Hi there IS MISE...

I note you served with the CMF for a time ? It's bloody hard to get the old khaki out of your blood once you've worn it for a time ! I too joined the CMF sometime after my discharge from the ARA, and served while I was in uniform with the NSWPOL. Our roster clerk was quite accommodating in order to allow us CMF blokes to attend most weekly parades, and monthly weekend camps, as well as the annual camp. I think it was a direction from those on high to allow CMF personnel to attend as many CMF functions as operationally possible ?

A few funny situations occasionally arose, as you'd expect in a large organisation such as ours. Like a senior constable mate of mine, who held a commission (a substantive Captain) in the CMF, totally outranked a couple of sergeants and an Inspector, of which all three were pretty 'tight' as it were, as coppers, fortunately for those concerned, they all served with the 'drop shorts' an entirely different unit to my mate, who was with the engineers !

Another curious aspect of our organisation, many of those who chose to serve with the CMF, elected to serve with the Provost Corps ? You'd think wearing a blue uniform for eight hours a day was more than enough exposure to law enforcement, I would've thought ? Apparently not, they wished to be policemen, even in the CMF ? Go figure eh ? Great days though ? Eventually I was discharged because of my inability to attend regular parades, once I went into plain clothes.

O sung wu,

I fist donned khaki as a Nasho in 13th NS Bn, I was then in the CMF at Homebush in the Royal Aust Signals unit that was stationed there.
I wasn't there long before I joined the ARA.
A few years after I was discharged I joined the CMF again but this time in RAEME.
Some funny things did happen, I was giving a lesson on the use of the Owen Gun and the strange drill that went with firing it; firing to the front one was supposed to stand with the feet evenly spaced (at ease position) and at the command 'Action right/left', jump up in the air and turn and land, still with the feet evenly spaced, and be at right angles to the original position.
The gun was to be held against the right hip at 90 degrees to the rigid hips.

I put everyone through this and did it a few times.
Then I said "Now do you all understand this drill?"
A chorus of "Yes, Sir".

Then I said "Well, it's all bull and must have been thought up by some chair bound dill".

I then showed them how to use it, left foot forward, slightly crouched, gun butt on the waistline/hip (whatever was comfortable) and the muzzle directly under the line of sight.
Initial action right/left by swiveling at the hips and move the feet later.

Cont.

cont.

Just as I was finishing the lesson some of the lads were giving me eye signals that someone was behind me.
I dismissed them to their next lesson and turned to find the CO behind me.
He was a WW II veteran ad had been in New Guinea etc.,
"Bloody good lesson" he remarked and then went on to discuss something else.
He was very practical and some parade nights there were odd sights.
Such as a Fireman on parade in his Fire Brigade uniform because he was on duty at the local fire station.
Then there were the few occasions when there was a Lieutenant in the ranks of my platoon; he was a school teacher and held honorary rank as
an Officer in charge of a unit of school cadets. When he had to attend a meeting of Cadet Officers he sometimes didn't have the time to change into his private's uniform, so the Boss would let him wear his officer's rig.
Off parade he was given his due as an officer and all of his mates made sure that he got enough salutes to tire his right arm.

It was good to have a practical CO!!

Beach, I asked for evidence, the type of stuff you find in a court room. Dribble published in Murdoch's trashy anti Green publications is hardly evidence. Who is your star witness for the prosecution Piers Ackerman!

What does ANZAC Day mean for the Greens? A senseless question, as there is no official policy in relation to ANZAC Day. The Greens as a political party is made up of members, and each individual member could have a different answer.

If I pose the question; What do little children mean to the Catholic Church? Each church member would have a entirely different answer. From someone to be loved, to someone to be molested!

Every time I put it to you to name names, or produce evidence, you cut and run.

Good evening to you, IS MISE...

Doing everything the Army way ! 'By numbers' somewhat repetitive, but it worked and that was the main objective. A case of 'great coats on' and 'great coats off' ? Or, 'hurry up and wait' there were a million and one, protocols one was required to learn, and generally speaking they proved immensely successful !

Funny enough I spent far less time in the ARA (6 years) and the CMF (an aggregate of about 5 years), then in the NSWPOL (over 32 years before retirement). It's the Army that I miss most, if you can believe it ?

As an example I try to recognise all post WW 11 medal ribbons, eligibility for award, campaign, timeline, correct order on their 'ribbon bar', etc. ? I don't know IS MISE, I reckon Khaki does infiltrate one's blood stream ? Though I've taken my discharge, the khaki never really leaves you, nor do you leave it ?

Your description of giving a 'weapon instruction' lesson and methodology, brings back some happy memories too ? You'd recall you don't make a slightest move, until permitted to do so when being taught a new weapon system ? I was required to undertake the normal conversion from the, SMLE No 1 Mk3, to the L1A1 SLR 7.62.

After completing the short conversion course, you could be sure that you knew absolutely everything about the jolly thing, before you were ever issued with one ? Even finite details on the correct 'gas check' setting etc. ! You know, I wouldn't alter a single component as far as the Australian Army's training methods were concerned ? They are the very best, perhaps that's why they're the best Army in the world !

Great days to be sure IS MISE.

G'day ONTHEBEACH...

Sorry for my delay in acknowledging your most recent contribution. As I said to PAUL1405 awhile ago, I did have a measure of respect for the Greens when they first kicked off. Like many Aussies, I do support the preservation of Australia's more unique and precious flora and fauna. And the Greens looked like a group who would honour that objective, and use it as an important 'plank' within their core strategies, and policy objectives ?

However as time passed, they seem to have well and truly departed from their proposed core values and branched out into all the other major policies that should be better left to the major parties to administer ? It's for this reason, I believe them now to be a very disruptive and uncooperative group of individuals, that by their very presence in our federal parliamentary system, will only lead to political mayhem and economic dislocation, as evidenced by their continued blockages, of key economic reform in the Senate ?

In fact they're not unlike those of the 'Palmer United Party', another quite bizarre group of demented character's, who wouldn't have the remotest idea of what's required of them as Senators in our Federal Parliament ? And then of course there's that very peculiar 'woman' in Tasmania, who seems set to totally vandalize, even wreck, any veneer we might have of possessing a responsible government in Canberra ? We should have strong laws in place, that directly accommodate people like her, purely for the protection of our country ?

She's an absolute ignominy to us all, a truly humiliating figure ! A psychiatric feast, an entire banquet even ! A genuine 'loony tunes', but her penchant for being completely disruptive and threatening, she's positively dangerous for our hard earned reputation as a 'first world' Nation ! It could only happen here in Oz eh, ONTHEBEACH ?