T&T: USCG too late response

[Ed Bruette]

-----Original Message-----
What's clear from this thread is that the Coast Guard has a public
perception problem.  No matter how good they are at their technical skills -
and I do believe they are very good - their routine operations, particularly
those involving that annoying lay public, simply needs improvement.  Perhaps
there were an extraordinary number of calls on all of the days I thought
they sounded stupid.  Or, perhaps, the CG doesn't have the equipment and/or
operational backup and/or operational readiness that is required to serve
the public.  Or, perhaps, they really were being stupid.  In any case, they
allow themselves to appear stupid.  Much of that could be easily fixed IF
MANAGEMENT CARED TO FIX IT.
 
Not that I would tout the land-based E911 systems as without flaw, but I
would suggest that E911 operators are trained to deal with the public,
however stupid or scared as they may be.  Why can we not expect the same
from our "all-volunteer, professional" military?  There are simply too many
"anecdotal" stories related in this thread to assume there isn't a problem.
Now the real question is, does anyone have any idea how to FIX it?
 


Reply:
OK folks, I believe we've done enough USCG bashing.  Many (most?) of us are
old enough to know the CG is and has been an afterthought bordering on
bastard child status.  It hasn't been that many years since they stopped
driving ships that were USN hand-me-downs.  Heck, they didn't even have
their own schools, their troops attended Navy schools.

As a Navy retiree I can tell you that the way all the services get well
trained personnel is thru OJT (On the Job Training).  I can also tell you
that there isn't a better way to do it.  Let's stop for a minute and think
about where our water safety 911 radio operators come from.  Some may come
straight from school but others (supervisors and senior watch standers) come
from the fleet however, there is no job specialty entitled Water Safety
Radio Operator.  This is a demanding job that is performed one or two tours
in an entire career.  

Comparing that to your shore based 911 call center operations is apples and
zucchini.  Although the 911 types deal with emergency calls and they are
classroom/OJT trained, they are completely different in that they have
applied for a job and will stay in that job answering emergency calls until
they either can't take the stress any more or retire.  The Coastie reports
for duty where s/he is told and stays there for ~3 years and moves on to the
next assignment that probably has little if anything to do with their last
assignment.  During that 3 year tour they may be moved within the command to
perform other jobs as needed. 

Since  9/11/01 the CG has been tasked in much more of a security role and
that even includes deployments to Kuwait, Iraq, etc.  This expanded
responsibility is performed at the price of robbing manpower and assets from
other areas.

Unfortunately we (the list) have been painting the CG with a brush that is
being applied to the wrong target.  Before condemning the USGC leadership
for poor training and management look at the root cause of the problem.  It
goes back to the old saying, "You get what you pay for."  You and I may be
inclined to provide higher man power levels and better funding and
facilities for the CG but we don't have the purse strings, congress does and
they are not so inclined.  

Going back to the 911 call center comparison, if there is a public
perception that the 911 center performs poorly it is fairly easy to get the
attention of the local politicians and get it fixed.  We're having trouble
getting congress to approve The Clean Boating Act of 2008, getting them to
provide what we think are the appropriate resources to the CG just isn't
going to happen!

Would putting civilians behind all the microphones improve the performance
of the USCG response?  Perhaps but that opens a whole different kettle of
fish, including that money thing again.

The men and women of the Coast Guard do a wonderful job with the assets
available.  Let's not condemn them for being human in an imperfect world.


Ed, N7NVP
PT-38  "Makin' Do"
Poulsbo, WA