First and foremost, I love the tone of optimism. You guys assume a can-do approach on the part of the troops being evacuated from Europe that I find appropriate, if not entirely keeping with the general tone of Twilight: 2000. Still, I'm far more a Postman type than a Road Warrior type. As an historical precedent, morale in the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front began to increase after February 1942 simply because the German soldiers still alive were in fact still alive. They had taken the worst the Russians could dish out on their own turf. By the same token, although the Europe veterans find the US in tough shape, at least they are home. If good leaders can be found, the soldiers will follow.
Reorganizations are not as easy as they sound. The idea of reorganizing thousands of men while underway across the Atlantic is unrealistic. (That's a euphemism.) The US Army required a year to reorganize only some of its triangular divisions into square formations. This, by the way, is how my National Guard brigade got to take its vacation in Baghdad. Granted, corners can be cut, etc. However, taking formations that have fallen apart along the road to Bremen and turning them back into fighting forces involves a lot more than informing troops in the hold of a ship that they are now in C Company, X Battalion, Y Brigade. We might think that it should be that simple, but soldiers just aren't that way.
Nevertheless, provided the Omega force can be fed once they disembark, they can be reorganized into proper fighting formations. Heavy equipment will have to be redistributed, drills and ceremony practiced. Yes, drill and ceremony. Soldiers who have been through what the Europe veterans have been through and who are being reorganized on the western side of the Atlantic badly need the organic experience of rebuilding companies, then battalions, through such timeless activities as drill and ceremony. Commanders that fail to recognize such basic needs on the part of their troops are failing to counter the understandable anxieties of returning to a shattered homeland and the tendency of war-weary troops to desert are asking for trouble. Commanders are going to need to see their reorganized troops and be seen by their reorganized troops. All of this takes more time than anyone thinks it ought to take.
Mind, I'm not criticizing. Again, I love the optimistic tone of the work. I do believe the timetables need to be adjusted somewhat to allow tens of thousands of Europe veterans to adjust to the realities of the reorganization and rebuild trust in the new formations. Intact formations struggle with getting off the boat and right to work. In 2001, the Omega guys are going to need a bit of time to get sorted.
Very enjoyable reading, DC Group!
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