This recent article in the Stars and Stripes newspaper I read here is about a soldier stationed in Iraq wanting to wear the first combat patch he earned, rather than the current unit he's serving with.  To a soldier, there is an incredible amount of pride when they wear a patch on the right side of their uniform signifying they've been in combat. According to the article, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Minor had earned a 173rd Airborne patch while previously serving in Afghanistan and on this deployment, he wanted to wear it instead of following the command instruction to wear the current patch of his unit, the 1st Infantry Division, a truly storied unit in American history.  Until Afghanistan and Iraq, these patches were somewhat rare and those with combat patches were either fairly senior from Vietnam or they were earned during some of our fairly quick previous recent combat actions like Grenada, Panama, Desert Storm or the like. 

The right to wear the patch of choice is given to the soldier but the article mentions that the request to wear the current unit patch is trying to instill unit pride and I can certianly understand that.  But, unit pride is generated from the leadership which flows to the troops, not mandated as a directive.  SSG Minor said he was wearing his earlier patch to honor troops who had died and that's certainly a worthy request.  But, then he (apparently) wrote a letter to the Stars and Stripes discussing the incident and thats when it appears to have raised the issue (and his visibility) which caused him to get in further trouble.  My suggestion to everyone is take a step back from the precipice and let the soldiers wear the patch they have earned and the one they choose, as the Army regulation states.  Rather than try and mandate the patch, the commanders and NCO's should welcome a veteran into their ranks.

When I flew B-52's, my crew was scheduled for a "good deal," we were going to fly a sortie into Red Flag and at the end, peel off from the formatoin, fly into a base in California, drop off our plane, then fly in a small transport to Nellis AFB, near Las Vegas, and see the whole Red Flag experience (to include the obligitory gambling and partying on the strip).  Before the mission and after our briefing to our wing commander, Colonel (later full general) Gene Habiger, he pulled aside my squadron commander, Randy Wooten, and asked if it was true he was letting my pilot, "Bo" Archambeault, fly the sortie because Bo had his papers and he was getting out in a few months.  LtCol Wooten said yes, and Habiger asked him to remove Bo and Wooten refused.  Wooten (rightly) said Bo was one of his best guys and that if we went to war tomorow, he'd be leading the effort.  Habiger relented and we flew as briefed.  Both of these men were two of the finest men I served under and Habiger thought he was doing the right thing by trying to reward those staying in and Wooten thought differently.

I later asked LtCol Wooten about this.  During this period, many pilots were leaving the service and heading off to the airlines, and this is when pilot bonus's first appeared, something that drove a wedge between aircrews.  Colonel Wooten told me rather than screw over a guy who wanted to leave, his method was to look them in the eye, shake their hand, and thank them for serving their country.  His attitude was that these pilots may have only served 6 years but it was a helluva lot more than the vast majority of Americans did. Wooten was different than many and their was a vindictiveness to some in this period

I have been told by guys here that the commanders in this incident are all good guys and I believe them.  We are a military at war and no one is bearing that brunt more than the Army and Marine infantry.  If someone chooses to wear another patch, look them in the eye, shake their hand, and thank them for their continued service. Maybe through gestures like this, they will see they are really in a good unit and change their patch on their own. To all you infantrymen out there, keep alert and to all who serve our country, thanks.

One last note, through the folks at Blackfive, I see Patti Patton-Bader won America's Favorite Military Mom.  I've written about her great work befoer and the work of her fantastic group Soldiers Angels, and got to meet her last year at the Milblogging convention.  Way to go Patti! Her motto is simple and t the point:

"May no soldier go unloved, may no soldier walk alone, may no soldier be forgotten, until they all come home." ~ Patti Patton-Bader