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FLORIDA NATIONAL GUARD MISTRUSTS VOLUNTEER

"MILITIA" GROUP -- "We have concerns about personnel

in military uniform gaining access to operations...What

they are doing is creating an organized private militia."

 

 

Story here... http://www.theledger.com
/article/20070702/NEWS/7
07020357/1004

Story below:

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National Guard Mistrusts Volunteer Military

Private group could be mistaken for real soldiers in a crisis, officials say

By ANNA SCOTT
New York Times Regional Media Group

They wear camouflage head to toe and call each other by military rank.

Their skills include traffic control, search and rescue, first aid.

All they want is to help their fellow Floridians when a hurricane hits.

But they are not a real army.

And the real one wants them to stay far, far away.

Since forming five years ago, the Florida Guard Association, a nonprofit with about 100 members, has been locked in battle with the Florida National Guard, which fears the volunteers will be mistaken for real authorities in a time of crisis.

While the volunteers have each shelled out about $400 for army tents and enough supplies to last them two weeks on site after a hurricane, the Florida National Guard has warned local governments not to give them any duties, particularly in traffic control or security, when they show up.

"What they are doing is creating an organized private militia," said Jon Myatt, public information director for the Florida Department of Military Affairs. "We have concerns about personnel in military uniform gaining access to operations in the fast pace of the moment during a crisis and being allowed to have authority to do things they wouldn't normally be allowed to do."

The volunteers, who do not carry guns, say they plan to call the bluff and show up anyway.

"The National Guard says, 'We're the only game in town, we set the rules and no one can step into our playground,'" said Lt. Col. Robert Lynn, a member of the Florida Guard Association and former U.S. Marine.

"When you see trees uprooted, people homeless, people will take help even from the devil if it comes. It's no time to worry about these specifics."

Florida does not have a state defense force to make use of such militarily-inclined volunteers.

After the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, membership in state volunteer armies increased from 7,000 to 12,000 around the country. Now more than 20 states have official civilian armies to serve as backup for the National Guard while troops are deployed.

Some Florida lawmakers and anti-war groups have raised questions about the Florida National Guard's preparedness for hurricanes because troops and supplies have been sent overseas. But the National Guard says it has enough troops and that organizing a volunteer army would cost too much and take at least six months.

Plus, they don't trust them.

Myatt, who said he first encountered the volunteers working at a command center in Lakeland a few years ago, said they only created problems.

"Their name alone and the type of unform they had led to confusion," Myatt said. "We got calls from emergency managers asking, 'Who are these people?'"

Not a "fairytale game"

Col. James Pollock pours himself a soda after work at the American Legion Post in Pasco County. His hat says, "I just look crazy."

He is not really a colonel.

Pollock left the U.S. Army almost as soon as he joined, when he was 27, having suffered a muscle injury during training.

Now 57, and a road surveyor, Pollock is the commander of the 1st Brigade of the 2nd Battalion of the Florida Guard Association. There is one other battalion, located at the group' s state headquarters in Port St. Lucie.

Since their formation in 2002, the volunteer group has lobbied to become a backup force for the Florida National Guard.

The last time the state of Florida had an official state defense force was during World War II.

And if the governor did order formation of a state defense force, state law says it must be recruited through the National Guard, not an already existing group such as the Florida Guard Association.

Their lack of official status is a constant heartache.

The volunteers are sometimes perceived as "wannabe soldiers," Pollock said, because they wear a uniform and assign each other military ranks based sometimes only on life experience.

In the Florida Guard Association, having a four-year college degree is the equivalent of being a captain, for example.

"This isn't some little fairytale game we're playing," Pollock said. "This is serious."

The average age for Florida Guard volunteers is between 45 and 50, although several middle school students joined recently. Of the adults, all but a handful are former or retired military.

In 2005, the volunteers helped in the search for Jessica Lundsford, a 9-year-old who was murdered after being abducted from her home in Homasassa.

When an emergency is not imminent, they march in parades and volunteer at local air shows and festivals.

"The tendency is to think you're getting Rambo," said Col. Byers Coleman, executive director of the State Guard Association of the United States, and a member of the Georgia state guard.

"But just look at the retired people and former military people down there. With minimum guidance and effort, think of all the work that can be done."

Still, he thought the group should lay off the military ranks unless they become an official state army.

"Everybody wants to be a colonel. That's what happens."

"Overwhelming desire to help"

While there are about 100 members on the books, fewer than half actively participate in meetings and trainings, said founder Brig. Gen. Edward Weise or Port St. Lucie, a former member of the New York state guard.

Without becoming an official force, like the one in New York, recruitment prospects are dim. "As far as I'm concerned, I've had enough of trying," Weise said. "It just falls on deaf ears."

But Pollock, who said he will probably succeed Weise when he retires, plans to work for a revival.

For the past month, his 2nd Battalion has been meeting every Saturday at a Pasco County flea market to attract new recruits.

Pollock said his wife, also a member, thought meeting at the flea market would "cheapen it." But so far the new venue has netted 10 more members.

"In times of emergency everyone's needed," Pollock said. "It could be severe weather or a terrorist attack. We need people dedicated to serving their community and their state."

Myatt offered a different explanation.

"They think emergency mangement is glamorous," Myatt said. "Militias want to be part of that. Citizens deserve to have people making decisons who have the training, not citizens who aren't legally accountable for their decisions."

The volunteers do not like to be called a "militia" because it makes them sound like "a nut group," Pollock said. A background check is required for membership.

Their uniforms are similar to the National Guard uniform, but the National Guard wears a slightly different camoflauge print and the Florida Guard Association wears colorful patches.

Wayne Sallade, the Charlotte County Emergency Management Director, said he can see how the volunteers could cause confusion.

"There is an overwhelming desire to help, but you can create more problems than you solve if you go in unaffiliated and not understanding the scenario," Sallade said. "But there's no law against wearing fatigues."

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Larry Scott  --