Quote:
Originally Posted by Raellus
Here is a rough draft of the "chapter" on morale.
Your suggestions are welcome. I could use your help since I don't know what the official U.S. Army designations/equivalents are for morale and/or propaganda officers. I'm not real happy with the CRC acronym either.
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The term you'd use is MWR, Morale, Welfare and Recreation. There would be a MWR center or MWR tent on larger posts, smaller units (company size) have a recreation room referred to as the "dayroom". While there were European-level MWR facilities (including entire resort complexes), MWR follows the troops fairly closely.
As to who's responsible, there are two options. At the battalion and brigade level (peacetime, maybe brigade and division in 2000), the chaplain plays a significant role in maintaining the morale of the troops.
He's the only officer, in general terms, that plays a direct role in morale, other than the obvious good leader = dedicated troops in garrison and combat, poor leader = lead from the rear, so none of your own troops can lodge a bullet in your back. But the day to day little things that keep morale up is the purview of the NCO corps, often a mid-grade NCO (E-5 to E-7). Any higher rank makes the effort suspect, as GI's have a tendency to hate "mandatory fun" imposed from on high. In a company, its the first sergeant and platoon sergeant's jobs to monitor and maintain morale, while the actual duties (mail clerk, getting videos, maintaining the weight room, organizing a softball or football game, grabbing some newspapers or magazines from somewhere else) is performed by a lower rank soldier, usually somebody from the company headquarters like the commander's or first sergeants' driver, the supply clerk/armorer or the commo specialist. At battalion level, the sergeant major monitors morale, in addition to the chaplain (if any).
And with the chaplain, he plays a critical role. In addition to his spiritual duties, he's considered a neutral or friendly advocate that is to a large extent exempt from the chain of command. His duties extend well beyond conducting religious services and counseling individual soldiers... he frequently lobbies the commander on the troops' behalf to maintain/improve living conditions. And chaplains also maintain a "spiritual neutrality" in that they generally don't proselytize their particular religion - it doesn't matter if a soldier is Lutheran and the battalion has a rabbi, the soldier will receive the same treatment from his chaplain. (Chaplains in a command will work together to arrange the appropriate services - in Desert Storm, where non-Moslem services were prohibited by Saudi law, units held "Morale Meeting C", "Morale Meeting P" and "Morale Meeting J" at various times.)
And the chaplain may have to "look the other way" as far as the other means of relieving tension... camp followers. We've had a number of discussions over the years of this seedy underside of morale; even if the command (rightly) tries to suppress it, it'll probably happen anyhow, starting with the same civilian "contractors" you mentioned. (There were constant rumors about the various young ladies that worked the mess halls, barber shops and laundries on posts in Bosnia).
MWR facilities in an operational zone usually include movie tents, workout facilities, dry bars (non-alcoholic, or a 2-beer limit), American-style restaurants (in Desert Shield some units received McDonalds, hours old and cold, for Thanksgiving dinner and were overjoyed to do so!) and sports.
On top of that, living facilities make a big difference day to day. You mentioned hot showers and clean sheets. Having a solid roof rather than a tent, not living in mud and filth, hot food at least once a day, being able to clean uniforms, not being overcrowded and having a place to relax (segregated by rank - lower enlisted, junior NCOs, senior NCOs & officers) all come into play too.
So that's kind of the day-to-day morale issues in the US Army, somewhat different from the morale that makes soldiers hard chargers willing to follow their PL into the teeth of Soviet troops. Its the kind that makes soldiers attentive on guard, not desert, take care of their gear and so on.
As for what makes soldiers act and fight hard, I'll let one the paratroopers and marines talk about that kind of esprit de corps. Infantry units in general tend to be filled with pretty aggressive guys, and many a MWR facility has been seriously damaged before the MPs arrive. The next morning the senior NCOs administer the usual ass-chewing, but then follow it up with: "Did you beat their asses or get beat yourself? You better have given better than you took!" And in inter-unit fights, it's us against them, at whatever the convenient level: NATO vs Pact, Americans vs Turks, Army vs Air Force, 1st Bde vs Divarty, 1st Bn vs 2nd Bn, C Co. vs A. Co., and so on...
Hope this helps! Looking forward to more of this quality piece!