We still don't grasp the value of translators

[IntelTrooper]

If she was representative of what DLI is capable of turning out in a year's time, I'd take that any day over what the contractors seem to be providing.

I guarantee she's not representative of the average DLI graduate. She may have an unusually high aptitude for learning a second language. It is a half-joke in the MI that DLI only prepares graduates to check the quality of their interpreter.

[Meinertzhagen]

My sense, though I have no definitive data to support it, is that there was a much more extensive program to teach Vietnamese during the Vietnam War than we have undertaken for our current conflicts. I'll do some research this afternoon, but anecdotal evidence from reading suggests SF teams, advisors, MI personnel, interrogators and a host of other personnel all received training and many became quite proficient in Vietnamese and other local languages. In contrast, I know almost no Army personnel in MI, SF or any other branch that have developed any significant capability in Pashto. I am branch transferring to Civil Affairs this year and Pashto isn't even one of the choices for languages, though we can still choose Russian and Korean. There are a total of 8(!) Pashto coded positions in the entire Army (all in the 96th Civil Affairs BN) despite over 8 years fighting in Afghanistan. While not indicative of the total number of soldiers actually training in DLI, those MTOE and TDA positions drive training and suggest to me a singular lack of effort to develop any institutional Pashto capability.

[Brandon Friedman]

You guys are saying that we can't adequately hire, train, and retain our own translators. At the same time, the AP is reporting--as is IntelTrooper--that troops in the field say the contractors can't provide satisfactory interpreters, either.

This means we can't do COIN. I’m going to have a Bill Paxton moment.

And Schmedlap:

Downtown Baghdad in 2003 versus Korengal Valley today is like comparing downtown San Francisco to some remote town in the south that doesn't take kindly to non-WASPs.

That’s absolutely true. I stand corrected on my example. Shouldn’t have used it.

[Stan]

Check out Jedburgh's thread and see just how far we have regressed

AND, if you think we are in a sad state now, imagine in 94 we could only muster one Lingala translator and perhaps three French speakers while over 4,000 people died per day in Sub Sahara !

Regards, Stan

You guys are saying that we can't adequately hire, train, and retain our own translators.