<p>This not only applies to SWOs but also those headed to Pensacola. Someday they will have a disassociated tour and be expected to qualify as a TAO. It is amazing the amount of knowledge that one can actually memorize.</p>
<p>TAO (Tactical Action Officer) -They are the officers who actually fight the ship so they not only have to know all the capabilities of their own platform but also those of any other unit that may be called on, surface, sub-surface, and air. And not to be forgotten, all the capabilities of all the enemy’s forces. An amazing amount of knowledge.</p>
<p>That was a cogent, reasoned response. I appreciate what you have overcome and those life experiences have obviously served you well. If you had made that post earlier I would not have felt the need to respond, but some of your earlier posts came across (at least to me) as a bit sanctimonious. Regardless, I do believe you are acting on your own personal convictions and that is an honorable course. I too believe that no one is beyond redemption with the exception of a few rare cases. The habits we practice daily become our character, and even those with the most potential need a course correction on occassion to avoid running aground. My concern is that those who have the “old-school” warrior mentality (and you know exactly what I’m talking about) are sometimes singled out because they may not quite fit the “boy scout” image of the perfect academic student, who may not always offer blind obedience, and who are occassionaly quite rough around the edges. We need those guys too, probably more now than ever before. Where would the Marines and SEALS be without those type of officers? Finally, my use of the term “shipmate” is never used in a derogatory fashion. I realize some here may view it as such but coming from a service family I can never do so.</p>