 years active USAF regular service (a Captain) and joined the Tennessee Air National Guard to complete my 20, which ended up being 31 years.
My second drill...my unit was the newly formed 228th Mobil Comm. Squadron at McGee Tyson Airport, outside Knoxville, Tenneessee...remember I am commuting from my home in Nashville to new drill site in Knoxville...and then and now Tennessee is very, very parochial, East, vs. Middle, vs. West Tennessee is like three different states!
A grizzled old Lt. Colonel (who I believe has since passed away) who was very involved in East Tennessee Democratic partisan politics...at my second drill in Knoxville...tries to shake me down for a sizable donation to his cousins race for Sheriff, on the Democratic ticket, of Knox County.
I, typical hard headed Irishman that I am, answered him, remember, I then held Captain's rank earned on active duty so the Guard has not given me any rank I didn't already earn...replied: "Colonel, first I don't live here locally, I live in Davidson County, Nashville, where our Sheriff is an elected Republican. I myself am a Republican, and have no interest in any Democrat running for sherrif up here in East Tennessee...
The grizzled Air Guard Lt. Colonel pushed harder, didn't stop, so I then added: "Just to respond to you about a local election I will mail in a check for $50 to whoever the Republican nominee for Sheriff is here in Knox County. Good day!" And I walked away.
The Lt. Colonel tried in months to come to scuttle me on my next OER as a new Guard Captain. What he didn't know was that the Chief of Staff of the Tennessee Air Guard then in TN was a lifelong family friend of ours, a grizzled old Major General who was also President then of GENESCO in Nashville (General Shoe Corporation)..got that nasty OER...turned it around and attached the Lt. Colonel's own pending OER to it...sent it back to him...and said I will not sign either one until both have the same high level rating on both OERs!
How do I know this? I still knew the Air Guard Major General socially and he told me about it, and said the OER when resubmitted looked like I could walk on water!!!
Humor has it's place here.
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