NZ SAS - First Among Equals

[medicineman]

A cool doc about 1 NZSAS from selection to deployment...if you think PT is hard, you'll likely hurl just watching the selection phase.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPQ6OFG8ZnU

MM

 

[HItorMiss]

Damn good show

 

[PegcityNavy]

i downloaded that years ago. Amazing documentary. Six months in you make one mistake and your gone.

 

[Ex Ranger Instructor]

As an ignorant and outside observer, I'm surprised by some of the chickensh** they go through after completing their course and being posted to the Regt.  Sweeping floors? 

 

[Kat Stevens]

You've never swept a floor since your QL3?  Clearly I picked the wrong trade way back when.

 

[Ex Ranger Instructor]

I have swept many since then.  :nod:

I just had a (possibly uninformed, as I said) opinion, that these guys may have been considered better than that.  QL3 graduates sweep floors everywhere, but MCpls don't, and your average MCpl, in any Regt, isn't exactly one of these guys.

The floors still need to get swept.  So as to who would sweep the floors at their unit- I guess I don't know.  Hard to find many TSSA civvy cleaners I guess, so fair enough- I was just surprised.  I thought, and still think,  that the allure of SF for many guys is the absence of such tasks.  My cap badge is what it is- if I am wrong, then I guess that's that.  I'm just saying I was surprised.

 

[medicineman]

I guess you missed the bit about it being a humility check...something some MCpl's I've known, worked for and have or do work for me are lacking.

MM

 

[MikeL]

QL3 graduates sweep floors everywhere, but MCpls don't, and your average MCpl, in any Regt, isn't exactly one of these guys.

Dunno what unit you're in, but in Battalion, it's not an odd sight to see a MCpl or even a Sgt help clean up,  and WOs help tear down mod, etc.

Anyways, good series

 

[Ex Ranger Instructor]

Ok, I didn't mean to imply that I think anyone above rank X should never lift a finger.  I chose a poor example, and I think it muddied the water of what I was trying to say.

I was just surprised, given how elite these guys are, that there seems to be such a significant element of "normal" army stuff like parades and station jobs involved in their daily routine.  I got the part about it being there to instil a sense of humility- I just found it surprising, that's all. 

 

[George Wallace]

Ok, I didn't mean to imply that I think anyone above rank X should never lift a finger.  I chose a poor example, and I think it muddied the water of what I was trying to say.

I was just surprised, given how elite these guys are, that there seems to be such a significant element of "normal" army stuff like parades and station jobs involved in their daily routine.  I got the part about it being there to instil a sense of humility- I just found it surprising, that's all.

???

They are Army.  Why wouldn't they do "normal" army stuff?  Did you expect them to have some secret liar where they would lounge about and spy on their enemy, as they await Top Secret Orders from M to go out on a mission?  Don't confuse "Hollywood" with real life.

 

[Ex Ranger Instructor]

Secret lair and M, no.  Daily parades and cleaning stations done by SOF guys though- you know what, I really didn't think they'd do that.  Obviously I was wrong.

 

[George Wallace]

Doesn't matter who you are in the military.  You have to do your training.  You have to maintain your kit and quarters.  You have to eat, shit, shower and shave, etc.  SOF.  Infantry.  Airborne.  Armour.  Engineer.  Whatever.  You still have to perform your military duties.

 

[Ex Ranger Instructor]

Well, pretty much every unit in the CF that I'm aware of employs civilian cleaners nowadays- our conventional troops don't really do all that much cleaning.  That'is one of the reasons why I was so surprised to see these SOF guys doing so much.

Anyway, I don't want to go round and round all night on this- clearly I had a misconception about what these guys' day to day routine would be like, and the show cleared that misconception up for me.

Regards.

 

[George Wallace]

Civilian cleaners don't do "Station Jobs" on Crses.  Civilian Cleaners do not sweep out hangar floors, nor do they sweep the tarmac outside of the hangars.  Civilian Cleaners do not walk around the compound and pick up garbage.  They do not take scrap metal to the Scrap Metal Bins.  They don't take waste oil to the waste oil containers.  There are a lot of things that Civilian Cleaners do not do, and will not do, due to the contract that they are hired under.  We may even be going back to the old days, when there were no Civilian Cleaners.  Now this is also the NZ military; do they hire Civilian Cleaners?

 

[Sythen]

willy, just remember.. Every time a simple question is asked on this site, or a small observation made, you will be jumped on.. Though I post very rarely, I have been a member of this site a while and read quite a bit.. It seems a few of the members of this community sit at their desks just waiting to give the proverbial, 'Thanks tips!' to whoever says anything that they think is obvious. I honestly didn't think they did stuff like sweep floors and such either, but you're right it does make sense..

What I love is the fact he even tries to end the conversation, but George tries to keep it going.. Almost like he wants to argue even when there is no dissenting opinions. Yes George, we now know that you are the SoF station job SME. Thank you for imparting your knowledge on us, and belittling someone who a reasonable person would think did not deserve it. But you are smarter then we are, so you obviously know best..

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

And all you want to do is attack staff. If you are unhappy with what is done you have the option of reporting the topic, you can always IM or email Mr Bobbitt if you disagree with what the DS have done, you can always help out and if none of these apply you can always leave the site and have your membership deleted.

Milnet.Ca Staff