Wear of CAP World War II Aviation Badge authorized

[disamuel]

MEMORANDUM FOR ALL CAP UNIT COMMANDERS
FROM: CAP/CC
SUBJECT: Interim Change Letter
–
CAPM 39
-
1
Civil Air Patrol Uniform Manual
1.
In celebration of Civil Air Patrol's 75th anniversary, authorization is granted for an
interim change
to the Mess Dress, Cadet Semi
-
formal Dress, Service Dress, Long and Short
Sleeve Blue Shirt (Class B), and the aviator shirt uniform.
2.
During the period 01 December 2015 to 31 December 2016, those individuals who
are
authorized
to wear CAP Aviation Badge
s are authorized to wear the World War II
-
issue CAP
Aviation Badges (Pilot and Observer) in lieu of the current style of CAP Aviation Badge,
under the following provisions:
•
Only one of the World War II
-
issue CAP Aviation Badges will be worn.
•
Only one Avi
ation Badge will be worn.
•
CAP Chaplains will continue to wear the Chaplain badge above the World War II
Aviation Badge.
•
No other
occupational
badges (
Legal Officer, Health Services Officer,
Ground
Team, Incident Commander, Parachutist Badge, etc.)
will be
worn.
3.
World War II
-
issue CAP Aviation Badges (Pilot and Observer) will be worn on the
wearer's left
in the same manner as the present day Aviation Badges.
4.
Members may wear the original silver World War II
-
issue CAP Aviation Badges
or
purchase
a reproduc
tion World War II
-
issue CAP Aviation Badge available for sale from
Vanguard.

[RogueLeader]

Interesting.  I may not actually wear it, but I may buy it for the cool factor.

[Alaric]

Still too much focus on the past and not enough on the future.  Its the 75th anniversary ,yay, but so what?  I don't remember all this hoopla for the 70th,  lets focus on being a viable organization for the next 75 years and stop living in a time most current members weren't even alive for.

[kwe1009]

Still too much focus on the past and not enough on the future.  Its the 75th anniversary ,yay, but so what?  I don't remember all this hoopla for the 70th,  lets focus on being a viable organization for the next 75 years and stop living in a time most current members weren't even alive for.

Celebrating an organization's history and accomplishments at milestone years is a great way for current members to learn more about the organization's history and is a great way to recruit.  That is a big reason why the military branches also celebrate milestone years. 

[Alaric]

Still too much focus on the past and not enough on the future.  Its the 75th anniversary ,yay, but so what?  I don't remember all this hoopla for the 70th,  lets focus on being a viable organization for the next 75 years and stop living in a time most current members weren't even alive for.

Celebrating an organization's history and accomplishments at milestone years is a great way for current members to learn more about the organization's history and is a great way to recruit.  That is a big reason why the military branches also celebrate milestone years.

They celebrate them, they do not change their uniforms, spend huge amounts of resources on planning events around them.  Lets face it, we are a volunteer organization with limited resources, if we still want people in the Civil Air Patrol 25 years from now, we need to spend our resources on making sure we are ready to implement our current missions and training for future missions, not constantly talking about what we did way back when.

[LSThiker]

we need to spend our resources on making sure we are ready to implement our current missions and training for future missions, not constantly talking about what we did way back when.

That is two different departments at CAP.  I have gotten these types of emails in the past.  That my wing is focusing on the past and not enough on the future.  My response back is, that is not my fault.  If you want to know the future operations, do not ask the historian, rather ask the Wing/DO.  Ask the Wing/DO why he is not communicating the future of the wing. 

I communicate frequently with the members of my wing.  The items I publish takes the resources of only 1 or 2 people.  The time the commander spends on the history of the wing is minimal to the point of a few minute talk here and there and a signature on a memorandum.  But if I send out 100 emails and the Wing/DO only sends 1 out, it appears that the wing is only focusing on the history when in reality, less than 1% of the Wing's Staff time is spent on history.

It is not like the entire National Headquarters is saying "sorry, cannot work on that because we need to work on the history".   

[Capt Thompson]

we need to spend our resources on making sure we are ready to implement our current missions and training for future missions, not constantly talking about what we did way back when.

That is two different departments at CAP.  I have gotten these types of emails in the past.  That my wing is focusing on the past and not enough on the future.  My response back is, that is not my fault.  If you want to know the future operations, do not ask the historian, rather ask the Wing/DO.  Ask the Wing/DO why he is not communicating the future of the wing. 

I communicate frequently with the members of my wing.  The items I publish takes the resources of only 1 or 2 people.  The time the commander spends on the history of the wing is minimal to the point of a few minute talk here and there and a signature on a memorandum.  But if I send out 100 emails and the Wing/DO only sends 1 out, it appears that the wing is only focusing on the history when in reality, less than 1% of the Wing's Staff time is spent on history.

It is not like the entire National Headquarters is saying "sorry, cannot work on that because we need to work on the history".   

Truth......the historians stay quiet most of the time, but when a milestone year comes up, it's something to celebrate. From a recruiting and retention standpoint, people want to join a prestigious organization, so coming in they should know our history, our accomplishments, and how proud we are of them.

Alaric, if you're not at the celebration, waving a CAP flag and singing the CAP song, that's up to you, but don't belittle others who are proud of our organization's history, and don't belittle the historians who are doing their job and professing that proud history.

[Alaric]

we need to spend our resources on making sure we are ready to implement our current missions and training for future missions, not constantly talking about what we did way back when.

That is two different departments at CAP.  I have gotten these types of emails in the past.  That my wing is focusing on the past and not enough on the future.  My response back is, that is not my fault.  If you want to know the future operations, do not ask the historian, rather ask the Wing/DO.  Ask the Wing/DO why he is not communicating the future of the wing. 

I communicate frequently with the members of my wing.  The items I publish takes the resources of only 1 or 2 people.  The time the commander spends on the history of the wing is minimal to the point of a few minute talk here and there and a signature on a memorandum.  But if I send out 100 emails and the Wing/DO only sends 1 out, it appears that the wing is only focusing on the history when in reality, less than 1% of the Wing's Staff time is spent on history.

It is not like the entire National Headquarters is saying "sorry, cannot work on that because we need to work on the history".   

The resources are coming out of the same budget, every dollar spent by National on this Anniversary based items is a dollar not being spent on other issues, including training, AEX, etc.

[Alaric]

we need to spend our resources on making sure we are ready to implement our current missions and training for future missions, not constantly talking about what we did way back when.

That is two different departments at CAP.  I have gotten these types of emails in the past.  That my wing is focusing on the past and not enough on the future.  My response back is, that is not my fault.  If you want to know the future operations, do not ask the historian, rather ask the Wing/DO.  Ask the Wing/DO why he is not communicating the future of the wing. 

I communicate frequently with the members of my wing.  The items I publish takes the resources of only 1 or 2 people.  The time the commander spends on the history of the wing is minimal to the point of a few minute talk here and there and a signature on a memorandum.  But if I send out 100 emails and the Wing/DO only sends 1 out, it appears that the wing is only focusing on the history when in reality, less than 1% of the Wing's Staff time is spent on history.

It is not like the entire National Headquarters is saying "sorry, cannot work on that because we need to work on the history".   

Truth......the historians stay quiet most of the time, but when a milestone year comes up, it's something to celebrate. From a recruiting and retention standpoint, people want to join a prestigious organization, so coming in they should know our history, our accomplishments, and how proud we are of them.

Alaric, if you're not at the celebration, waving a CAP flag and singing the CAP song, that's up to you, but don't belittle others who are proud of our organization's history, and don't belittle the historians who are doing their job and professing that proud history.

I'm not belittling anyone, I am stating an opinion.  As a dues paying member of the organization it is both my right and responsibility to state when I think the organization is prioritizing the wrong thing.  I'll be at the 75th Conference, just like I was at the 70th, 71st and 72nd because I think the conference has worthwhile training and I can get there by car.

[Storm Chaser]

I'm all for promoting and celebrating our history and heritage, but I don't think this uniform thing is a good idea.

[LSThiker]

The resources are coming out of the same budget, every dollar spent by National on this Anniversary based items is a dollar not being spent on other issues, including training, AEX, etc.

Out of the $39.8 million it receives with ~$3 million in member dues, if I recall correctly, I think only $4,000 goes to the history.  The Chief Historian can please correct me.  Very little actually goes to the history of CAP.  I believe most of that goes to spending for the storage space for CAP items.

[Capt Thompson]

A lot of the history program is accomplished through volunteer resources. I'm sure more of the conference budget is going towards the celebration next year, but that's not money that would have gone to AEX, ES etc., it would've gone to another presentation at the conference.

[THRAWN]

I'm all for promoting and celebrating our history and heritage, but I don't think this uniform thing is a good idea.

And that's really the bottom line. Want to sell WW2 style insignia as a fund raiser? Cool. Making a temporary reg change so we can wear that insignia? Nah.

[MisterCD]

Since this idea was entirely my own doing, perhaps some context is involved.

There is a CAP re-enacting effort. This costs the membership $0.00 as it comes out of the pockets and generosity of those members who publicize and increase awareness of the CAP story at airshows and other events across the country, whether in groups or as individuals. When I took over as Chief/National Historian I opted to find out what could be provided to assist these folks and increase the potential for more involvement. Insignia was the obvious area.

Now, what did it cost to get Vanguard to reproduce the World War II insignia? No more than $20.00, entirely for the cost of mailing insignia to Vanguard and then back to the original donor. Do not worry, the cost was born out of pocket to myself and the other individual who loaned insignia to see this process through. Why Vanguard? Part of the proceeds comes back to CAP to support cadet programs and other ventures. I'm confident the $20 investment by volunteers such as myself will yield many times that in financial resources to help a cadet acquire a uniform for encampment or a wing/region obtain funds to give a training opportunity to cadets or seniors.

As for the wings, this is an entirely optional effort to celebrate the pioneers in retrospect of 75 years. If people do not wish to participate then they neither gain nor lose a thing. For those who participate it is a chance for them to individually honor and celebrate how far CAP has come, which could have been eliminated any number of times in its history. Ideally wear of the wings will result in people asking questions about them and in turn stimulate conversation in CAP, perhaps producing actions to better ourselves as we move into the next 75 years.

It is easy to throw rocks at new ideas or even optional actions to celebrate the 75th anniversary. But considering that this and a number of other projects that individual CAP historians, the National History Program, or myself have initiated at essentially zero cost to the membership, I cannot help but wonder why so much negativity. If any of this results in improved relations and new opportunities with the American public, local/state/federal government officials, law enforcement, emergency managers, or members of the U.S. military, then it will have been well worth the investment in volunteer hours.

[ZigZag911]

Vanguard web site doesn't have the WWII aviation badges listed yet.

[THRAWN]

Vanguard web site doesn't have the WWII aviation badges listed yet.

It isn't easy to find: http://www.vanguardmil.com/collections/cap-historical-insignia

[THRAWN]

For those who participate it is a chance for them to individually honor and celebrate how far CAP has come, which could have been eliminated any number of times in its history. Ideally wear of the wings will result in people asking questions about them and in turn stimulate conversation in CAP, perhaps producing actions to better ourselves as we move into the next 75 years.

We celebrate that every time we put on the uniform. Since 1994 I've never been engaged in a CAP conversation because of any of the badges or ribbons that I've worn. Maybe if we stop with the constant and never ending backslapping about "the good old days" and spend more time really setting the organization for accomplish our missions of today, we won't have to "stimulate conversation" with 60 year old insignia.

[jeders]

Who knows, maybe when the USAF is 75 years old, they'll let pilots wear WWII heritage insignia.

[SkywalkerRA]

As the PAO of my squadron, I like the idea. CAP does have a unique history, & I think it's a good idea that we remember where we've come from and honor the people who came before us.

And like other posters on this thread, I think it's also important as an organization that we know where we are going today and tomorrow and in the years ahead. But looking back and celebrating our history and looking towards the future isnt mutually exclusive.

[lordmonar]

Who knows, maybe when the USAF is 75 years old, they'll let pilots wear WWII heritage insignia.

Hap Arnold buttons?