The Latest From Ben Jr.

Sergeant Benjamin Chapman III

Ben Jr. Arrives back in the US!

ALOHA TO YOU ALL:

I JUST GOT A CALL FROM BEN III TELLING ME HE JUST ARRIVED AT DEL MAR NAVAL AIR STATION AT SAN DIEGO CALIFORNIA AND IS ON HIS WAY TO CAMP PENDLETON MARINE CORPS BASE FOR SEPARATION AND RETURN TO HAWAII.

HE WILL BE AT CAMP PENDLETON INDEFINITELY AND IF POSSIBLE HE WILL FLY TO LAS VEGAS NEVADA TO JOIN ME FOR THE WEEKEND OF THE 'IMAGINE NATION' SHOW I WILL BE DOING AUGUST 8 - 9 - 10 AT THE ORLEANS HOTEL. THIS DEPENDS IF HE CAN GET WEEKEND LIBERTY.

I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR YOUR PRAYERS ON BRINGING BEN III HOME SAFE AND SOUND.

GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU.

Ben Chapman
The 'REEL' Gillman

E-mail From Ben's Son

Aloha from iraq. Well, this is what has happened in the past day or so. we were all pretty much very edgy before we went in to see the General yesterday (dad this is when i called you and was in a bad mood). a colonel talked to us while we were waiting to go in to see the gen. and was telling us how the marine corps knows it has made a mistake but division still needs linguists and thats where we would be going. he said he had talked with the gen. about us the day before so i figured we were totally screwed and we would be in iraq for another 3 months or so. when we talked to the general he basically said that the system of stop loss and irr and manpower for linguists in totally broken and that he will personally see to it to fix the system so this doesnt happen again to irr's in the future. he apologized for the fact that we were "jerked around" during our tour, BUT division still needs linguists and even though our language skills are poor, speaking a little arabic is better than nothing. he said he knows we should have gone home before the stop loss marines but we are still needed out here. well, we were all very pissed off at the fact that he knew we should have gone home but decided not to send us home. after the meeting w/ the gen., sgt maj. morin and msgt. wellman (g-2) talked to us. they said that we definitely got screwed, BUT the good thing to come out of this is that we are now in the spotlight. they said that when we go to division if we are ever utilized by them for anything other than language then we will immediately be pulled out and sent home, or as soon as we are told by division that our language is not good enough for what they need then we will be pulled and sent home. we have talked to a major at division and he also said that they need us but if they cant use us for what they need or we arent good enough then he will gladly send us back to the G-2 and then we will go home. so far, everyone we talk to has been very apologetic and if they all stick to their word then we might be coming home soon. since the request mast, everyone seems to be looking out for us because they all know what has happened to us and are trying to make the best of the situation for us. the G-2 is now looking into the treatment of the other irr's in iraq and is going see if they are being employed correctly and if not they will either be employed correctly in division or sent home. it seems that there is nothing that anyone in the US can do to help our situation anymore because the corps has recognized its error and has said it will fix it once the operation is over. i appreciate all the help and support of everyone back home and the help of the senators of hawaii and any other gov. officials that have tried to help. it seems that the problem will eventually be fixed internally and the only thing left is for us to get home. the only way for us to get home is now our problem and we will deal with that. with what seems like more people on our side than against us now, i hope we will all be home shortly. i will keep you all informed. i am writing from someone else's email address so don't email me here. i will soon have my own email address in iraq. the other email i had before was for kuwait. when i get my new email i will let you all know. the saga continues.... island boy in iraq.

E-mail From Ben's Son

THE LATEST UPDATE ON BEN III.

HE CALLED ME LAST NIGHT FROM IRAQ. HE IS BACK ON PATROL INVEOLVED IN "OPERATION DESERT SCORPION"

WE HAVE BOTH SENATORS FROM HAWAII - DANIEL INOUYE & DANIEL AKAKA - WORKING ON THE CASE. I RECEIVED NICE LETTERS FROM BOTH SENATORS.

NOW WE MUST WAIT.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONCERN. BEN & MERRILEE

From: Chapman Sgt Benjamin F
Date: Sun, 15 Jun 2003 19:06:56 -0000
To: "'the-reelgillman@webtv.net'"

hey dad, we just got cut off. we are going to iraq in about 8 hrs. but keep working on this for me. i dont know how often i will be able to contact you from iraq but i will try to keep you informed. hopefully this will get resolved soon. i miss you and love you. ben.

E-mail From Ben's Son

>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Chock Sgt Kenneth D
>> Sent: Saturday, June 07, 2003 9:20 AM
>> To: 'the-reelgillman@webtv.net'
>> Subject: This is the 3rd revision to this letter. The previous ones had some misinformation in the them.
>>
>> Dad, here is what verbatim is said in Department of Defense Directive >> 1235.10 "Subject: Activation, Mobilization, Demobilization of the Ready >> Reserve":
>>
>> Department of Defense
>>
>> DIRECTIVE
>>
>> NUMBER 1235.10
>>
>> July 1, 1995
>> 4.4.1. Release. Members of the Ready Reserve ordered to active duty
>> without their consent shall be retained on active duty no longer than
>> absolutely necessary. They shall receive priority for redeployment from
>> the area of operations over Active component units, and be released from
>> active duty as expeditiously as possible, consistent with operational
>> requirements. To the maximum extent possible, consistent with operational
>> requirements, members who are medically cleared, who are ordered to active
>> duty with a unit, should be released with that unit. Units ordered to
>> active duty as a unit should be released as a unit, so far as practible.
>> 4.4.2. Follow-on Missions. To the extent possible and insofar as
>> practicable, missions following demobilization shall be accomplished by
>> Active component forces, augmented by DoD civilian employees or contract
>> personnel, and qualified volunteers from the Reserve components.
>> (end) >> Originally we were reprocessed at Mobilization Processing Center (MPC) in
>> Camp Talega, Camp Pendleton, CA. They are our parent command for the
>> whole reactivation. They sent us TAD (Temporary Assigned Duty) to I MEF
>> (1st Marine Expeditionary Force) and we have been attached to the G-2
>> (Intelligence Section) out here at I MEF in Camp Commando, Kuwait. From
>> here we were sent out "wherever needed" in Iraq.
>> At this current time there are many IRR (Inactive Ready Reserve... us)
>> Marines in Iraq that are not being used for their language. One IRR
>> Marine in particular is Sgt. Christopher Beard. He is past his End of
>> Service Obligation (ESO) (date when his 8 yrs, active and inactive, of
>> obligated service are finished). Sgt. Gabriel Arreche, while in Iraq,
>> went to the unit that Sgt. Beard was supposed to be at Regimental Combat
>> Team (RCT) Task Force Tarawa. He talked to another active duty 2671 from
>> Radio Bn that said "He has been re-tasked to an Engineering Co. because
>> his language was so bad". Keep in mind that Sgt. Beard is past his ESO
>> and has been out of the Marine Corps for almost 4 yrs. That is the reason
>> his language was so bad and he needs to be found. That is just one story
>> that I have heard first hand, but I know that there are many more that I
>> haven't heard. We have asked about his whereabouts in Iraq and the G-1 is
>> having a hard time tracking him down.
>> Most of us do not have a current DLPT (Language Test) which means that we
>> cannot be considered "proficent" in our MOS (Military Occupational
>> Specialty, our job). I have not had a current DLPT for over 3 yrs. Many
>> of our Top Secret Clearances have ended since leaving the Corps, but we
>> have all been given our Top Secret Clearances again, most of us without a
>> background check or Periodic Review (PR) which is required and is a heavy
>> violation if not done.
>> One MEF asset, Radio Bn, sent many of their Active Duty 2671s back to the
>> states for language refresher courses, military exercises and mostly to
>> get out of the Corps. These Marines are active duty and have either not
>> fufilled their 5 yr active duty requirement or were held in till the end
>> of the war. But now that the war is over, these Marines that are junior
>> to us get to go home and get out of the Marine Corps while we stay in
>> Kuwait and Iraq. We don't have the language skills that they have and
>> were previously deemed "Mission Non-Essential" but apparently someone
>> thinks they have priority over us. The DOD Directive above clearly states
>> that we have priority.
>> I am currently with a group of 7 Marines: myself, Sgt. Ken Chock, Sgt.
>> Eammon Kiyomura, Sgt. Lee Buttrill, Sgt. Gabriel Arreche, Sgt. Martin
>> Sullivan, and Sgt. Travis McNerney. All of us were in writing deemed
>> "Mission Non-Essential" and were about to get on a plane TODAY. But, we
>> were taken off the flight last night and told we are staying here
>> indefinitely and could possibly go to Iraq again. We answered the call
>> when our country needed us and served out here to the best of our
>> abilities and now I hope our country can answer our call when we need
>> them.
>> Thanks for your help Dad,
>> Sgt. Benjamin F. Chapman III

E-Mail From Ben Jr.

IT'S ME WITH AN UPDATE ON BEN III.

HE CALLED ME LAST NIGHT AND TOLD ME A STORY ABOUT HE AND SOME OF HIS FELLOW MARINES GETTING OUT OF THE MARINE CORPS NOW THAT THERE HAS BEEN A CEASE FIRE.

HE HAS ASKED ME TO ASK FOR HELP FOR HIM AND HIS FELLOW MARINES.

BEN'S DUTIES IN THE MARINE CORPS IS SPECIAL OPS RECON WHICH COMES UNDER INTELLIGENCE. HE AND HIS FELLOW MARINES ARE HIGHLY TRAINED MARINES EQUIVALENT TO SPECIAL FORCES IN THE ARMY AND NAVY SEALS.

BEN WAS AN INACTIVE RESERVIST AFTER HE WAS DISCHRGED FROM THE MARINE CORPS IN DECEMBER OF2001.

HE AND HIS FELLOW MARINES WERE RECALLED TO ACTIVE DUTY BECAUSE OF THEIR SPECIALTY FOR IRAQ DEPLOYMENT.

THEY SERVED HONORABLY AND BRAVELY NEVER KNOWING THEIR FATE DAY TO DAY.

NOW THAT THERE IS A CEASE FIRE, BY LAW ALL INACTIVE RESERVIST SHOULD BE ROTATED BACK TO THE U.S. AND RETURNED TO CIVILIAN LIFE.

PLEASE READ THESE FORWARDED EMAIL FROM BEN AND HIS FELLOW MARINES. THE LAW IS NOT BEING ADHERED TO IN THEIR CASE AND WOULD LIKE TO ASK IF IT'S POSSIBLE TO PLEASE HELP BY GETTING THI PLIGHT TO THE PUBLIC (T.V. - RADIO - NEWSPAPER) OR TO THE ATTENTION OF YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON.

I REALIZE THAT THESE EMAILS ARE LENGTHY BUT PLEASE, PLEASE READ THEM CAREFULLY SEE WHAT YOU CAN DO TO INFORM THE PUBLIC HOW SOME OF OUR ARE MARINES BEING TREATED NOW THAT THERE IS A CEASE FIRE.

PLEASE EMAIL ME YOUR COMMENTS AND I WILL FORWARD THEM TO BEN III SO THAT HE AND HIS FELLOW MARINES WILL KNOW THAT THEY ARE BEING HEARD.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR KIND UNDERSTANDING.

THE EMAILS MAKE VERY INTERESTING READING. -Ben "The-Reelgillman" Chapman

Subject: FW: ILLEGAL AND UNJUST TREATMENT OF MARINES IN IRAQ AND KUWAIT
From: Chock Sgt Kenneth D
Date: Sun, 8 Jun 2003 20:12:50 -0000
To: "'the-reelgillman@webtv.net'"

HEY DAD, THIS IS THE LETTER I SENT TO BILL OREILLY AND I WOULD LIKE YOU TO USE IT WHEN ADDRESS THE SENATORS AND CONGRESSMEN. LOVE, BEN.

>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Chock Sgt Kenneth D
>> Sent: Sunday, June 08, 2003 8:55 PM
>> To: 'oreilly@foxnews.com'
>> Subject: ILLEGAL AND UNJUST TREATMENT OF MARINES IN IRAQ AND KUWAIT
>>
>> Bill, I hope this email finds you in good health and sanity. My name is
>> Ben Chapman and I am currently serving my country in Kuwait. I joined the
>> Marine Corps in Nov. '96 and was honorably discharged from active duty in
>> Dec. '01. Since then I have been in the Inactive Ready Reserve (IRR) and
>> living a regular civilian life. I was involuntarily activated to active
>> duty, "recalled", in March of this year for the war effort in Iraq. There
>> were originally about 40 of us that were sent out here and almost all of
>> us went into Iraq, including myself, to supplement the need for Arabic
>> linguist support. Almost all of us are not proficient in the language at
>> this time due to the fact that it is a 2nd language learned through
>> military training that took place at the beginning of active duty and some
>> of us have been out of active duty for more than 3 years. Since the
>> ending of the war about 8 of us (IRR) have returned home to exit the Corps
>> and return to civilian life. Out of the rest of us left in "theater", 7
>> are in Kuwait (including myself) and the rest are still being used in
>> Iraq. The 7 of us that are in Kuwait were supposed to be the next wave
>> going home but we were taken off of the manifest for our flight home the
>> day before the flight. The reason given is to fulfill "operational
>> requirements", yet many active duty linguists have been sent home and are
>> still being sent home. There is a DOD Directive that states that active
>> duty components shall be used before us, enclosed below. And a letter I
>> wrote to my father back home explaining some of my thoughts on our
>> situation, backed up by a MARADMIN. We are going to "request mast"
>> through our chain of command tomorrow and present them with the directive
>> below and other info that we have researched. I know there aren't very
>> many of us still out here but I was wondering if you would be interested
>> in hearing about our situation as it develops. I am using the email
>> address of one of the Marines that is in this situation also, his name is
>> Ken Chock. You may reach me here if you so desire. I do not have a phone
>> number to be reached at but if you would like to talk you could email me
>> yours and I will call. Thank you for your time.
>> Stuck in the Middle East, Ben.>>
>> This is the forwarded message of my thoughts to my father.

>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Chock Sgt Kenneth D
>> Sent: Sunday, June 08, 2003 9:09 AM
>> To: 'the-reelgillman@webtv.net,'
>> Subject: JUST A THOUGHT
>>
>> Dad, here is an expression of my thoughts on our situation,
>> First off I appreciate all of the help and support that we are receiving
>> back home. The paragraph below is a section from a MARADMIN that states
>> the Commandant of the Marine Corps' intent on "Stop Loss", which is
>> unrelated to my situation. I'm am just going to make my own statement and
>> personal comparison. "Stop Loss" is a term the Corps uses to prevent
>> Marines from getting out of the Corps. There are many Marines that were
>> sent out here for the war that had an EAS (End of Active Service) date
>> during the war. They were kept in past their EAS because they were needed
>> for the war. They will still be in the IRR, like myself when they get out
>> of the Corps. In the MARADMIN below, the Commandant's intent on what is
>> to be done with these Marines has been stated. His intent is that they
>> have "GONE THE EXTRA MILE" by being held on active duty status and "WILL
>> BE" separated "REFLECTING THE RESPECT THOSE MARINES DESERVE". I totally
>> agree with that statement. They have sacrificed from the stop loss and
>> should be allowed to exit active duty now that the war is over. We, the
>> IRR Marines, were given 2 weeks notice to quit our jobs, end our lease
>> agreements, handle all of our personal affairs, business affairs and
>> civilian lives, and say goodbye to our families and loved ones and
>> involutarily join the Marine Corps to go to war. I believe that the "stop
>> loss" Marines have sacrificed and I believe that the IRR Marines have
>> sacrificed more. I also believe that if "stop loss" Marines have "gone
>> the extra mile", then the IRR counterparts, like myself, have gone the
>> extra 2 miles. And I also believe that the IRR Marines should be
>> separated with the RESPECT THAT WE DESERVE. My question is ,"Has the
>> Commandant expressed his intent on the IRR situation as well?" The
>> bottomline is that "stop loss" Marines in our MOS (2671, Arabic
>> Cryptologic Linguist) have and are being sent home to exit the Marine
>> Corps and we are still here. How is this possible?.....
>> Sgt. Benjamin F. Chapman III
>>
>> Date signed: 05/23/2003 MARADMIN Number: 250/03
>> R 231003Z MAY 03
>> FM CMC WASHINGTON DC(uc)
>> TO AL MARADMIN(uc)
>> MARADMIN
>> BT
>> UNCLASSIFIED
>> MARADMIN 250/03
>> MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC MRA MP//
>> SUBJ/ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDANCE FOR THE TERMINATION OF STOP LOSS AND
>> /STOP MOVE//
>>
>> 2. COMMANDANT'S INTENT. MARINES AFFECTED BY STOP LOSS HAVE "GONE
>> THE EXTRA MILE" FOR THE CORPS IN THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS. THE
>> ADMINISTRATION OF THEIR SEPARATIONS AND RETIREMENTS WILL BE
>> ACCOMPLISHED IN AN EFFECTIVE, ORDERLY, TIMELY, AND DIGNIFIED MANNER,
>> REFLECTING THE RESPECT THOSE MARINES DESERVE.