Shameful acts by officers or senior nco's ?

I'm sure that those at the top of the tree are nearing the end of their time in the military and deep down they don't give a hoot about the rest of the "other ranks"as they will be leaving shortly and most probably will march straight into a well paid job with a help from their well heeled pals.Even at reunions my old mob have an Officers mess and a SNCO's mess and the other ranks well they just get on with what has been arranged by the units HQ.Plastic KFS and paper plates and warm beer, coffee and tea in paper cups.This is the contempt the officer classes have for the other ranks.The Officers mess had waiter service from the ordinary ranks whom I suppose would have been paid to wait on them.I did mention my concerns to a former Lt Gen and his reply was,"That is the way it is in the army".After that I never went back to any reunions.There are regimental dinners annually but again it is all about the top table and we the ordinary ranks, pay for that table in the amount they ask for at these dinners.I'll bet they don't put their hands in their pockets and pay for anything.The only decent officers I ever came across were those that came up through the ranks and were tuned into the same wave length as the troops.The Sandhurst/Mons types were on a different planet all together.

Jock never saw many at the old ABF in Aldershot I met some very good officers during my service and sadly some very poor ones. We has a CO who's parent Regt was the Buffs he was sound and knew every one in the unit by their first name.

Dee Z, I experienced a right a**ehole when I served in the airborne who actually assaulted me on the ranges.Saying that about officers, the only person that came to my assistance was a young Lt and he believed me 100% when I told him what happened.After that my trust in officers went.I transferred to a Jock Battalion and that was where I found utter snobbery from these so called highland gentlemen.The senior ranks were fantastic guys and helped me tremendously to fit in to the battalions way of doing things.It is the snobbery and class distinction that existed in the regiment.I cannot say if that snobbery still exists today.

We took over from 12 LAD Regt in Belfast. They had a Battery Commander would say " my men were not in the area" in answer to any complaints about his men's conduct. They were a good bunch of lads. When they left a lot of them handed over their catapults to our lads, very handy for getting back at the Fianna boys.
Our BC was only interested in his career and proved completely gutless when it came to backing his men up. He banned catapults.
One day one of our blokes was guarding the side gate and trying to knock sparrows off the roof with his catty. He was seen and given 28 days nick by the BC. He covered his back, we lost a valuable member of our troop who was badly needed on the streets.
We saw the major again, when he came back as our CO. Then he got brigadier.
Useless turd.

PM me a clue.

Perhaps I have just been too critical of officers and I must agree with some of the comments on here their are good and bad everywhere.It is the snobbery I can't stand folks.The upper classes controlling the lower classes as I have witnessed over the years with some of them.I must point out again that I fully respect those officers that have come up through the ranks and they in turn respected you as an individual and as a soldier.Some of them even allowed you to address them by their first names and you used your initiative to call them 'Sir' when in company and they in turn called you by your first name and not your rank.

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PM me a clue.

Mallard........

Arthur?

Teal

As in "Water off?"

Remember being on an exercise where our rear echelon was to be visited by the division commander (at the time a certain Maj Gen Anthony Farrar-Hockley) The EME (officer in charge of the LAD REME) stormed into the back of the radio truck I was on stag in and in a very arrogant and intimidating manner started to rip my head off for having the audacity to leave my webbing hanging on the hook provided on the outside of the truck saying that he did not want obscure military equipment cluttering the area when the GOC paid his visit. The wind was taken out of his sails when a voice behind him said "Captain do you have anything better to do than try to bully a parachute soldier". Turned out Farrar-Hockley had decided to do his usual and turn up unannounced. One thing I had already learned was that when he was Brigade Commander of 16 Independent Parachute Brigade was that he was a through and through true Para and did not like anybody that tried to bully the soldiers under his command. The EME was politely led away spluttering his apologies to the Sqn SSM - Farrar-Hockley and I spent some considerable time reminiscing about our days with "The Brigade" - two days later I was introduced to the new EME - a Captain who was ex Para Wksp

Well done that man,Farrer the Para.Did he ever tell you his exploits in Korea when he managed to escape a few time.I can remember a lecture by him in the Shot in one of the gymnasiums when the whole battalion (2 Para) was seated and listening to him when one of the guys was heard snoring and he shouted out to the bloke am I boring you soldier and the reply was,Naw sir, a wis with you when you were captured and went into captivity but a didnae escape like you.The whole battalion was in uproar and the soldier was invited to the officers mess for a drink with him (he was brigade commander at the time).

@rucjock21

I can well believe the incident you describe above. I have still got the utmost respect for that man a credit to the officer class

I remember the time when F-H was leaving NI after his tour as Top Honcho.

Sitting in the usual squalid hole somewhere, we were watching the great man being interviewed on TV. The interviewer asked him, "What do you think of the IRA ?". He paused for a moment before answering and we thought "here it comes, the usual, politically correct load of crap", then he snapped "they're scum !".

We cheered.

Just read the obit of 'Farrar the Para' published in the Daily Tele, something worth turning up on the web. Don't know how one man managed to get so much in........., and something which addresses the balance when much of this topic is griping about experiences with less accomplished management.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaker_Morant

check this out then

One of the best officers I knew was a Captain (Ex ranker) He was real grounded bloke who was respected by everyone. That was at Paderborn, I then bumped into him a couple of years later in Osnabruck when he told me he was leaving the army and going to live in Belize, he and his wife bought a guesthouse. As far as I know they are still there.

Just checked their website, Doris (Terry's wife) seems to be running the show now!

http://www.treetopsbelize.com/contact-us

Had an OC for my last 9 months in Duisburg who when he joined our little unit, stated that his policy was 'to live and let live' and he did just that. When I was charged by the garrison duty WO for being out of barracks all night, my OC admonished me and then issued me with a permanent pass !

our old csm at viersen used to write out a late pass on beermats for the lads , ginger

Didn't most of them commit these acts, hiding behind their ranks. You meet the w.nkers now and they are scared sh.tless when you confront them.

Chris

I see a lot of bad things said about officers but hey there are so many more good guys out there. I was lucky and worked with some of the best. I was REME attached to the QRIH and a better bunch of officers and men I could not imagine.

During the Queens silver jubilee parade I had to serve wine in the tented area and after the parade I set off to walk back to camp carrying a six pack of wine. The 2i/c of the Regiment pulled his car up next to me and offered me a lift, I was only a lowly Cpl attached to the Regiment and yet he offered me a lift back to camp.

The next morning the Chief clerk phoned me and told me the 2i/c wanted to see me. I was marched into his office by the RSM, eek (what did I do wrong?) The 2i/c said Cpl E the six pack you were carrying yesterday came from the tented area yes? Yes sir I replied, it was free after all. He said well it was free to drink in the tented area but a carry out? I smiled and he said I think a small contribution from you to the PRI would be in order NO? YES SIR I said and he laughed. The RSM marched me out and said see the Chief for details before he walked away laughing, barstuard LOL.

rucjock21 wrote:

Well done that man,Farrer the Para.Did he ever tell you his exploits in Korea when he managed to escape a few time.I can remember a lecture by him in the Shot in one of the gymnasiums when the whole battalion (2 Para) was seated and listening to him when one of the guys was heard snoring and he shouted out to the bloke am I boring you soldier and the reply was,Naw sir, a wis with you when you were captured and went into captivity but a didnae escape like you.The whole battalion was in uproar and the soldier was invited to the officers mess for a drink with him (he was brigade commander at the time).

LOL

gingerjim wrote:

our old csm at viersen used to write out a late pass on beermats for the lads , ginger

I remember an ASM like that.

The officers of the QRIH had a wooden horse in a cage in York barracks to practice their polo strokes. They were a funny bunch in their "Harrods Green " mess jackets. Very handy at lobbing thunder flashes in their temporary sleeping quarters in the Garrison mess in 1984.
One lad went on leave to Argentina to buy polo ponies. Happy days!

Chemist wrote:

The officers of the QRIH had a wooden horse in a cage in York barracks to practice their polo strokes. They were a funny bunch in their "Harrods Green " mess jackets. Very handy at lobbing thunder flashes in their temporary sleeping quarters in the Garrison mess in 1984.
One lad went on leave to Argentina to buy polo ponies. Happy days!

They seemed to like messing with fireworks both large and small, one officer blew out the rear wall of the mess in Paderborn playing with fireworks LOL, yes happy days.