I just got off the phone with my Sgt. Major.  Yes, I’m out of the military, but SGM Siebold will ALWAYS be my Sgt. Major!  Always.  This is a man who has been an exemplary Soldier, a good friend, an outstanding leader, a strong mentor, an impartial audience and a valued advisor.  When I first joined the Virginia Army National Guard after a six-year break from active duty, SGM Siebold quickly became a guide and a strong voice of reason in my military career and my life. 

He inspired me.  He advised me – without politically correct nonsense, without bias and always keeping my best interest at heart.  He allowed me to make my own decisions and mistakes, without condescension and without self-righteousness.  He recognized my intelligence and my maturity and allowed me to come to my own conclusions.  If I asked for advice, he gave it.  If I came into his office angry and upset, he’d help put things in perspective.  If I had problems related to my job, or my military service, he’d advise, point me in the right direction and square me away.  Oh… and if I was acting like an asshat, which I seem to remember was quite often, he’d give me a figurative slap upside the head to set me straight.

That’s the mark of a truly superior NCO.  His door is always open, and his Soldiers come first.  He takes care of his troops, first and foremost, and will go to the mat for what is right every single time.

Of course, any senior NCO I idolize as much as SGM Siebold will have one major thing in common with me:  a complete lack of political correctness.  I can’t remember how many times I’ve heard him say, “It is what it is,” and that’s the way he deals with people – realistically, without coddling, without bullshit.  That is not to say that he’s tactless.  Not at all.  He’s calm and respectful, but invariably straightforward.  That is how senior NCOs should be, in my humble opinion. They’re the ones who shape the Army’s future leaders.  They’re the ones who lead the way, despite the politics and other associated crap.

SGM Siebold has been there, and done that.  He does his job, he does it well, with dignity and without fanfare.  He doesn’t show off.  He just does his job, and does it better than anyone else.  He’s fair, he’s knowledgeable, and he has the experience to back up that knowledge.  He is what Soldiers strive to be, and what NCOs work to emulate.

So one would think that if there’s any Soldier who is best suited to take the reins of the 29th Division, it would be SGM Siebold, right?  RIGHT???

Apparently not.

And that’s been the one thing that has consistently disappointed me about the National Guard since I joined.  I’ve seen all manner of asshats get promoted to their level of incompetence.   Quite literally…. SGM knows how many times the words “THEY PROMOTED HIM/HER TO *INSERT RANK HERE*?????” has come out of my mouth in the four years we’ve known one another.   I’ve seen quality NCOs get denied promotions because of bureaucratic bullshit.  Hell, I couldn’t get promoted to Staff Sgt., because even though I was at the top of the promotion list with the most points in the state, apparently there was only ONE slot in the entire state of Virginia for my Military Occupational Specialty (MOS), and it was occupied by someone who wasn’t even MOS qualified yet!  I’ve seen quality NCOs get denied a promotion because there were “no slots” in their career field.  But when you get to the SGM level, a lot of it is politics.

And that’s what pisses me off about the current situation.  SGM Siebold applied for the Command Sergeant Major position with the 29th.  By all rights, he should have gotten it.  He’s qualified, respected, experienced and wise.  But because someone’s widdle feewings got needled, due to the application not having passed through his esteemed office, a few phonecalls were made, and the man whom I consider to be one of the best Sergeants Major in the military was rejected.  Just like that.  Someone above him didn’t feel he got the respect for his authoritah! that he deserved, and the 29th lost what could have been one of the best leaders it could ever hope to have! 

Worse yet, in the true tradition of a coward, this act of betrayal to the Army National Guard, to the 29th and to an absolutely stellar NCO, was performed without any effort to get to know the Soldier, to learn about his experience, to learn about his knowledge and his leadership ability – under the guise of “Well, you didn’t have the experience… you’re not suited for the position… you’re, blah blah blah…”

Those of us who know SGM Siebold and who have worked for and with him, know that is complete and utter bullshit.  Knowing the elements of psychology, and being familiar with personality types, my assessment is that someone wasn’t pleased about a) not being consulted about the application, and b) not having had a say in it, and decided that if he couldn’t have his grubby little paws involved, then he would simply submarine the application.  I’ve seen too many senior NCOs in the military with this type of superiority complex.  They take themselves so seriously, and consider themselves so important, that anything they perceive as a slight to their oh-so-important persona, requires immediate retaliation.  In this case, “Oh, you didn’t consider me important enough to run your application through my office?  I’ll make sure your application never gets there!  All it takes is one phonecall, peon!”  And while I don’t know if this was, indeed, the thought process, it sure appears to be right on the money.

Petty little tyrants wielding their petty little power, as if the promotion of a quality NCO to a higher position is somehow a threat to their fragile egos.  They’re subconsciously insecure in their own worth, so much so, that the presence of actual quality threatens them.  Therefore, they must assert their authority just to make themselves feel better. 

These are not the types of leaders we need in the Army.  Unfortunately, the SGM Siebold type of leaders are becoming fewer and further between, and the senior NCOs we wind up with leave a lot to be desired.  The 29th lost a great leader thanks to the petty machinations of one insecure jerk.  I hope they know that.

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