The US
Army has a course that doesn’t get a lot of attention – Jumpmaster school. The reward for successfully graduating is additional
work and responsibility. There are two very
challenging parts to Jumpmaster training; Practical Work in the Aircraft or
“PWAC” and Jumpmaster Personnel Inspection or “JMPI.”
One of the daunting things about PWAC is the way it demands
“grace under pressure” from the student.
There’s something about hanging out the door of an airplane wearing
125lbs of gear and parachute while flying one-thousand feet above the ground at
150 mph in the middle of the night that gets your adrenaline flowing. Combine that with trying to locate your drop
zone, maintaining control of your jumpers and countless other safety considerations
and “keeping calm” becomes crucial. But
PWAC is not really the hardest part.
JMPI is what spelled the demise of most Jumpmaster wannabes. Performing a timed inspection for improper
rigging or defects of three rigged paratroopers and their equipment is very taxing. Merely exceeding the time limit, missing one major
or three minor deficiencies, spells failure.
Here’s what Wikipedia says about the course, “Generally
speaking, it takes a potential jumpmaster at least two attempts to pass the
course (less than 30% of attendees earn a first time Go). In recognition of
this, returning students are commonly referred to as ‘alumni’ by their Black
Hat instructors. There is also a common joke that those who pass on their first
attempt actually tested out early from the ‘full six week course’.”
Before each
airborne operation, after donning his equipment, each paratrooper gets
inspected by a Jumpmaster. You could
always tell how much trust the jumpers had in a particular Jumpmaster by how
long the line of jumpers he had waiting in his inspection line. Some Jumpmasters had fifteen guys waiting, while
others were waiting for a jumper.
Jumpers wanted a thorough inspection from a guy that would tell them the
truth. If they were screwed up, they
wanted to know it while there was still time to correct it.
That seems to have all changed in our culture today. “Don’t tell me what to do” could become the
new National motto. But that is not really
what they mean. What they really mean
is, “I am going to tell you what to do.”
Unlike the jumpers who wanted their deficiencies and flaws uncovered,
there are segments of society today that demand everyone accept, and even celebrate
their deviance.
It has come to the point now where a pizza
parlor owner in Indiana, a florist in
Washington, and bakers
in Oregon, and Denver
have all had their livelihood’s and lifestyle’s destroyed, simply because they
would not surrender their religious convictions to celebrate “alternative”
lifestyle choices. That is what happens
when people no longer want to be one Nation, under God -- there will not be
liberty and justice for all.
The Apostle Paul foresaw this day two-thousand years ago. In
writing to the Romans, Paul said, “The
wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and
wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what
may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to
them. For since the creation of the
world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been
clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are
without excuse.”
Paul declares that you have to deliberately deny the Creator
because His creation alone makes His existence apparent. Choose to deny the self-evident, and there won’t
be any acceptable excuse. But that’s just
the beginning of their end.
Debasing yourself is destructive enough, but
devastating others’ livelihoods is disgraceful.
So, you want a Jumpmaster that won’t tell you the truth,
have at it. Just be prepared for a very hard
landing.
3 comments:
Colonel, your point is well made. I view it as charitable work.
But there are powerful forces who have inserted themselves into the mix and whom you have not addressed. They scheme to get your audience to turn a deaf ear and even to hate you.
I lack a quick way of saying this, so I ask that you please read this re-post of a 2006 essay. It shows how the other forces have a moral imperative that is contrary to ours and are at war with us.
Maybe you can figure out some compelling way to address and get through to a significant number in those other forces. Should you be attacked for such an effort, you know you will have succeeded. Surely God would bless you for it.
I know well the problems one can encounter when a jumpmaster fails to catch a deficiency during JMPI.
On one of my jumps, the jumpmaster didn't notice that my leg straps were not quite tight enough. As Murphy would have it, that allowed a bit of my anatomy to creep under my leg straps. Needless to say, my opening shock was decidedly more painful than was usual.... :-O
Hello Colonel. ....there are few men today with strong moral fiber and there is a true lack of leadership. Most people wish to be lead and young people need strong guidelines. Our country is obviously in big trouble!
My father, who recently turned 95, served with the 82nd airnborne from 42 to 45 and experienced three combat jumps and two amphibious assaults. He said the hardest part of the war was seeing his friends die. He can't remember what he had for breakfast but he remembers his years gone by....
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