New dosimeters arrive

by Richard J. Clemenson
It lingers in the air like an airborne
death trap waiting for an unwary
victim. The effem of its lethal wrath are
unmistakably bleak. First comes the
sickness, usually accompanied by vo
miting. Then gradually, agonizingly, it
slips the casualty into a permanent
sleep.
What is this demonic mist floating
about?
It's radiation which has been emited
by a nuclear attack thrust upon the
AUied Force. The illness is radiation
sickness and it's victims are soldiers in
combat.
But is there something the soldiers
can do to prevent the sickness or merely

limit it's effects? Yes. It's called a

DT236/PDR7S Radiac Detector or, in
laymans terms, a Dosimeter "wrist
waich.
2nd Lt. Kevin Napier, assistant command chemical officer said "The Dosimeter isn't actually a watch per sc. It
serves no purpose to the soldier as far as
time is concerned. It is a band which is
suapped to the wrist similar to a watch.
Attached to the band is a tiny compart
ment which holds litmus paper.
Napier added, "When exposed to a
radioactive atmosphere, the paper
darkens. The soldier then takes the
watch back to his unit where it is fed
into a computer which reads off how
much radiation is in the environment.
The Dosimeter has no medicinal
purpose. What it allows qualified per-

llluatmlon by Shawna Frink

sonncl to do, is monitor how much ra

diation is in the air so they can react
accordingly.
In addition to the watch and the
computer, the ensemble is adorned with
a carrying case for the computer and
two power cables.
For some that may sound like quite a
load to hold. Bur in actuality, a soldier
has only to worry abou1 the "watch".
The "watch" is lightweight and because
of its simplicity saves the soldier time.
When not strapped to the soldiers wrist,
it may be placed in his Individual Chemical Defense Equipment (ICDE) bag.
The Dosimeter isn't the first of its
kind. In fact, the DT236 Detectors arc
an upgrade of the IM-~3 and IM-H7
Dosimeters which were less effective
and more cumbersome. The fact that
the previous models were strapped to
the soldiers side or hand-held caused
many of the problems that occurred.
The Command holds a unique honor
in being the first and only unit in the
Army that is in possesion of the n=
Dosimeters. The Command has high
priority for receiving nuclear, biological

and chemical detection equipment since

our mission makes us a target. The new
Dosimeters arrived in June and arc being distributed throughout the Command gradually.
According to Napier, not every
soldier will be furnished with a dosimeter. "There will be a total of 800 "watches', along with 55 Radiac Detectors
issued," he said.
An additional IO percent of the
"watches will be issued to the units in
case of loss or damage and training
purposes. Every holder of a "watch"
will mark the back of it with his or her
name and social security number in case
of loss.
"To insure that all Dosimeters arc
working at peak efficiency, semjannual
checks will be made," Napier said.
Sounds simple doesn't it? A tiny plastic compartment which appears to be a
watch at fim but is actually the latest in
Army technology. Yet its simplicity is
its alluring quality. By not putting extra
pressure on the soldier, it frees him to
accomplish his mission in a more cffi.
cicnt manner.

lllllltmlon by SNWn1 Frink

Update FYI
BLACKMARKETING
Herc you are, allowed all these ra
tions and yet every month you have unused portions going to waste. Why not
bur up the rest of your rations of alcoho and cigarettes and sell them? STOP!
That's black.marketing!
Blackmarkcting is the illegal transfer
or possession of tax and duty-free
goods for personal gain. Giving away
rationed items to pay for rent or other
debts, selling them for profit 10 some-

oncwhoisn'tamemberofthcU.S. forces, or even selling them to other U.~.

personnel so that they exceed their
monthly ration arc all examples of
black.marketing.
.

marks you cam are just not worth it.

Your local 42nd MP Group customs
office has more details. They can be
reached at ETS 42S-376S, or come by
our office in the basement of BLDG
306,
Cooke Barracks Housing Arca.
You can only give 2> cigarettes or
one bottle of alcohol (not to exceed 1.2
liters) to a local national as a one-time
HIV testing
gift. Any more than this is illegal transSoldiers must update their Human
fer. 42nd MP G roup and German
Customs investigators are constantly on Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) test
the lookout for this kind of tranSac during their birth month if it has been
more than one year since the last test
tion.
date or if there is no test date in the
Don't risk a tax demand from Standard Installation or Division PerGerman Customs, a court-martial and sonnel System (SJDPERS) HIV test
losing your ration privileges! The few data field.

Commanders will notify their soldiers to update their HIV test. Soldiers
arc requiTed to report to the nearest medical treatment facility with their medical records and AE Form 600~1 IDA-R
(femp) (HIV Test Instructions Card).
AE Form 600- IIDA-R (Temp),
when authenticated by the laboratory,
can be used by the commander as proof
of testing until DA Form 5668 (HIV
Screening Test Results) is mailed to the
soldier from the laboratory. Soldiers
will keep AE Form 600- IIDA-R
(fcmp) as proof that they have submitted blood for screening.

Soldiers inhabit historical site

by Anthony J.C. Hosc:h
There arc many historical places a
soldier can visit while stationed overseas. What most soldiers don't realize is
they work and tnin everday in places of
great historical importance.
In fact, Hardt Kaseme, located in
Schwabisch Gmiind, is one of those places.
During the 1930's, the increase in
military strength of the German anny
in Schwabiscli Gmiind caused great
concern amongthepeoplc,saidDr. Klaus
J. Herrmann, director of the archives of
Schwlibisch Gmiind.
According to Herrmann, the controversy came about when the commander
of me German anny ordered the con
struction of another kaurnc to be built
somewhere in or near Schw:ibisch
Gmiind to supplement the existing Bismarck Kaserne.
Even though Bismarck Kaseme was
enlarged to accomodatc the extra
German tr00ps, the German anny still
wasn't satisfied. They wanted another
kaseme to house an artillery unit in an
advantageous location that would be
both beneficial to the people as well as
the German army," HemmlM said.
Aher some deliberation, an agreement between the people of Scbwlibisch
Gmiind, the city council and the
German anny was reached when,
according to Herrmann they decided on
the area of 'Hardt' (the name of an entire hill mass southeast of the city on

the road to Oberbemingcn).

Although platU for the nnv kaseme
were submitted and the appropriate
papers sign~ April 26, 1936, the actual
building didn't begin until October
1936. Conmuc:tion for the nnv kaseme
took one year to complete at a cost of
4.4 million reichs marks, said Herr-

mann.
Ahcr it's completion, the new kascme was named Adolf Hider K.ascrne.
The fim unit to occupy Hider Kascmc was the 2nd Battalion, 77th ArtiJ.
lcry Regiment, a motorized German
unit with light field howitzers.
The outbreak of the second World
War was n.earing when the units stationed at the Adolf Hitler K.aserne were
being moved to various war fronts.
During the war, Hilter Kaserne was
occupied by different units, most were Adolf HIiier Ka.- built and occupied by a.man Almy forcee before Workl
W II. In 1951, Alnerlcmn troope fflOV9d In Md renemed It Herdt ~ German army reserve units.
war
(POW}
camp
and
as
a collect.ion
. H~rrm~ said, the r~fugees that
Herrmann said, that in addition to
being used by reserve units, Hitler Ka- point for refugees, which wu operated d1dn I qualify f<:>r passage into another
seme was :i.lso an imponant fuel dump by the United Nations Refugee Relief country settled in Germany .
that supplied gasoline to the frontline Administration (UNRRA).
In 19St, American troops occupied
German troops.
By the end of the second World War, the kaserne and renamed the kaserne
Because of the advancing allied forces all the refugees not 100 old or sick were Hardt Kasernc.
in the spring of 194S, a battalion of re- evacuated.
Hardt Kaseme was occupied by varserve officer candidates later moved into
Herrmann said, "the evacuation of ious American troops like the 35th
tbe Hitler Kueme from Kolmar, the refugees in the Hitler Kueme was a Field Artillery Group, which moved
France.
slow process. There were many compli- into the kaseme Nov. 7, 1951. They
Due to the approaching American cations in getting entJ)' permits for were later replaced by the S6th Field
troops toward Schwabisch Gmiind, the those who wanted to return to their ho- Artillery Group, in April of 1963.
German officer candidates had to pack mes in eastern-block or cummunist
Since September 1970, Hardt Kascmc
their bags once again and retreat to an- countries.
bas been under the command of 1he
other location, according 10 Herrmann.
Those wbo wanted to go to the Unit- S6th Field Anillery Brigade, which heAt the close of the war, Hitler Ka- ed States had to undergo a thorough came 56th F.A. Command (PERSHserne was being used as a prisoner of screening, according 10 Herrmann.
ING) in January 1986.

Motor specialist shows sergeant's skills

by Bob Rubinosky
Grooming promising young soldiers to be
noncommissioned officers (NCO's) is the responsibility of leaders and tbe key to ensuring a strong
army.
Spec. Richard Walker, a light wheel vehicle mechanic./recovery specialist for HSB 1st Battalion, 9th FA,
is about to leave Pershing's Finest and become not
just a sergeant, but an NCO for his new stateside
unit.
Walker explained the difference: If you're good at
your job and that's all, you're a sergeant. To be an
NCO you have to be proficient at your job, knowledgea.ble in basic soldiering, able 10 take care of your
soldiers, and most imponant of all, you have to teach
your soldiers to be future leaders.
When the Shanksville Pa. native first joined the
Army, his JOal was to be an E-4 promotable or an
E-5 after has first tour. He's reached that level, but
Walker admits, "I didn't really think about what it
would be like to be a leader back then.
According to Walker his molding to be a leader
started as soon as he was assigned to 1-9's battalion
maintenance shop.
Ml had just came out of advanced individual training:, fresh off the block, and Chief (CW02} Kovack

(battalion maintenance officer at the time) took me

under his wing and formed me the way he thought a
mechanic should ope~te. My mechanical skills - how
I troubleshoot - I learned it all from him. He was a
good teacher, like a mentor for all of us at BMO."

If a vehicle came into the shop wit h an unusual

problem, he would look at it and figure it out in what
seemed to be 10 minutes. He would then assign two
mechanics 10 the vehicle, a new one, usually me, and
an experienced one and give us a day to troubleshoot
it with tbe proper manuals."
"Then the next morning, if we hadn't located the
problem, he'd show us where we went wrong in the
troubleshooting flowchart. He ilso showed us how
to take that extra step to verify the result.
As Walker's expertise grew, he was eventually asked to come to HSB's motor pool to help tnin an influx of new mechanics.

In time HSB motor pool was again shon on

mechanics, but this time they were in need of .a shop
foreman - an E-5 slot.
Walker was choosen to temporarily fill in. He was
the best choice according to coworker Spec. Michael
E. Kreher.
He was one of the hardest workers I've seen around here," Kreher said. He was always the Jut
one out of his overalls. We respected him for his

mechanical ability and his take charge attitude in the

absence of the shop foreman.
For seven months as shop foreman, Walker had 10
organize the work flow for the mechanics that had
been his peers. He was expected 10 help them with
their personal as well as job related problems.
Although Walker thought he had done a good job,
be wasn't convinced until he sat down with his coworkers after his leadership stint and asked them to
assess his job perionnance.
"He was always fair in his decisionst Kreher said.
"He divided up the work evenly among the mechan-

ics.
"Even though my speciality is electrical problems,

if we had time, he would assjgn other mechanics to

work on an electrical problem to better their knowledge and assign me to a (physically} harder and
dinier job."
Although the shop won the S6th FA Command's
Quanerly Maintenance Award during his shop foreman days, Walker said that his co-workers respect
and approving remarks were his best reward.
Passing the E-5 board and attending Primary Leadership Development Course were the next steps in
polishing this future leader's potential.
Walker's now ready 10 leave Pershing as solid
NCO material. It's our loss, but it's the Anny's gain.