Conscientious Objectors in the Individual Ready Reserves (IRR)?

[Dharma_Bum]

DU'ers ...

In distant reference to the “Army want Vets back” post …

I am currently working on a project to assist veterans in filing for conscientious objector status while completing their commitment period in the Army’s Inactive Ready Reserves (IRR).

For those of you who don’t know much about the IRR… Basically when one signs the dotted line to become and employee in Uncle Sam’s Army, He or she is committed to an eight year commitment ... irregardless if he or she signs up for three years, six years, or even seven as these years are only your “Active” commitment periods.

Confused yet?

Joe Blow signs up for a three year tour in the Army.
Joe Blow serves his three years and gets honorably discharged from active duty at the end.
Joe Blow is STILL IN the Army (Inactive status) until eight total years has passed since the day he joined up.
Now Joe Blow has to sit, sweat, and hope that he doesn’t get re-called because there’s a war going on and the Army desperately needs employees.

How does this relate to being a Conscientious Objector?

A great deal of soldiers, myself included, develop a conscientious objection to war and violence only after they go through combat and after they are discharged from active duty ... saves from having to make a huge heroic stand against the Army while you’re in … I was just three months shy of my end of active duty date when I returned from Iraq.

When soldiers get discharged from active duty their state of mind changes dramatically. May it be simple civilian-ization or may it be complete objection to war in any form like a handfull out there.

The problem that we’re faced with is how can one file for conscientious objector status while sill in the ranks? … The IRR ranks that is.

Answer: There is no solid method for doing so. I’ve tried.

Therefore, I’m trying to develop a system that will allow veterans, who are still committed to a period in the IRR, to file for Conscientious Objector status and thus minimize their chances of being called back up for a second or third or fourth action-packed adventure in Iraq.

Anyone wish to add any comments or submit any anecdotes that may be of assistance?
Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

More bits of Dhamra from the Dharma_Bum

[unhappycamper]

1. You might be able to find something in these search results:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Conscientious+Objectors++Individual+Ready+Reserves+%28IRR%29&btnG=Google+Search

[uppityperson]

2. Good luck, sounds like a good idea

I have no idea how to go about this, but it sounds like a really good idea. People change their minds, their hearts, having faced battle.

[jbane]

3. Navy IRR

I was the training Petty Officer for my unit. When I was learning the details of my job one of the questions I had was "can anyone be called up from the IRR?" This was back in the late 90's. The guys training me smiled and said "if we're calling guys off of the IRR we are in deep shit." I didn't think much about it until last year when I heard that the Army going after it's IRR guys. I was shocked and still am.

[Dharma_Bum]

4. Very true ...

...I'm quite certain as a Navy Vet you've not much to worry about.

It's the Army/Marine Infantry guys who are the needed few.

Typical systematic process:

- Calls from recruiters asking you to join the guard/reserves
- Letters from the DOD asking you to join the reserves
- Calls / Letters from the your branches HR command wanting updating contact info on you (Which by the by is mandatory)
- And finally the mobilization letter instructing you to report as ordered.

With the Army's recruiting levels at a all time low since 1973, the writing all the wall can be seen a mile away.

Good luck brother!

The Dharma

[DocSavage]

5. When we did mobilization

exercises of reserve personnel, one of the questions that all individuals were asked was if there they had a moral objection to serving or being mobilized. If they answered yes, they were directed to the CO, and a on-call chaplin if thier objection was being a CO. We ALL understood that people in the Reserve are different than AD folks. Where I always gave serious consideration to Reserveist issues like that, most if not all of the AD people that underwent the conversion to CO were trying to get out of a deployment. I say this because it invariably came once deployment orders came out, not before.

Pulling from the IRR is pretty MOS specific, if you are a trigger puller, just show up 40 lbs over weight and wheezing with an inhaler. Guarenteed you will go home a civlian.