Cessna414JJB
Unknown Member
I've been in my squadron for about a year. There are kids in my squadron so I've seen the cadet program first hand. The cadet program has more of a military structure than the adult program, so the kids are all very up on military protocol. That is what it is and it doesn't bother me either way. The kids are also up on learning leadership skills, on learning to speak in front of large groups, on learning to complete tasks by working in groups and on learning to handle assigned responsibilities. Those seem like good things to me but I could see how others would consider it to be brainwashing.Especially because all the kids that I see want to be there and want to learn what they're learning.
I'm sure there are some really noble people with some very noble motivations for what they do. I have been around the bush military wise myself and I do agree that any sort of military training can be highly beneficial to the development of youngsters. Hey, learning to follow orders, act responsibly and within reason and in a respectful manner is not necessarily conveyed by playing computer games or trying to find as many ways as possible to compensate for the lack of attention many kids have in their home households. However, there are always people with power and control issues involved and I think what struck me the most is this hobbyists approach to being part of the military. My personal impression was that senior members (as pilots) have the option not to walk in CU's nor do you have to wear a AF Jet Helmet. Being neatly arranged, behaving well, and dressed to minimum code does the trick of representing this AF Auxilliary well, in my opinion.
But, like everywhere, there are always people who have to take it to an extreme, and show off what good soldiers and leaders they would have made if the AF actually ever saw them. It saddened me to see a 15 year old acne plaqued kid kicked out of the program (he happily left!) and the subsequent "Why did you expell my kid?" calls that followed. I have seen kids who where not there by choice, and no, not all of them want to be there or do that.
Comparing CAP with the "Hitler Jugend" is tasteless and a sign of missing brains, I will do my best to point out the differences to those who feel the need to associate Germany with Hitler 60+ years after this wipe is gone. I perceive it as an insult of intelligence to be so flatbrained. There are more people in the U.S. celebrating Hitlers Birthday, than there are in Germany. :banghead:
If the "Flying Wing" of CAP would focus their attention on fostering Aviation alone, maybe even with the premise to use it as a recruiting tool for the AF, without the hype generated by people who swing bick dicks but have never actually (and obviously never) served in any military function (for whatever reason) I would feel more inclined to be a part of it. Some of the meetings I attended looked like precanned well rehearsed "soldier game" sessions.
I found some of the programs available very interesting. I just can't bare the guts to sit through hours of meetings discussing issues some wing may have (with no obvious goal orientation) until someone swings the hammer and calls it off. In the meantime I look out the window and observe a 20 year old female in uniform drill some kids on how to walk a straight line. Yelling and leading at the top of her lungs, she appeared like a robot on steroids. What tremendous power and control issues she portrayed. I would not want my child (if I had one) exposed to such personalities.
I considered joining because I would love to be a part of SAR operations again, as I have been in my prior life. So, I did not approach it with a closed mind, they litterally turned me off by not being efficient. Different wing, different game, I guess.
I just tell people that because it sounds cooler. 
haha
