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BUCKING PANT TUCKING

I read with amusement the discussion concerning the blousing of trousers and boots [“Tuck talk: pro & con,” Aug. 10].

The peg-leg look would have been a laughingstock among the paratroopers of World War II, the soldiers who started blousing. Historically, military fatigue pants used to be shorter and soldiers wore gaiters to keep dirt and critters out.

If you look at the original Air Force instruction concerning the blousing of boots, it said the “pant leg was to be bloused ON the boot,” It never said above the boot or in the boot.

Tucking pants into the boots lets dirt, ants and chiggers work their way down through any fold or crease. Blousing pants above the boot does nothing to keep out dirt and critters while probably damaging your circulation if you do it every day.

My old first sergeant taught us his way of blousing pants ON boots, and I have taught many others along the way. The method is effective, achieving the goals of keeping the dirt and critters out while also keeping the blood flowing into and out of the feet.

— Lt. Col. Paul Kleponis, Miami

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There are some really good uniform changes, and then there are the terrible ones.

Airmen should not tuck their pants into their boots.

Unlike most of the airmen who work in offices, ground support airmen who have to low crawl will find their boot laces coming loose. The more active the airman, the greater the chance of tripping over laces or losing boots.

Blousing pants over boots and tucking laces in prevents mishaps for beret-wearing troops.

— Senior Airman Markeis McCray, Charleston, S.C.

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This is how commanders should solve the pant-tucking or pant-blousing question:

• First, reference the regulation for blousing the pant leg.

• Second, grab a dictionary and look up the word “over.”

Once you complete both of these tasks, you will realize the regulation says to blouse the pant neatly over the boot.

Just as in a war environment, this keeps chemicals from running into the boots, keeps insects out, keeps socks hidden, doesn’t rub or irritate the leg and is comfortable.

The idea of tucking pants into boots makes no sense to me, because that allows anything to run straight down your pants and into your boots.

— Tech. Sgt. Trevor Makin, Santa Rita, Guam

CAN’T TAKE A JOKE

Are the armed services really getting that sensitive?

Gen. David Petraeus [who recently told a joke at the expense of the Air Force at the Marine Corps Association Foundation’s annual dinner] only did what we all do [“No joke: Petraeus apologizes to Schwartz,” Sept. 7].

Services do that to one another. In fact, since he was in Marine Corps territory, his joke was giving them a pat on the back.

Toughen up. Because that’s what we do — rib each other. And when the time comes, like in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, we protect each other.

— Chief Warrant Officer 4 L.D. Mitchell (ret.), Lawton, Okla.

DOING RIGHT BY COLTON READ

I have learned in my more than 30 years of service that the people, not the machines, make the Air Force great.

As an intelligence analyst, Airman 1st Class Colton Read knows it is a privilege to be a member of this team and shares its values [“Surgical nightmare,” Aug. 3].

I can only hope “Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do” includes retaining an airman whose heart and soul reflect the highest traditions of service in the Air Force.

— Chief Master Sgt. Robert A. Rochon (ret.), Sequim, Wash.

RECOGNIZING 1ST SGTS.

After becoming a first sergeant in 1979 while stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., I designed a badge for first sergeants who had served in that job for at least three consecutive years. Another design was a ribbon with the first sergeant diamond centered on the ribbon. The suggestion for special recognition of first sergeants was forwarded to the Air Force Uniform Board for adoption, but not approved.

Adopting a badge would give the first sergeants who remain in the field the recognition they deserve.

— Master Sgt. George H. Abbott (ret.), Valparaiso, Fla.