An Update on LtCol Scheller

 

Below is a link to his most recent YouTube video.  Absolutely nothing about it surprises me, from his request that people who want to set up GoFundMes on his behalf donate instead to the families of the thirteen servicemen and women who died in Afghanistan this week, to his concern (sounds like) that his wife may not be down for this particular struggle.

And especially not his reaction to one of his early commanding officer’s remarks on his original Facebook post, LtCol Hobbs (not sure of the spelling–of Hobbs–pretty sure I got the LtCol part right).  As Scheller tells it, LtCol Hobbs once stood up for something he thought was right, but did it within the system, and yet ended up relieved of his command and “shuffled out the door without really effecting any change.”  I’m guessing that’s a lesson that Scheller stored in his memory banks forever.

Although it seems that LtCol Scheller disagrees with Hobbs on many things, he still says, “Sir, I love you like a father,” and he goes on to say that Hobbs, on (I think it was LinkedIn) said yesterday “If Stuart Scheller was honorable, he would resign his commission.”

Boom.

I’ve been led to believe that the worst thing that a senior officer in the USMC can say to the person under his command is “I am disappointed in you.”

And it looks to me that LtCol Scheller took Hobbs’s remark in that vein.

Accordingly, in this video, he resigns his commission (informally), and leaves the Corps.  Hard not to take that as a response designed to prove his honor to his former CO. It remains to be seen if he carries through.

I hope he can hold it together, or that he has people in his life who can keep him on an even keel. I’ve read hundreds of the tributes on his Facebook post, and if even half of the men and women who claim to have served under his command are the real deal, this is a very good Marine.  And it would be a shame to waste him.

I know, from personal experience (several of them, if anyone’s curious) that the trauma of war affects those involved in it in life-changing ways.  And that it is our own responsibility to respond rationally and supportively to the challenges every single one of them faces–without either drooling and pointless affirmation or vituperative and counterproductive condemnation.

Lord.  I believe this man is right. And although (and he wouldn’t be the first) he may have jumbled the order of “Ready. Aim. Fire,” in this instance, I wish him the very best, and all the help and support he needs.

.

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  1. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in.  And he walked away.

    • #1
  2. Instugator Thatcher
    Instugator
    @Instugator

    Kozak (View Comment):
    The Lt Col had 17 years in.  And he walked away.

    I find that decision to be foolish. Nothing he said in the first video was “actionable” in my humble opinion. But I respect his choice. 

    Nothing that former mentor said requires this man to resign. It is ridiculous.

    God bless you brother. 

    • #2
  3. She Member
    She
    @She

    Instugator (View Comment):

    Kozak (View Comment):
    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    I find that decision to be foolish. Nothing he said in the first video was “actionable” in my humble opinion. But I respect his choice.

    Nothing that former mentor said requires this man to resign. It is ridiculous.

    Yeah.  It may have been emotional and foolish (if you’re talking about the “resigning his commission” business).  Sometimes, though, humans react on other bases than the strictly rational.  Sometimes, the good opinion of a person we’ve regarded for a large part of our lives as a mentor assumes a weight which is (perhaps) beyond that which it should.

    God bless you brother.

    God bless them all. ♥

     

    • #3
  4. Instugator Thatcher
    Instugator
    @Instugator

    I would like to clarify what I said.

    The model I am thinking of that this man is in (and not because what he said about his spouse’s 72 hour decision) but in a general way is that he has just been informed that he is getting a divorce from the Marine Corps.

    So he is starting the stages of grief (the way I was taught, when I went through this was Shock, Denial, Bargaining, Anger, and Acceptance)

    Shock – Denial – Bargaining is a death spiral and it results in giving away far more than is warranted.

    What you see in the video is a form of bargaining and it is the actions of a man who needs some time to let things settle and not give away the farm to his soon to be ex-spouse (the Marine Corps) – an organization that will not care, one way or the other.

    The guy wants his pain to be over and is just being pummeled with more. If I were his fellow Marine and friend, I would be concerned about him hurting himself – this is manic behavior and tremendously unhealthy.  God Bless you LtCol Scheller, please please Lord, send the guy some help.

    In my circumstance I had a great lawyer and I was willing to accept his counsel. My lawyer threatened to walk if I didn’t play nice and God gave me the wisdom to see his point. He and worked really hard to keep me on an even keel and to accept the problem that existed and not try to resolve the ones I couldn’t.

    This guy seems to be alone and that is a shameful thing. Where are his buddies?

    • #4
  5. She Member
    She
    @She

    Instugator (View Comment):
    This guy seems to be alone and that is a shameful thing. Where are his buddies?

    Oh, I agree.  That’s why I posted it.

    • #5
  6. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson
    • #6
  7. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Kozak (View Comment):

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    This and other similar factors are why principle is frequently abandoned. As we can clearly see in today’s environment, many factors are used as cudgels in threatening individuals in their ability to earn a living and provide for their families. The regulatory and licensing processes are used this way in addition to retirement and health benefits.It reaches self-employed as well as those working for large organizations. It has been getting worse for years now. Is  it a surprise at all that those in highly responsible bureaucratic posts look the other way when their political bosses engage in illegal acts? They relinquish their moral principles to retain their ability to support themselves and their families. Now we see it in the armed services.

    • #7
  8. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):

    Kozak (View Comment):

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    This and other similar factors are why principle is frequently abandoned. As we can clearly see in today’s environment, many factors are used as cudgels in threatening individuals in their ability to earn a living and provide for their families. The regulatory and licensing processes are used this way in addition to retirement and health benefits.It reaches self-employed as well as those working for large organizations. It has been getting worse for years now. Is it a surprise at all that those in highly responsible bureaucratic posts look the other way when their political bosses engage in illegal acts? They relinquish their moral principles to retain their ability to support themselves and their families. Now we see it in the armed services.

    It may be one reason the left hates defined-contribution pension plans. 

    • #8
  9. Western Chauvinist Member
    Western Chauvinist
    @WesternChauvinist

    What worries me is that he seems to have threatened the Deep State. If President Donald Trump can’t get away with that, what’s going to happen to a lowly ex-Marine? 

    • #9
  10. She Member
    She
    @She

    Western Chauvinist (View Comment):

    What worries me is that he seems to have threatened the Deep State. If President Donald Trump can’t get away with that, what’s going to happen to a lowly ex-Marine?

    Yep.  Unfortunately, the desperate are sometimes egged on by the idiotic, and that takes them over the edge.  That’s why I hope and pray that LtCol Scheller and others who I believe are righteous in their indignation, can learn to trust those who actually have their best interests at heart. 

    • #10
  11. Gary Robbins Member
    Gary Robbins
    @GaryRobbins

    I wish him well.  Thank you for keeping us up to date.  I hope that there is a vehicle for him to complete his last 3 years of service for his pension.

    • #11
  12. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    Instugator (View Comment):
    This guy seems to be alone and that is a shameful thing. Where are his buddies?

    They’ve been warned by DOD. No criticism of Xi Biden will be tolerated.

    • #12
  13. CACrabtree Coolidge
    CACrabtree
    @CACrabtree

    Western Chauvinist (View Comment):

    What worries me is that he seems to have threatened the Deep State. If President Donald Trump can’t get away with that, what’s going to happen to a lowly ex-Marine?

    I believe some of the Marines here at Ricochet would remind you that there is no such thing as an ex-Marine.

    (As a Doggie and then Wing-Wiper, I didn’t think it was my place to mention this.)

    • #13
  14. CACrabtree Coolidge
    CACrabtree
    @CACrabtree

    Kozak (View Comment):

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    I don’t know if there was an option for him to finish out his service in the Reserves or not but it’s absolute B.S. that it played out this way.  One of the bennies of getting one’s 20 years in is the lifetime medical care for both the member and the spouse.  Hate to see it; Really hate to see it.

    • #14
  15. Chuck Coolidge
    Chuck
    @Chuckles

    Kozak (View Comment):

    Instugator (View Comment):
    This guy seems to be alone and that is a shameful thing. Where are his buddies?

    They’ve been warned by DOD. No criticism of Xi Biden will be tolerated.

    Coincidentally, I’m reading Douglas Wilson’s “Father Hunger”.

    Quoting from the book:

    The modern military has become quite a conflicted place – demanding courage of its members in action while simultaneously demanding that these same people be craven cowards when it comes to their own careers.  It is required of them that they deny the obvious in order to remain eligible for promotion.

    LtCol Scheller finds himself right there.

    • #15
  16. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    • #16
  17. CACrabtree Coolidge
    CACrabtree
    @CACrabtree

    Annefy (View Comment):

    Hmmm.  “Appropriate action”.  It’ll be interesting to see what that amounts to.  I can’t imagine they have too much “concern over his mental health”.

    • #17
  18. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    CACrabtree (View Comment):
    “concern over his mental health”.

    Brings back memories of the days of Soviet dissidents. 

    • #18
  19. She Member
    She
    @She

    Chuck (View Comment):

    Coincidentally, I’m reading Douglas Wilson’s “Father Hunger”.

    Quoting from the book:

    The modern military has become quite a conflicted place – demanding courage of its members in action while simultaneously demanding that these same people be craven cowards when it comes to their own careers.  It is required of them that they deny the obvious in order to remain eligible for promotion.

    Hm.  Sounds a lot like the teachers’ unions.

    • #19
  20. She Member
    She
    @She

    Annefy (View Comment):

    I suppose it’s too much to hope that they’re doing this by firing a few people in the upward chain.

    • #20
  21. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    CACrabtree (View Comment):
    “concern over his mental health”.

    Brings back memories of the days of Soviet dissidents.

    That’s what came to my mind as well. Son #2 is on Reddit. Things are not good. There are a lot of prior Marines out there. And they are NOT happy. 

    • #21
  22. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    She (View Comment):

    Annefy (View Comment):

    I suppose it’s too much to hope that they’re doing this by firing a few people in the upward chain.

    Not a chance 

    • #22
  23. Annefy Member
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    I think it’s time we all woke up to the reality we’re living in. This young man spoke out against the command, was removed, then resigned his commission. Are they done with him? Nope. They won’t be done til they’ve destroyed his life, and the lives of his family. 

    I believe there are doctors in the UK who have also been removed from their duties for “mental health” reasons. Seems they didn’t  follow the iron clad protocol and actually tried to help some of their patients 

    • #23
  24. CACrabtree Coolidge
    CACrabtree
    @CACrabtree

    Annefy (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):

    Annefy (View Comment):

    I suppose it’s too much to hope that they’re doing this by firing a few people in the upward chain.

    Not a chance

    I suspect that Senior Leadership is depending on the MSM to squash the story (and they’ll be happy to).  Where it goes from there, I don’t know.

    • #24
  25. Clifford A. Brown Member
    Clifford A. Brown
    @CliffordBrown

    CACrabtree (View Comment):

    Kozak (View Comment):

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    I don’t know if there was an option for him to finish out his service in the Reserves or not but it’s absolute B.S. that it played out this way. One of the bennies of getting one’s 20 years in is the lifetime medical care for both the member and the spouse. Hate to see it; Really hate to see it.

    You have to make 18 years to get into safe-harbor, where you must be offered the opportunity to complete 20 years. Since he entered service in 2005, and since you can serve a maximum of 28 years commissioned service if you are a LtCol, then he had no danger of being administratively washed out by a promotion board of any sort. He would have to have been attacked with the threat of a court martial, which would really not go over well politically.

    However, the brass can and will exile him to the worst sh*t details available, burying him in a windowless basement with trivial tasks or detailing him to Space Force at Clear Space Force Base, Alaska, or Thule Air Base, Greenland. The word will be out to find a way to bust him out of the military shy of 18 years, preferably for violating a diversity training/ struggle session requirement, so they can smear him in the civilian job market.

    • #25
  26. Instugator Thatcher
    Instugator
    @Instugator

    CACrabtree (View Comment):
    “Appropriate action”.  It’ll be interesting to see what that amounts to.  I can’t imagine they have too much “concern over his mental health”.

    In all seriousness the military has a suicide problem. That his immediate leadership got him help is actually encouraging, given the indicators I saw in his video above. 

    God bless you, LtCol Scheller.

    • #26
  27. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Kozak (View Comment):

    To those of you who are unaware of how a military pension works, you do a minimum of twenty, or you walk away with nothing.

    The Lt Col had 17 years in. And he walked away.

    I don’t know what it is now, but when I was in the service, what you got when you retired with twenty years was 50% of your basic pay – not enough to fully retire unless you were in the upper officer ranks.  Fortunately, retired military usually don’t have a problem getting jobs due to their experience, and probably connections.

    Yes, the guy is walking away with nothing, although I believe the military is now investing in the Thrift Savings Plan, so he may have something . . .

    • #27
  28. Instugator Thatcher
    Instugator
    @Instugator

    Stad (View Comment):
    Yes, the guy is walking away with nothing, although I believe the military is now investing in the Thiift Savings Plan, so he may have something . . .

    We have been able to invest in TSP for about 20 years or so. When the retirement system was “updated” (read “reduced”) in 2018 TSP became a mandatory part of your retirement. So the LtCol was grandfathered in under the old (read “better”) system, although there was no matching funds presented.

    Old (“better”) system – 50% of highest 3 year average base pay at 20 years +2.5%/year above 20. Plus whatever contributions you made to TSP.

    New (“worse”) system – 40% of highest 3 year average base pay at 20 years +2.5%/year above 20. Plus a government contribution of 1% + match (the end result being if you put in 5%, gov puts in 5%). However, unless you specify otherwise, your contributions go to the G Fund currently paying a lofty 1.250%.

    According to the team that put the new system together, IF you invest the 5% and get a 7% annual rate of return, you will be the proud owner of the same quantity of cash when you get to age 60. Again assuming you get a 7% rate of return annually for your entire 20 year career.

    Before then, the new system pays less.

    • #28
  29. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Instugator (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):
    Yes, the guy is walking away with nothing, although I believe the military is now investing in the Thiift Savings Plan, so he may have something . . .

    We have been able to invest in TSP for about 20 years or so. When the retirement system was “updated” (read “reduced”) in 2018 TSP became a mandatory part of your retirement. So the LtCol was grandfathered in under the old (read “better”) system, although there was no matching funds presented.

    Old (“better”) system – 50% of highest 3 year average base pay at 20 years +2.5%/year above 20. Plus whatever contributions you made to TSP.

    New (“worse”) system – 40% of highest 3 year average base pay at 20 years +2.5%/year above 20. Plus a government contribution of 1% + match (the end result being if you put in 5%, gov puts in 5%). However, unless you specify otherwise, your contributions go to the G Fund currently paying a lofty 1.250%.

    According to the team that put the new system together, IF you invest the 5% and get a 7% annual rate of return, you will be the proud owner of the same quantity of cash when you get to age 60. Again assuming you get a 7% rate of return annually for your entire 20 year career.

    Before then, the new system pays less.

    Ahh, I now remember the extra 2.5% per year over 20 years – but not everyone was allowed to go past 20.  As for going over 30 years, I only know of Hyman Rickover and Grace Hopper (both Navy), both pioneers . . .

    • #29
  30. Instugator Thatcher
    Instugator
    @Instugator

    Stad (View Comment):
    As for going over 30 years, I only know of Hyman Rickover and Grace Hopper (both Navy), both pioneers . . .

    Lots go over 30 now. Plus retirement is not capped at 75% so, conceivably you can get to 100% base pay.

    • #30
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