And Stupidity Can Burn Down Houses

This week has been an interesting one.  We took our first real contact here, nothing to get really excited about I really had expected it sooner.  We have had some interesting lessons about the bureaucracy of the Army.  Not everyone in the Army is the same.  Some treat it like just a job, some like a calling, others treat it like professionals should.  The Army has many moving pieces and without direction they tend to stray a little bit...or a lot.  So when complicated tasks require multiple moving pieces to accomplish, it takes a tenacious soul to keep after the bureaucracy to produce results.  Some of my counterparts are more than willing to push information, provide me with resources and assets to help me or at least talk to someone who can help me.  The others believe there is no problem that cannot wait until tomorrow.  I find it difficult to work with people like that.  This is a combat zone, there are dangerous people here trying to kill US soldiers.  I can kill them first with the right information, but I need to get all my systems 100%.  I think the people back home deserve better than "It can wait until tomorrow".  If I knew, as a civilian, how much laziness existed amongst our armed forces (especially among deployed soldiers) I would be a little pissed off.  I am constantly pushing my soldiers to improve their work, improve other peoples work, branch out and see what other resources we can access.  It is my goal to provide as much information and as many resources to my commander as possible.  If there are air assets, I want them.  Information packets, I can get it.  I want to get every piece of help I can get.  Anyone who tells you they can do it all themselves is wrong.  Their stupidity can literally burn down their own house.  And I only say that because I saw it happen.  I don't need the credit, if we can make it back home with everyone we left with, that is all the recognition I want.