Quote:
Originally Posted by Caddyroger
This did not happen during boot camp. I was in the Navy aboard a aircraft carrier. I was a boiler tech but worked with pumping the fuel to the service tanks and controlling the fresh water and boiler water. Our work shop was on the 2 second deck and the supply shop was 5 decks below.
First I'll explain a smoking lamp. It just when we are handling fuel, weapons or any thing that was dangerous if a fire started. The captain would come over the speaker saying that the smoking lamp is lit or unlit. If it was lit you could smoke.
When we get a recruit in we would play this on him. We would send him down to get a red bulb for the smoking lamp but of course their no such thing but the store room worker would play along. He would tell him that they did not have any red bulbs and go and find if any other color work. He would come up and tell us that that store did not have any red bulbs so we sent him down to get a blue bulb. the store room clerk would would tell that they was out of blue bulbs.
We did this about 3 times then when he entered the room the third we would start laughing and tell him what we did. We did have 6 in lamp that had smoking lamp printed on it. The bulb was burned out.
We also used the left handed monkey wrench.
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Of course, our recruits were sent to the tool bay to get a 2/3" wrench, or off to the treelline to get a TR- double E... but the most frequent duty consisted of handing a ball peen hammer to a recruit, and having him gently tap the entire surface of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle (sort of like a tank), checking for "soft spots."
I did not witness this myself, but my platoon sergeant claims to have witnessed the following: A lower enlisted soldier out in the yard area had walked past a fresh young butterbar (lowest ranking officer, O-1). He saluted... but then failed to salute when they passed a second time. The lieutenant, drunken with the power of being an
officer, ripped into the enlisted guy, reminding him that one ALWAYS salutes officers, damnit! He issued a punishment to the enlisted guy: Stand in the yard, and simply salute: 5000 times. Looking like an idiot, the enlisted guy started... he stood there saluting in the yard. The smug and satisfied lieutenant went inside the HQ building, probably planning to sit back and enjoy watching.
However, a senoir officer had watched the whole thing go down, from a window inside the HQ building. He felt that the lieutenant was being too arrogant, too high and mighty for being simply a butterbar. He summoned the lieutenant, and reminded him that for every salute given--- by anybody--- there MUST be somebody to return the salute. He then ordered the lieutenant to go out in the yard, face the enlisted guy (who was probably only on about 100 by then!)... and return every single one of the next few thousand salutes.