A Fiancée’s View
7 11 2007The discussions which ensue on the various lists WP-ORG hosts can be contentious, riotous, inane, thought provoking, and often informative. While researching some information from one of the more provocative posts from The West Point Forum (a closed discussion list, open only to USMA graduates) I came across an interesting letter on the Internet; interesting from a standpoint of content when viewed against the background of the author (”I’m liberal”) and the on-line magazine in which the letter is published.
Let me provide a few notes up front on some of the points the author makes:
“Cadets have to iron lines into their uniform shirts to make it look like the shirt just came out of the package.”
Iron? When did they issue irons to the Corps? Our uniforms (mid 1970s) came back pressed and starched from the cleaners. The Tactical Department would certainly have seen the issue of irons for what it would have been: another weapon kept in the barracks.
“[Cadets] have massive pillow fights“
They do? Now when did this start? Must have been when they let the girls in. We might have knocked each other around some in the boxing ring (and sometimes in the rooms), but fights with pillows…? They have irons available!
“Sometimes it’s hard to imagine how they can dress themselves in the morning“
Well, sometimes they didn’t. On more than one occasion as a beanhead (Plebe) I took my raincoat off in the mess hall only to discover to my horror that I’d forgotten the epaulets to my shirt. Another meal without getting to eat…
“Jewish Warrior Weekend“
This was a new one on me so I made an inquiry and received this explanation from the Commandant’s office:
“The weekend is an invitational/fellowship opportunity for Jewish cadets in other Academies and Jewish students from other universities. They come to the Academy and attend services, get a tour of WP and the Jewish Chapel, attend the football game, and have some discussions/lectures/sermons. [This year's] event is 16-18 Nov 07. Starts Friday with the arrival of participants and dinner and an evening speaker. All events are held on West Point main campus.”
“Cadets love violent video games, a good war movie, and their guns, but they’ve also been known to send around a picture of an adorable kitten so they can all indulge their mushier sides.”
In order: OK, yes, oh yes, and…what!? Again, must be something that started when the girls showed up. Or, the kitten belongs to the cadet’s OAO (One And Only) and the cadet is trying hard to remain in good standing.
“[Cadets] have engineering and math requirements that would reduce many students to tears.”
I shouldn’t have read that sentence, now the nightmares will come back.
“There are a lot of amazing soldiers stationed at West Point, working both in the cadet chain of command and as professors, who work hard to make the system run smoothly and to make sure no cadets are getting lost in that system.”
The above is a sentence that should be committed to memory by every parent who drops their candidate off on R-Day.
Now then, with my notes out of the way, here is Emily Haney-Caron’s What West Point Doesn’t Tell You.
~ Dempsey
“but they’ve also been known to send around a picture of an adorable kitten so they can all indulge their mushier sides.”
This article is clearly a subversion and misinformation campaign mounted by the dastardly dirty tricks department at the Naval Academy. Only squishy swabbies would even concieve of such a thing as having a mushy side. Cadet’s have only two sides, their outside to carry war gear, and their backside to land on after jumping from a plane while in flight. Beat Navy.