James J. Walters wrote:
Ugh, my bad memory strikes again! I totalled forgot this was discussed in
The Look thread.
Refresh my memory, would a DD214 file also show "Reserves" data? Even if it did, couldn't it be possible, since they were just discussing T.M. & T.C.'s Vietnam involvement, and the "files" that Maggie was looking at were wartime-related, that Maggie simply addressed T.C. by his Vietnam-era service rank (Warrant Officer)?
No worries James.
Yes, everyone in the United States Armed Forces has a DD214, whether they are active duty or reservists. A service member's DD214 stays with them even when they go from active duty to the reserves. As we dicussed before in "The Look" thread, the DD214 is very important as it is a record of all significant information pertaining to that particular service member, i.e., rank, pay grade, awards, medals, ribbons, MOS, military schools attended, duty stations, overseas duty, etc.
It is possible that Maggie when referring to TC as a Warrant Officer was referring to his rank in Vietnam, but this is unlikely, because as I stated in the "Look" thread, how did Maggie even know TC was a Warrant Officer in the Marines? I don't know of any social friendship between Maggie and TC, so she must have looked at his DD214, which would include his most current rank, i.e., Warrant Officer (or Lieutenant). And since Maggie is known for her accuracy, I would think that the rank she refers to is TC's actual rank.
I have copied and pasted a portion of my post from 6/14/07 (The Look):
Doc Ibold wrote:
Wouldn't the armed forces share records of reservists?
Doc, you are right. TC as a member of the Marine Reserves would be in the same data base as active duty Marines. Like active duty Marines, Reservists also have DD214's and are paid by the Federal Treasury, just like their active duty counterparts.
Although this debate could easily go either way, my instinct is that the dual reference to TC as a Warrant Officer and a Lieutenant is a flub, becasue how did Maggie even know TC was a Warrant Officer in the Marines? I don't know of any social friendship between Maggie and TC, so she must have looked at his DD214, which would include his rank of Warrant Officer (or Lieutenant).
If in fact TC did receive a commission to 2nd Lieutenant, and so on, then that rank would also be included on his DD214. The DD214 is the most important record(s) a member of the military can have. DD214's contain the history of the particular member's service in the military, i.e., rank, pay grade (current and past), medals, ribbons, and other awards received, military schools attended, duty stations, etc. Therefore, if Maggie had access to TC's DD214, she would have known TC's correct rank and presumably would have referred to him as the appropriate rank (warrant officer or Lieutenant).