Every Job is Important

You're not the only one affected by your attitude toward duty in the Armed Forces. Your outfit, your Service, and your country have a stake in your attitude too. That's because they benefit or suffer according to how well you do your Service job. And your attitude toward your Service job has a direct bearing on how well you perform it.

There's no such thing as an unimportant job in the Armed Forces. Like a good football team, a good Service outfit is produced through the work of all its individual members. Informed football enthusiasts know that it takes more than a good backfield to win championships. Sure, the backs make the most headline plays. But who opens up the holes through which the quarterback runs 70 yards for a touchdown? Who keeps the halfback from being rushed before he gets the winning pass away? It's the linemen, the tackles,

and guards. These players are seldom as well known to the public as the backfield stars. Yet, without the help of these men in the line, the backs would have little chance of making their razzle-dazzle plays.

Men of Valor

Does a good outfit produce men of valor? Or do men of valor produce a good outfit? That is like asking the question, "Which comes first, the hen or the egg?" It takes men of valor to produce a good outfit, and it takes a good outfit to produce men of valor. By their very example, such men inspire others until the whole outfit takes on something of their character. And in such an outfit, even a very ordinary man is sometimes inspired to deeds of heroism. Let's look at four heroes

There was Brig. Gen. William O. Darby, one of the Army's most outstanding young combat commanders in World War II. He was a fine example of loyalty, integrity, courage, and confidence. So great was the feeling of confidence, respect, and loyalty held for him by his officers and men that each would have given his life for the "old man."

A corporal in General Darby's outfit with a particularly outstanding combat record was selected for

officer candidate school. The corporal objected to leaving the unit. When asked if he did not want to become an officer, he replied: "Yes, sir, but before I could make a good officer, I'd have to be a good first sergeant in this outfit." The corporal was promoted through the grades to first sergeant in eight months' time. After a month in combat, he received a battlefield commission.

The corporal displayed the same attitude that General Darby had shown when, as a lieutenant colonel, General Darby had refused a promotion to colonel in order to stay with his outfit. This same self-sacrificing spirit was in evidence finally when General Darby was killed in action.

There stands today in his home town a statue, erected to his memory by his townsfolk and by the men who served under him. Also a large transport vessel and a military post are named after him-fitting tributes to the type of leadership that will produce nothing but a good outfit!

Lt. Col. Leon R. Vance, an outstanding Air Force commander, led his heavy bombardment group in an attack against well-defended enemy positions in France. His plane was badly crippled by enemy flak in the approach to the target. The pilot was killed, and Colonel Vance had one leg injured by a shell fragment.

Nevertheless, he led his formation over the target in a successful bombing run by piloting his plane from a prone position after applying a tourniquet to his leg. After completing his mission, he turned back toward England. He ordered his crew to bail out over the channel. Thinking that one crew member was so badly injured that he could not jump, Colonel Vance crashlanded the plane in the channel although he knew that one 500-pound bomb was hung up in the bomb bay. Blown clear of the sinking plane, Colonel Vance, with one leg shot off, swam back to the wreckage to search for the crew member he thought was trapped.

Colonel Vance was later lost in a plane crash in the Atlantic. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for outstanding leadership and personal heroism. Here was a leader who had loyalty, courage, faith in his outfit and devotion to his cause and his men. In turn, he got a good outfit.

Keeping Faith

The story of Elmer Charles Bigelow, Watertender First Class (WT1/c), USN, is an inspiration to all men in the Armed Forces. Serving on board the USS Fletcher, he saw action against Japanese forces on Corregidor Island in the Philippines, 14 February 1945. He was standing topside when an enemy shell

struck the Fletcher, penetrating the no. 1 gun magazine and setting fire to several powder cases. Instantly Bigelow picked up a pair of fire extinguishers and rushed below. Since every second counted, he refused to take time to put on rescue-breathing apparatus. Plunging through the blinding smoke which billowed from the magazine hatch, he dropped into the blazing compartment. Although the acrid, burning powder seared his lungs with every breath, he put out the fires and prevented further damage to the stricken ship. He succumbed to his injuries the next day, but he had averted a magazine explosion which would have left his ship wallowing at the mercy of the Japanese guns on Corregidor. In dying, he gave new hope and life to his shipmates and to his countrymen!

Cpl. Lewis Kenneth Bausell is typical of many Marines who gave their lives to save their men. He was serving with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, during action against Japanese forces on Peleliu Island, 15 December 1944. Placing himself at the head of his squad, he led a charge against an enemy pillbox that was covering a vital sector of the beach. First to reach the emplacement, he started firing into the pillbox opening while the rest of his men closed in on the enemy. When a Japanese grenade was thrown into their midst, Cpl. Bausell threw himself on it. Thus he took the full blast, sacrificing his own life to save his men.

Look Yourself in the Eye

If your outfit were facing disaster, could you rise to the occasion as did those four men? Or in the everyday tasks which face you, do you have faith in your own ability to do a job? Are you confident that your comrades-in-arms will do their jobs well? Do you have faith in your leaders? Do they have confidence in you?

If you can answer "yes" to all these questions, you are in a good outfit. If the answer is "no," take a close look at yourself. What can you do to improve yourself and outfit? your

The job won't be easy. It will require determination, hard work, and dedication. The mission of your Service and your outfit must come before your own comfort and wishes. But in doing your part to the best of your ability, you will find rich satisfaction.

1. Purpose

Primarily to explain the main points below.

a. "Your outfit" can mean your Service or even the Armed Forces as a whole but usually it means the small unit to which you belong.

b. Service history and traditions provide a goal to attain and surpass.

c. It's up to you to meet your individual responsibilities for making your outfit a good one.

2. Preparation

Familiarize yourself with the TALK so you can discuss it in your own words. Find and relate some of the traditions and history of your own unit.

3. Presentation

The Conference Method is recommended. See Armed Forces Discussion Leaders' Guide.

4. Suggested Outline

I. INTRODUCTION

II. THE DEBT WE OWE

B. Do you think that belonging to a good outfit can increase your ability to cope with emergencies in combat? Explain your answer.

C. List some of the satisfactions that you think an individual derives from serving with a good outfit.

CORRECTIONS TO AFT's 469 AND 471 AND AFIP 7

In NATO, page 3, column 1, lines 8 to 12 should read as follows: "Long before 1950-when the vicious Communist attack on South Korea occurred-it had become clearly apparent that world domination was the ultimate Communist goal."

In Why We Serve in Europe, page 5, column 2, lines 15 to 17 should read: "It resulted finally in the Communist-led 'Peoples' Liberation Armies' taking control of the mainland in 1949."

In Tools for the Fighting Man: Small Arms and Big Guns, the upper captions on page 10 should be reversed.