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State of the SFMC, July 2011
Sunday, 03 July 2011 13:06
Greetings once again to all Marines

Unlike some of my fellow staff members, I come to you from a very well-lit office with sunlight streaming through the window and the ambiance of an office surroundings that best befit my billet.  I simply cannot understand why some of the other GS staff are reporting from booths, bars, dark,damp corners, or quarters that are often beset by gremlins  and such like (which more often than not will turn out to be Cardassian Voles that the SFMC SGM has been rearing for illegal Vole racing pursuits..) We provide suitable quarters for all GS staff so I am at a loss to explain. As to this month's report, I find myself having some difficulty in gathering enough material of substance with which to forward, as this last period has been very steady in all departments. Most stations have been going about their business and conducting their usual activities with minimum fuss and maximum effort.


Of course out 'there' in the Brigades, the world has been a flurry of activity with many Annual Musters being reported and the consequences and pleasing results of associated Brigade awards being issued. Nothing gives me more personal pleasure than to read of the these awards and if I am fortunate enough, to be able to read the citations attached. No matter what anyone says, it is great that we take so much pleasure from rewarding our fellow marines for a job well done - and this is exactly as it should be.

So on that note, I come to the Honor Awards - calls for nominations to which, have recently been posted by the DepDant. This is a time of the year that I have always taken great interest with over the last several years that I have been a member of the GS, and this year will be no different. I take genuine pleasure in working my way through these nominations and learning more not only of the men and women who have achieved so well in a year that they are presented for nomination, but also of gaining a better insight to the Units, Battalions and Brigades from whence these marines come. It is this 'reading between the lines' that every marine commander should be doing as it helps give a much better understanding of the men and women who make up the Corps and helps lead us to intelligent and informed decision-making processes on much more than awards only. And here endeth that lecture ...

But for us in the GS, this last month has also been one of a bit of review of some of the projects we have either had placed before us for consideration, or of programs and plans we have generated 'in house'. While there are no positive conclusions to these as yet, I can assure you that we are indeed working through a few complex ideas that are either at formative stage or almost ready for presentation - with others waiting in the wings to be put forward for discussion. We continue to receive ideas and suggestions from marines and this is great. Please keep this up because I assure you, every GS Command is charged with the responsibility of reviewing these presentations and putting them forward for discussion. This is how we grow and expand and also how we can keep the GS on track in ensuring we meet the needs and wants of our members. So no matter what your idea or suggestion might be, be certain that we wish to hear it.

In my last report I emphasised the concerns we have for some staff vacancies we have currently. Most critical of these are those within Information Command and while I include comment again here as a spur/reminder, I would report that these positions are so important to the SFMC that we will need to look to taking "other measures" if these posts cannot be filled soon. I would hope that within a short time, CO InfoCom would be able to announce appointments so if any marine reading this has any form of interest in working in this crucially important Command of the SFMC, I would suggest they get in touch with CO InfoCom at their earliest opportunity. Are we getting desperate? We certainly are......much work needs to be done and while these posts remain empty, the Corps loses out on progress and future development.

And while such reporting would normally come from Forces Command, I wish to comment that as of the time of writing this, the Corps member's numbers stands at 1,029 marines - 524 Active, 505 Reserve - which means we continue to maintain above that magic "one thousand member mark".  I don't know what anyone else thinks, but to me this is fantastic as it shows that the SFMC continues to be of an attraction to STARFLEET International members and that members appear to be well satisfied that their membership to the SFMC is meeting their needs.
Expect to see more on this subject in the future

I close with note of support and congratulation to all those Marines who will have nominations placed for any of the Honor Awards. I wish each of you success with your nomination and acknowledgment of appreciation to your efforts that bought you to be nominated in first place. Each of these Marines serve as examples to us all on how we should put our best foot forward and in doing so, achieve recognition. Good luck to each and every one of you.

--
BGN Bruce O'Brien
Commandant, STARFLEET Marine Corps
As the Commandant of this great Corps, it will be my intention to ensure that the needs and desires of our Marines can be met wherever possible. To do this, I have surrounded myself with a team of people whom I believe will also be able to efficiently support and evidence this objective.  We will be looking to create new initiatives where we can; add further value to your membership wherever possible; provide an open and effective means of communication both up and down the CoC; and present a standard of professional service that as SFMC leaders, will set an example for all others to follow. To achieve this, we will need help, support (and to have earned) the trust of each and every member of the Corps - and I assure you that your input will always be well received and recognized and used wherever possible.

So often, we all get a lot of lip service when it comes to hearing from others what they are "going to do for us". This is so true in our real lives where we are daily subjected to either misinformation, negativity, mistrust or a host of other stress-creating factors and factions. But here in the SFMC, we should try hard to not be affected by the outside influences of 'Real Life' and we should all instead be given best chance to make the most of our role playing in an environment full of friendship, interest, inter-activity and as much fun as you can have without being arrested. And so to help keep this framework intact and to further advance the work done by those great people who went before us, this GS has to be as sharp as it can be in everything that it does.

We certainly will be here to listen to you and your ideas and we certainly will want to add value to your membership of the Corps with our own ideas and programs that will be injected over time. Don't be shy in communicating with us because we sure won't be in talking to you...