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    Light Up the Night Safely 0 Home & Family
    USACRC Editor

    Light Up the Night Safely

    Unfortunately, a lot of folks don’t take the major hazards related to fireworks seriously. Some people enjoy igniting firecrackers or cherry bombs and holding them in their hand as long as possible before throwing them — sometimes at...
    Toe-tilly Forked 0 Workplace
    USACRC Editor

    Toe-tilly Forked

    In college, I worked as an intern for a mechanical contractor, installing HVAC and plumbing for large industrial projects. During the last of my four semester rotations at this company, I was assigned to work at a vehicle manufacturing plant that...
    Seat Belts: Myth vs. Reality 0 Automobiles
    USACRC Editor

    Seat Belts: Myth vs. Reality

    Since the invention of air bags, many people believe they no longer have to wear their seat belts. Relying on air bags alone and not using your seat belt is more dangerous than not having air bags at all. Air bags should be considered additional...
    Riding Blind 0 Motorcycles
    USACRC Editor

    Riding Blind

    I’ve taken many long motorcycle trips over the past few years. On this one, however, I was caught by surprise. It wasn’t anything big — just something that never crossed my mind.

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    Engrained Discipline

    Engrained Discipline

    CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER 2 LAEL SMITH
    66th Military Intelligence Company,
    3rd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment
    Fort Cavazos, Texas

    Combat offers a unique learning environment in which training can be your best friend or worst enemy. It’s here where Soldiers must learn to adapt from established training, technical and procedural protocols and execute real-world decisions on the fly. This ability to adapt allows Soldiers to make life-or-death decisions to overcome the enemy on the battlefield. When the wheels touch down on any given undisclosed runway during deployment, it’s usually self-discipline that allows us to return home safely.

    As a young Soldier, I was always trained to execute any orders from my superiors without question. This discipline alone defined and ensured my — and many other Soldiers’ — survival at the two-way live-fire range. I remember my platoon sergeant being especially hard on Bradley crews to be disciplined and vigilant before, during and after combat operations.

    The older Bradley Fighting Vehicles didn’t offer air conditioning or any other relief from heat. That was something I learned in the great state of Texas. Despite the heat, we were always instructed to keep our hatches down to remain combat effective. It was nothing short of a personal sauna for the crewmembers. While in Iraq, however, I realized the significance of my platoon sergeant’s stern warnings.

    While on patrol, my Bradley was targeted and hit by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device. The violent explosion went off less than 5 meters from us. I remember a white car cutting in front of our vehicle and then seeing black, then red and white from the explosion. The shockwave whipped my head back and then forward into the steering yoke.

    When I woke up, my crew was screaming in my headset for me to drive forward. I couldn't see anything, and the smoke, powder and gas vapors were burning my eyes and nasal passages. I instinctively pushed on the gas and moved forward. I remember the sensation of the Bradley rocking forward and falling as we drove in and out of the crater left behind by the car bomb. I was later evacuated to a local forward operating base for medical treatment.

    After I returned to the compound, I discovered the only reason I survived the explosion was the fact that I had my hatch closed. The driver’s periscopes, where my face would have been exposed, were destroyed. Although I’d suffered a concussion, had I not been trained to keep my hatch closed, regardless of my personal comfort, I would have been killed. This engrained discipline saved my life and encouraged me to enforce high levels of self-discipline in the Soldiers I come into contact with today.

    • 23 March 2025
    • Author: USACRC Editor
    • Number of views: 751
    • Comments: 0
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