Now this is what I am talking about

http://www.greencollarvets.org/Green_Industries.html

Turning chevron collars into green collars. We have a bunch of us vets who are hungry to continue to fight for American independence. We want this to remain a great nation. We see energy independence from the perspective of knowing first hand what the true cost is of one more gallon of middle east oil.

Special Classes for Veterans

Heard a story yesterday on NPR about schools offering freshman classes for veterans only. It was a real shock for me to make the transition. I struggled with all sorts of emotions. Ironically I found the other veterans in my classes every time. We stuck together and kept each other sane. I could have used more guidance and planning support. Had I put things together I would have done it a lot differently and I wouldn't be in debt up to my ears!

What the Marines Taught Me 1

I joined the Marines right after high school. I had no idea what I was planning to do after the Marines but at least I had 4 years to decide. I didn't even consider what I would do when I 'got out' until I had been in for almost a year. It takes a while to complete Boot Camp, then advanced training (MCT), then MOS School. I made it to 'the fleet' in March 94. Of course I had volunteered to join the company that left in April for a 6month deployment to Okinawa,Japan. The older Marines in my platoon had just come home from Somalia. They were battle tested and a tight knit group. It was hard to adjust but eventually we all got along.

They were all within a year of 'getting out'. They spoke constantly about what they planned to do, who they hoped to see, etc. That sparked my thinking. I started to realize that I really wasn't planning to make the Marines a career. There were no opportunities to take college courses nor gain any useful skills while we were in Okinawa. Furthermore, we left the island twice for short 1 month long trips into the field. This was all exciting and new. I really got into my job and dedicated myself to learning about the vehicle. Little would I know that this honed my attention to detail, project planning, preventative maintenance intervals, spare parts, service and overall requirements of maintaining/operating a complex system.

Once back in the California I became even more involved in my vehicle. I investigated failed parts, salvaged broken electrical equipment, learned engine tuning tricks and created specialized tools. I never realized how applicable these skills would become in my engineering life. So many engineers are only 'book smart', lacking the skills to work with their hands. Even less common are engineers who appreciate professional quality repairs (many will simply 'hack' together a simple solution).

I didn't start to consider my options until later.

High School

High school was a huge experience for me. I found friendships with all sorts of people. I was exposed to a range of cultures and backgrounds. Overall I began to find myself desiring balance. I wanted to be smart but didn't want studying to overshadow fun. There is so much to learn in your early teens. So many things that I just hadn't learned yet. I was good at algebra and could have learned calculus but I would have rather learned to change a head gasket, learned the blues scales or proper football tackling technique.

In my junior year I took an elective class in ecology. Our teacher was a former logger, ex-Marine and environmentalist. He taught us about the economics of ecology (long before this was a trend). I admired that he had life experiences that seemed to legitimize his views. I saw how rural conservatives listened with more interest to him versus their untrusting view of urban liberals (particularly those standard-bearers of liberality, public school teachers!). On the other hand I saw how he could persuade a crowd of those urban liberals to consider the benefits of the timber industry and their own connection to it. I knew that if I wanted people to listen to me I was going to have to break out of the mold into which I had been cast.

Then there was the machismo. Join the Marines. I could have filled in the veteran bubble on my resume with a shorter stint in the Air Force learning computer networking. Considering my current occupation that would have been a big bonus. Of course, I wanted to separate myself as far from the white, trendy, OC-like suburbs as possible. I wanted to be in the infantry!

I ended up as an Amphibious Vehicle Crewman, a job that I would learn a lot from.

Parents Influence

My father is a lawyer, an economist and a hippie. My mother is a special-ed teacher, a naturalist and a hippie. Although I was born in Orange County, CA, I grew up in an upper-middle class neighborhood in Seattle. We moved to Seattle in 1980 just as Boeing was in the midst of a major layoffs. Microsoft and Starbucks weren't even born yet. There was even a billboard that said, "Will the last person leaving Seattle please turn off the lights". So we managed to move into the area at just the right time. Eventually the fortune of our good timing would modify thier hippie personalities but at that time they were such hippies! Let me prove it. Their VW bus broke down on our journey north from southern California and my lullabys were Puff the Magic Dragon and Sounds of Silence.

So what do you get when you cross a lawyer, an economist and a hippie? I learned three important lessons from my father: "buy low, sell high", don't trust everyone else to solve the problems and don't argue with a guy who argues for a living. They also drove me into the Marines. How else do you rebel against hippie parents, other than join the Marines?

I had the upbringing that was supposed to lead toward careers in climate science, folk musicology or medical research in the developing world. There was nothing stopping me from going to college at the end of high school. Good grades, no arrests, no drugs, no children. I never shot a gun. I wasn't even allowed to watch GI Joe as a child because it was too violent!

What happened in high school that made it all go so awry?

A little while later...

Ever have a great plan then as you are executing you get sidetracked?? Yeah, well I think that happened with my blog here. I am not that old but I think that I have a difficult time grasping the Kerouacian style. I want my words to be so polished. However this media is about the moment and the evolution of thought rather than the presentation of completed thoughts.

So be it.

I pick up where I left off. I am a green marine. I served in the Marines for 4 years (1993-1997). During that time I thought about the rest of my life. What did I want it to add up to? Inspired by my parents, my high school and the overall political climate, I decided to invest my time and money into an education in alternative energy. Now I work as an engineer at a hydrogen fuel cell company. I hope that my efforts will help to move our country away from fossil fuels. Of course there is a LOT of work to be done. For me the question is, who's going to do the work? Who has the skill sets required to imagine, develop and market new technologies?

My answer: Anyone who has the knowledge and the motivation.

Where does my motivation come from?

For me it is the convergence of three sources: parents, high school and overseas deployment.

First my parents are alumni of the University of California at Berkely (Class of 1968). They are hippies (or at least former hippies). Key to my upbringing were the things that they taught me about global consciousness, environmentalism and economics. Later at Garfield High School in Seattle (a math-science "magnet" school), I re-enforced the environmentalism training but it was infused with a special dose of economics. At that time there was a large political debate over logging and the old-growth forest. Despite the very liberal leanings of Seattle, our ecology teacher took us on a field trip to "meet the loggers". We were taught about both sides of the debate and shown our hypocracy. It was that field trip that pushed me toward the Marines. I knew that the arguements could not be settled unless there was trust, trust must be earned and I needed to earn some trust. Voilla! Marine Corps. I was the only vegan in my platoon! Finally in 1996 I traveled to the Persian Gulf. It was there that I witnessed the size of our force. I began to comprehend the hidden cost of our gasoline. I realized that we were never going to change our habits. We never do! We didn't stop using gasoline when we found out the dangers of lead, we just took the lead out. We didn't stop using aresol cans when we found out about the ozone layer depletion, we just invented a different kind of aresol. I was inspired to become an engineer, to work on developing a new technology to replace oil.

Thesis

As I laid out in my initial post, I think that there is a tremendous opportunity to harness the enthusiasm and character of our returning veterans. At the same time there is a tremendous need in our country for engineers and scientists. Couldn't we encourage more returning servicemen and women to take up the sciences? What are the obstacles that inhibit someone who is leaving the military in going to college, pursuing science or engineering and finally making the transition to the high technology industry?

I believe that I have insight into this area. I certainly don't claim that I have the answers but I do know the journey.

In 1997 I left the Marine Corps, now I work as an engineer at a hydrogen fuel cell company. I have completed a bachelors and masters degree in mechanical engineering. Despite this achievement I was priviledged with a supportive spouse, supportive parents and a high school experience rich in science and math. If I had not had those assests could I have made the transition?

I will continue in the next few posts with my background. I hope that this will provide insight into the questions that I pose above. After I complete the little autobiography I will start blogging the current state of the veterans programs specifically educational funding for returning vetrans and the state of the "brain drain". I hope that I can uncover a connection between these two social conditions. Furthermore I hope that I can encourage some sort of action which will affect change in both areas.

I welcome your comments, insights, links or whatevers.