I guess I have officially fallen behind. I have been slacking on my RP time.

SFC Christopher Perry — Thu, 05 Nov 2015 15:02:20 -0500

Today was the first time I had ever seen a regular old civilian on RP. I have nothing against civilians, as I am now out, I work around them every day. I simply thought that this was a forum that was specifically reserved for those of us who are or have served. If I feel the urge to talk to civilians I know I can find more than my fill on FB. Please, tell me if I am missing something here.

Response by SFC Christopher Perry made Nov 5 at 2015 3:24 PM

SFC Christopher Perry — Thu, 05 Nov 2015 15:24:59 -0500

Sweet, now the civilians are checking out my profile. Feel free to jump on into the conversation. I would love to hear exactly how you feel that your addition to this forum adds some form of value. Contrary to my origional comment I made months ago, saying that if this happened I would most likely have to exit stage left, I vow to stay open minded on the topic.

Response by SSG Carlos Madden made Nov 6 at 2015 11:24 AM

SSG Carlos Madden — Fri, 06 Nov 2015 11:24:39 -0500

Hi SFC,

This isn't the first time this question has come up, and it won't be the last. Our CEO and founder wrote a good response about civilians on RP about 18 months ago. Check it out!

What is your opinion on Civilians on RallyPoint? | RallyPoint

What is your opinion on Civilians on Rally Point that have no military affiliation? I noticed today, a few civilians that had commented on a post were civilians. Now if their input contributes to the conversation it can be pertinent but do civilians understand or have the applicable experience to intelligently add to the conversations without military experience? Will this lead to an overrun by military spouses? I'm even seeing civilians now...

Response by Steven Below, Pmp made Jan 4 at 2016 11:25 AM

Steven Below, Pmp — Mon, 04 Jan 2016 11:25:15 -0500

SFC Perry,
Interesting posts related to the subject. In my case I spent 6 plus years as a civilian contractor in Iraq, Afghanistan and Djibouti. I wasn't sure I had the qualifications to be on RP, but a former co-worker who had prior service assured me I did. While I didn't pick-up a weapon and perform clearing operations I can tell you that I wasn't some REMF who was kept out of harm's way. While I won't pretend to know the hell that you and many of your brothers and sisters went through out in the field, I did attend more ramp ceremonies than I care to think about as well as memorials for my civilian co-workers (I was in Mosul when the Marez D-FAC was attacked; in fact if the attack had occurred 24 hours earlier I probably wouldn't be writing this). I can appreciate your concern in regards to maintaining the integrity of RP: I just wanted to give you some perspective in regards to some of those that are classified as civilians on the site.Thank you for your service.