Wow!! Thanks for the shout out Paula (sincerely). However, now I have to provide the standard disclaimer :-). My commentary was not specific to the left or the right. It was specific to ideologues (period). We are split almost down the middle. ½ of the population at a time supporting the Armed Forces will not work. We need to all leave our ideologies at home when we discuss the Armed Forces of the United States. **Truth in lending… an AI does the artwork… I’ll let it know that you’re upset about the hair coloring ;-) ***. I had actually never heard of the Engineer Award that you were discussing… I’ll read up on it. Food for thought. Thx!!
Thanks for this Paula! Given the military's desparate need for STEM and STEM-adjacent talent, I found the decision to snub BEYA head-scratching as well. If anything, a true blind "merit based approach" should mandate a review to ensure that every possible STEM recruiting venue or opportunity would be covered to ensure that no stone is left unturned. I recall a discussion about 21st century recruiting challenges that I had a few years ago with the then MCPON (Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy for those of us with limited sea-service acronym literacy). He pointed out that when you add up the percentages of the eligible recruiting demographic that are eliminated for non-waiverable medical, mental, intellectual, dependency, and legal (i.e. felony convictions) reasons, the percentage of the demographic that can even be considered for enlistment is between 35-40%. Within that stark minority, you have to find the willing. And then you have to find enough willing who are qualified or have the aptitude to fill your skill positions. The challenge that most policy makers don't appreciate, he emphasized, was that the numbers simply didn't match where an increasingly technology-reliant and focused force was headed. That conversation was the first thing I thought about when I read about the BEYA snub. The numbers are the numbers -- there should be nothing idealogical about it.
Wow!! Thanks for the shout out Paula (sincerely). However, now I have to provide the standard disclaimer :-). My commentary was not specific to the left or the right. It was specific to ideologues (period). We are split almost down the middle. ½ of the population at a time supporting the Armed Forces will not work. We need to all leave our ideologies at home when we discuss the Armed Forces of the United States. **Truth in lending… an AI does the artwork… I’ll let it know that you’re upset about the hair coloring ;-) ***. I had actually never heard of the Engineer Award that you were discussing… I’ll read up on it. Food for thought. Thx!!
Naugh—I could care less about the color-I just want to HAVE some! But you know I’d never let a chance to tease you go by….:-)
Thanks for this Paula! Given the military's desparate need for STEM and STEM-adjacent talent, I found the decision to snub BEYA head-scratching as well. If anything, a true blind "merit based approach" should mandate a review to ensure that every possible STEM recruiting venue or opportunity would be covered to ensure that no stone is left unturned. I recall a discussion about 21st century recruiting challenges that I had a few years ago with the then MCPON (Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy for those of us with limited sea-service acronym literacy). He pointed out that when you add up the percentages of the eligible recruiting demographic that are eliminated for non-waiverable medical, mental, intellectual, dependency, and legal (i.e. felony convictions) reasons, the percentage of the demographic that can even be considered for enlistment is between 35-40%. Within that stark minority, you have to find the willing. And then you have to find enough willing who are qualified or have the aptitude to fill your skill positions. The challenge that most policy makers don't appreciate, he emphasized, was that the numbers simply didn't match where an increasingly technology-reliant and focused force was headed. That conversation was the first thing I thought about when I read about the BEYA snub. The numbers are the numbers -- there should be nothing idealogical about it.