I was a dumb grunt of an infantryman in the USMC at the time.
One of the work parties often used to eat up or spades playing time was the cleaning and maint at the battalion HQ.
In between scrubbing wax off floors, rewaxing and polishing said floors, and other chore work, OIC or senior SNCO of S2 (intel) or S3 (ops) would grab us up and declare a smoke break.
We'd all go outside and kick back for a bit smoking our cigs and then it would begin. Casual, almost sly, and sneaky, the conversation led by the OIC or SNCO would drift toward the events of import that had the potential to impact us directly or indirectly.
On occasion, the Battalion CO, XO or Sgt Maj would wander out to join the "smoke break" yakity yak.
I still remember how my headspace and timing was thrown out of wack when it was first asked of us young grunts, how we felt about our federal gov being at war with itself.
DEA at war, taking and making casualties "fighting" the drug war, the CIA at war, making and taking casualties using the cartels, guerilla groups running drugs for their own ends. And as often as not, the casualties were DEA or CIA agents/assets inflicted one on the other.
Early '80s.
War on Drugs.
I was a dumb grunt of an infantryman in the USMC at the time. One of the work parties often used to eat up or spades playing time was the cleaning and maint at the battalion HQ.
In between scrubbing wax off floors, rewaxing and polishing said floors, and other chore work, OIC or senior SNCO of S2 (intel) or S3 (ops) would grab us up and declare a smoke break.
We'd all go outside and kick back for a bit smoking our cigs and then it would begin. Casual, almost sly, and sneaky, the conversation led by the OIC or SNCO would drift toward the events of import that had the potential to impact us directly or indirectly.
On occasion, the Battalion CO, XO or Sgt Maj would wander out to join the "smoke break" yakity yak.
I still remember how my headspace and timing was thrown out of wack when it was first asked of us young grunts, how we felt about our federal gov being at war with itself.
DEA at war, taking and making casualties "fighting" the drug war, the CIA at war, making and taking casualties using the cartels, guerilla groups running drugs for their own ends. And as often as not, the casualties were DEA or CIA agents/assets inflicted one on the other.