Hello Gentlemen,
Brian K. Sain here from adoptasniper.org. I understand the skeptiscm fellas. CENTCOM felt the same way and sic'd a JAG investigator on us. MC Sgt. Major from McDill called to say we were okay with them ...
If questions remain ... please contact the Chief of Police at the Port Arthur, Texas Police Department and ask what type of cop I am. I will allow you to look the number up so you will be able to verify it's authenticity as well.
We are currently supporting 95 sniper platoons of the US military deployed OCONUS.
Some info that may explain what we are dealing with.
See also the "What we are dealing with" thread on the site / forum.
http://adoptasniper.org/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=32&highlight=dealing
From the
www.adoptasniper.org site ...
Regarding the government's support or perceived lack
thereof:
I cannot speak for the entire military. However, in
the sniper's cases it kind of goes like this.
The snipers are specially trained and should be
specially equipped and indeed, some units are exactly
that. The school trained snipers that have actually
graduated sniper school and that have been snipers a
good while often buy their own gear OUT OF CHOICE or
are VERY WELL equipped by their units. This is
especially true with the special ops guys.
However, what we have found is that the US military is
using snipers in numbers not seen since the Vietnam
conflict. Iraq and Afghanistan are ideal locations for
sniper deployement. However, this fact has been
forgotten after every war since the American
Revolution. When war breaks out, we then find that we
are behind the curve and are then scrambling to train
up enough qualified marksmen because all of a sudden
we now need people that know how to shoot. Plus, the
emphasis on marksmanship training has been steadily
decreasing in the US military, whereas it used to be a
priority. This, I believe is due to too much reliance
on smart bombs and technology.
That said, a sniper is pretty much the smart bomb of
the infantry, firing one shot and obtaining one kill
with no collateral damage to innocents. We simply
cannot rely on the air force to do everything at all
times.
Furthermore, the sniper schools have a high attrition
rate because only the best of the best can make it
through. Only the coolest thinking, smartest,
strongest, fastest, non quitters in the military can
stand up to the stress and discipline required to
become a sniper. Likewise, only the best policemen
make decent snipers in law enforcement. To lower the
standards would cost lives and the sniper schools run
a very high operational tempo program. This is because
the snipers may have to shoot right beside or over
their friends heads to stop a threat and the soldiers
and marines must have explicit trust in the sniper's
abilities to do this. In additon the snipers are often
operating in two to four man teams and must be as
totally self sufficient as possible, often times
behind enemy lines.
Our soldiers and marines are currently not in a static
battle, in the middle of nowhere, with a clearly
defined enemy and desolate surroundings for a
backstop. They are fighting an enemy dressed as the
rest of the populace, that uses women and children as
shields, who are often on the move, within the
civilian population of huge urban environments. Their
shooting has to be surgical in nature and there can be
no collateral injury of innocents as a result. This is
the same type of environment that the police sniper in
the US and UK lives in everyday. They simply cannot
miss because to do so means that the wrong person dies
or their friends are killed.
That said ... most of snipers are issued body armor
and helmets. But it is just too cumbersome to wear and
shoot with to the degree of precision demanded of the
sniper. However, the sniper's Commanding officers have
often times never been to sniper school themselves and
do not understand what it takes to do the job of the
sniper. A sniper is just one of many troops the CO
must look after and he may view the snipers as not any
different than any of his other troops when they
really do have specific equipment needs. The COs often
misuse the snipers because they either do not know or
care about the capabilities their snipers can provide
them.
In the sniper's cases, it is not that the snipers need
body armor per sey. But rather that the snipers need
different CARRIERS (specific clothing that holds the
ballistic panels) than the regular troops. This is so
they can shoot on the move and in cramped shooting
positions. The issue helmet hurts one's neck in the
prone position and is also cumbersome. If the snipers
use the standard armor, they either have to take it
off or try and shoot with it on.
If they take it off, their vital organs are exposed to
enemy fire and then they must quickly don the armor or
try and carry it with them if they have to quickly
change locations. If they try and shoot with it on, it
adversely affects their shot placement and we have
already established the ramifications of that.
Furthermore, the armored divisons and Stryker brigades
are also seeing the value of having snipers with the
convoys as they can engage the enemy with one shot and
end the threat. However, here again, the COs know
TANKS and vehicles and NOT snipers ... and often the
budget is spent on the vehicles and not on the needs
of six or eight snipers. These are the voids that
adoptasniper tries to fill.
Every soldier or marine that shot "Expert" on the
range is now being assigned as the "Company sniper"
although he probably has not had a chance to go to
sniper school. He has a rifle but often times no scope
or training to go with it. When he trys to get these
things from his supply officer, his unit probably has
not ever been issued this type of special gear and
getting approved is a mountain of beurocratic red
tape. If the soldier or marine's request gets shut
down by his CO or supply then he cannot usurp the
chain of command or suffer disciplinary action for
doing so.
Adoptasniper works because we are not in anyone's
chain of command. We know exactly what the snipers
need when they ask for it. We know where to get it
cheapest and we have the same address for these guys
that their momma has. All of this because we are
snipers ourselves. The items go from AAS shipping
sites to the snipers tents in 2.5 weeks. Done deal. No
red tape, no disciplinary action, no charge. Just that
simple ...
Furthermore, when units deploy overseas; they are
allotted funds that they do not receive here in the
States. Many supply personnel either do not know this
or the funds are spread elsewhere.
In my own very limited experience, it seems that the
problems lie more with the individual unit commanders
and supply officers either not understanding or caring
what their snipers need; moreso than the fact that the
government is not providing the funds to adequately
supply the armed forces.
The cutbacks in military spending from the previous
administration seem to have affected our military far
more than anything the current administration may have
done or has failed to do.
I hope this clears some of the common misconceptions
up. I believe our program is working and I think we
are making a difference.
Regards,
Brian K. Sain
www.adoptasniper.org
Stars and Stripes:
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=21396&archive=true
Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=6812320
