I am glad they did film this idiocy. This moron doesn't realize that you can stop a person's heart by doing that. If you doubt it, it happens every now and then in baseball, even little league.

They should also name that idiot publicly, not just the victim.

It is amazing that the guy, or someone before him, didn't keel over from a heart attack. What a sophomoric thing to do.

That a$$hole of a soldier should at the very least be prosecuted for assault, loose his rank and sent to prison. Anyone of us would face at least a jail sentence.

I've been in the military for 17 years and this is absolutely inexcusable. This mutt used his higher rank to intimidate the lower ranking soldier into letting him assault him. That is in no way a leadership attribute but bullying by someone with low self esteem and no business leading other soldiers. When someone is promoted you congratulate them or maybe make them a round of drinks or do a bunch of push ups (been there, done that) but definitely not assault him, especially in the chest. That wooden mallet us used to pound metal tent stakes into the ground so you know it's very dense and heavy. A blow to the chest like that can very well stop the heart.

I wish it were up to me to handle that soldier. He'd would certainly regret his actions.

When this crap happens in the basement of a Frat House late at night.....people get thrown out of school, lose their scholarships and sometimes the House will even lose its charter.

When a high school or college sports team does this in secret some weekend after a game....people get thrown out of school, lose their scholarships or kicked off the team.

When people in the work place do this crap, people get fired and get arrested for assault.

And don't give me the ol' *the military is different* line of crap.......it is a job. nothing less, nothing more.

I got to say that during my time in the 82nd and other Airborne units where I served, we did some really dumb sh!t to celebrate a promotion or "Blood Wings" or other awards (...really considered tame these days), but NEVER have I seen or heard of anything as re-f'ing-tarded as hitting a soldier with a mallet!

Whoever this SFC is he needs to be punished... severely, so that it will send the message of "...this is could be you... this is NOT how you treat your soldiers)! I also believe that the Company Commander and 1SG and Platoon leader should be reprimanded as well, because these are small units and I can tell you from experience, this has happened before and everybody know it.

A MALLET TO THE CHEST!

I've had all my stripes "tacked on" it is a tradition that goes back in the army to the civil war and possibly further. I'm Air Force, and we have had the same tradition since we split from the army in 1947, unlike the army we still where are rank on our sleeve, it doesn't help that the army moved there rank from the shoulders to the middle of there chest. We use our hands and punch the stripe on. Everyone in the section lines up and the person making rank walks up and down the line while each person takes a turn "tacking on" the stripe, even spouses and children get involved, my wife tacked on my last stripe, but using anything other than your hand is completely inappropriate and he should be punished.

This is the kind of crap that goes on in Russia. Disgraceful.

Now that was STOO-PUD. As a twenty-two year military retiree, combat medic, and former military hospital wardmaster, I agree 100% with your observation Kevin C-752389. There is still the possibility that the young man may suffer some life-threatening future damage from that trauma. When I was on active duty, we celebrated exactly the way described in the article, punches to the shoulder with our fists, even though rank is now worn on the chest, and certainly not hard enough to cause any permanent damage. The SFC as a senior EM, should have known better and deserves the punishment he received.

And these are the people to defend us? Apparently they do not develop a mature behavior of dignity and respect. One has to question the training practices they receive. But then look at what some have done while on tour. Want my respect your soldier... be a fricken man not a boy in an army uniform!

i think most of you should take your complaints before the military....

altho i do not believe in tacking on a new rank with a mallet intended for tent spikes, some must realise, you cant be "dress right dress" 110% of the time.

for those of you unfamiliar (even tho a few said you were) with wording of what the punishment was... he was demoted, and given a dishonorable discharge. so the 5 yrs or so this guy spent dodging bullets for his country, watching his peers get shot/blown up, and all the other sprinkles of good sh!t that go with war are looked upon as frivilous to one stupid act?

to put it easier to understand he was kicked out of the military. (suprised some of the "vets" here didnt pick up on that as easily as most would have thought).

LynyrdSky

And these are the people to defend us?

but doing a better job than yourself?

Who needs al Qaeda? Between the psychos, the rapists, and the morons, our military will self-destruct given enough time.

Are you insane? This kid is lucky to be alive!

@NaughtyMossy

The soldier will be fined, receive an administrative punishment and will receive a letter of reprimand in his permanent file. He must also write an apology letter and will be relieved of his responsibilities.

I don't know what article you've read, but it says nothing here about him being demoted and dishonorably discharged. There's no 'read between the lines' with UCMJ. This put a mark on his career for sure, and can kiss any chance he had of making 1SGT goodbye. And it also means retiring earlier than he probably planned to.

He should get a hit with the mallet to the groin.

My lord! It hurt me just watching the video.

Depending on what the Army policy is "today" and the article does not say it...... it could be possible that the guy will be unable to re-enlist because of this being in his record. And as a 24 yr retired vet I have no problem with that. He acted stupidly. This is also unlikely the first time he has used this mallet because he thought it was funny. I don`t care how many tours he has had overseas because here he was in a command position and showed no common sense let alone leadership. These types of people should not be in our military. Period. As for "tacking" being tradition. So we are supposed to live by 250 yrs of tradition unhampered by progress as the saying goes? I've seen promotees after ceremonies unable to raise their arms because their unit mates thought it funny to really sock their arms hard. It is one thing to symbolically tap the new rank and another to see who can hit the hardest.

Here's a little safety tip: don't let your friends strike you square in the chest with a heavy wooden mallet. You aren't freaking Wiley Coyote.

Dipsh!t.

BlueDevilBasher,

What's with the preemptive strike on the military, suggesting that vets are going to jump up in his defense? If anything, most vets who have worn stripes such as I (former SFC) will say that this guy shouldn't have done this. You might also like to know that the UCMJ is not some sort of "Good 'Ol Boy" code which protects offenders. There are quite a few things that Soldiers can and will be punished for which are everyday events on the civvie side. Does your boss punish you for forgetting to shave or get a haircut? Will you lose pay and be demoted for being late for work? Can your boss restrict you from seeing your wife on the weekends? The military is not like any other job. It is a very serious endeavor (despite what impressions you may get from this incident), with very real consequences. Deployments in which one is "working" seven days a week for over a year don't compare to "any other job." Anyone who has served a day in uniform can attest to that.

He such be kick out army.No one such be hurt or get this kind treatment.They join the army to serve our county.I hope they take services action against him.

Okay so he's getting busted down a pay grade; I can understand that, they never should have filmed themselves doing this. Is he some kind of monster or douche bag for hitting him with the mallet though? No. When I served I seen a lot worse, and the point of this isn't to humiliate or haze, it's about camaraderie, unit cohesion, and morale. Much the way, for all you that didn't serve, put the hotdog up your ass in your frat, or had sex with fifteen people at the same time for your sorority, build these things. There's no place for kid gloves in the military—besides, I'd take a mallet to the chest any day over a hot dog in the ass.

And dude who posted the @!$%# who has no clue about what hes talking about, you look like a retard. You know who you are.

You wouldn't have the courage to stand up to a combat vet, because you are a coward.

combat vet or not he'll get his a$$ kicked

KCMan74, you are an a$$hole. Are you that stupid that you think only the toughest of the tough are combat vets? There's at least one moron in every state and you are proof of that.

Geez, it only took a minute to post to KCMan74 and that fast another a$$hole, Scott chimes in with the same level of stupidity.

@world, what the hell is that level of hate for? He didn't do it based on malicious. He probably had it done to to him and the rest of the guys in the unit when they recieved their promotions. You act as though he was bullying him or picking on him. It was a tradition that was wrong and he's being punished for it. Use your head and stop making childish comments that border on threats.

KCMan74........whats with you? You got the hots for the mallet swinger or something?

Mind the insults folks. It could get you banned.

This is not a political thing. It has been happening for a long time. My son had his rank pinned on him in 2005 and if I remember right Bush was president. I think it started with the all volunteer army.

This predates the all volunteer Army, because I experienced it at the end of the Vietnam War era.

Joseph Gadberry is another f'ing moron to blame this on Obama. You are the same type of idiot who won't give him credit for taking out Bin Laden too. Ignorant bastard.

Gadberry...hmm...I think that's a Kenyan name.

Foolish Civilians (and Soldiers or former Soldiers), the CORP still does things like this, as does the Navy etc....while this SFC might have hit him too hard (he should have been a little lighter with his swing) it does not mean this will not continue. I imagine the NCO did not realize he hit him that hard and I am sure he regrets it. When I got "pinned" with my E5 one of my SFCs hit me so hard I think my heart stopped, but guess what is tradition (and I got pinned on 2010), hell my PFC wife hit me pretty damn hard too, then all the NCOs lined up to take a shot. Now I get to hit people.....and I LIKE IT!!! It is a good tradition, alas we do not do "blood stipes" anymore because the new Army took away our pin on rank and took us out of good looking "manly" camo.

If you don't like it don't join, if you don't like the policies then butt out. Whichever un-informed person who compare the Military to a FRAT house, you really need to be quiet. The Military has many time honored traditions that are not always the smartest thing in the planet but then again Soldiers are not always the smartest people. You want to know why all of this is all coming out now? For one our Military has been weakened, chained by public opinion; NCOs are not able to discipine Soldiers and help shape them by giving them "wall to wall" counseling. All we do is sit down and counsel them on a piece of paper and we are hamstringed to dole out tougher actions and tougher "love" due to our current policies. We now take their "allowance" and "ground them". We are getting young men and woman who were failed by their parents.........

I don't say shame on the SFC, I say shame on you America! I would like to blame others.....but alas regulations do not allow me to talk about such things with civilians only my brothers and sisters in arms. All of you are too busy to push your political agenda on each other to see the facts on the story, but don't worry the only reason the Army punished this NCO so severely is because you people saw it and they know you would bitch and cry so they fed him to the wolves to appease you the public. I hope you show up to work tomorrow and get stripped of the things you scrificed for......and to the tough guy withthe tire iron......LMFAO!

REGARDLESS!!!!! he's a senior NCO a leader of soldiers. This unexploded munition is getting exactly what he deserves. Unbelievable!!!! and you wonder why the Backbone of the Army is losing it's reverent power.

JoeandKarissa Jardine ... you are without any doubt a retard. Because of people like you there are rules written down. I.E. one should not hit your fellow being on a head or a chest or a back with a big wooden Mallet. Now this is an obvious thing. I know it over 90% of people know it, but there are some idiots out there like you that have no idea why they can't thus the rules.

JoeandKarissa Jardine

I feel sorry for anyone in your unit. Just because it is "tradition" does not make it right. You are advocating violence against your fellow soldiers. That is pathetic. You, sir, are a poor excuse of a soldier. You hide behind "tradition" because you enjoy hurting others. I suggest you read Article 93 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice before you continue this "tradition". It is in clear violation of the UCMJ. I will save you the time to look it up:

"Any person subject to this chapter who is guilty of cruelty toward, or oppression or maltreatment of, any person subject to his orders shall be punished as a court-martial may direct."

Joeand Karissa Jardine

You are exactly right the military has gone soft and is dropping the time honered traditions that have stood since the begining. Pretty soon boot camp will be held at the Ritz with professional maid services rank will forever dissapear because hey, everyone is equal and rank just seperates us. Im just waiting for the day we go to war with O.C. spray, tasers, and rubber bullets because killing is not politicaly correct. As the saying goes "Either nut up or shut up!!!"

We still are involved in a very "hot" war in Afghanistan. I mean "hot", because Soldiers and Marines are still dying. It's hard to tell, though, because that news is pushed to page 7 in most papers. It's generally a small blurb after the celebrity news. That just shows you the media's priorities these days.

It was better when you actually had pins. Nothing wrong with this behavior it is good for morale.

I didn't see a problem with it, hell, that ain't as bad as some of the other hazings that the Army does (by drill instructors). Airborne training is ridiculous. They like take these tongs and spread your butt cheeks apart and take a picture and say "this is your vagina, do you see your vagina?". This was just good fun that went wrong, I personally wouldn't have punished him.

Nothing wrong with this behavior it is good for morale.

This behavior is completely wrong. The SFC is damned lucky this troop didn't die. A frikken mallet? Seriously?

What happened to just slapping a troop in the chest to put the rank on?

Roach stumbles and then collapses to the floor, hitting his head on a nearby chair. The video ends there, but Roach's father says that after the camera stopped rolling, his son suffered a seizure.

What part of that is good for morale? As far as I am concerned, as a retired enlisted man myself, I would have ripped his rockers off his stripes. There is no place in our armed forces for our enlisted leaders to be hitting lower ranking members in the chest with a mallet.

The SFC is damned lucky the troops heart didn't stop.

Two idiots in the video; the one w/ the mallet and the one standing there waiting for the contact. Spent 20 years in the military, never came across such idiocy!

It was better when you actually had pins. Nothing wrong with this behavior it is good for morale.

Would it be good for morale if this soldiers heart stopped? That's a very real risk when taking a strong blow to the chest.

I remember making NCO and I had to knock out a bunch of push ups, they even put a 10 ilb weight on my back to make it all the more "fun". All the other NCOs were eventually made to join in, then I had to buy them all drinks later on. That's more of a morale builder than pounding someone in the chest with a stake mallet and giving them seizures. Imagine being an 17 year old private watching that.

I hope your "screen" name is a real name and not a sick FU$%^&* joke. Al Kyda!

Newswinner101,

What???? I went through Benning in '94 when Drills could still challenge wayward troops to take a walk to the woodline and Airborne after that. There was never any creepy sexual stuff like that.

Yeah that is what I was thinking because he hit him right over the sternum.

The heart is right under the sternum .A good hard wack could shock it into an attack .

Not to mention his lungs are also there. What's a blown out lung among comrades? Right?

I can tell you've never been in the military. What we don't see?

@ 6dogs

excuse me?

I put 20 years in the US Army...stationed in Korea, and the US [where were you stationed?], and this abuse continues! What we don't "see" ....was a figurative statement, and not literal. Of course they [the US Army] see it, but unless it's exposed to the public. little will get down to prevent it. The abuse can be physical, or mental, or both...and more often than not, the higher'ups chose simply to "look the other way" [translated: they don't see it].

@duug you are exactly correct on your two comments your original and your reply to 6dogs, as i too served in the marine corps for 20 plus years and seen wher the command looked the other way many of times for certain individuals and then would throw the book at the ones that were not their favorites for the same actions.

It's all fun and games until someone collapses and has a seizure.

Care to be hit in the chest really hard with a giant wooden mallet? We'll see how much fun you think it is after that. Pectoral muscles or not, your heart could still be stopped, or your sternum cracked.

@nymike you are so right and to the dummies that keep saying just good old fun or good for the morale what type of world are you living in it must be your own little special world in your mind because darn near killing our own comrade during peace time and/or injuring him to the point where he will not be able to perform his duies to which he was trained to do will only lessen the strength and abilities of your unit and the service to which you all are still serving is just down right idiotcy. Iknow i would and did want all of my fellow marines at %100 if i needed them to have my back in times of natinal security when we entered into combat with anyone.

To Larry-314720: Well move on Professor - educate them. Show them what you know and have the guts to tell them to their face "that because they are in the Army they are not the sharpest knives in the drawer.". Go on Professor; you are a big mouth on this site. Face the troops and make that remark. I spent 22 years in the Army on active duty and don't appreciate some dimwit like yourself making remarks like that. I don't agree with the action done in this case to use a mallet for this type activity, but the activity is one thing; the wise crack at the end of your comments is something else.

Wrangler, I served 23 years active duty and fully agree with some troops needing some serious education.

I would also say it right to their faces, as I probably would have outranked almost every one of them. They don't have to respect me, but they damned sure better respect the rank.

Some troops are as dumb as stumps and need to be told that.

For serving 22 years, you have some pretty damned thin skin. Suck it up and drive on.

The truth hurts sometimes.

What a coincidence, I'm no longer proud that you did either, since you are such a cry baby as to paint the military with such a broad brush. You are a disgrace, alright.

Your post has what to do with this article?

Why are you no longer proud of your service?

You offer no insight to whose posts you think are stupid. Are you for assaulting troops with giant wooden mallets? Are you against it?

I think Bush was a douche bag, but that will never tarnish my pride for serving my country.

It's a real testament to your pride that you would allow someone to take it away from you.

Seriously, Joseph? You think this is all Obama's fault? The only difference in the comments I see between the Bush administration and the Obama administration is all the maroons like yourself who got up on their hind legs wailing "Respect the office if not the person!" in defense of Bush are now respecting neither the office NOR the person.

Of course not Joseph, because you are a racist pig. You are a low ranking grunt who does not have any inside information on what Obama did or why he did it. People at your rank and your level of intelligence are not privy to such information. I never knew though, that they admitted people of your level of intelligence into the armed forces until I saw Forrest Gump. ha ha ha ha ha

This Gadberry guys seems to have a knack for pissing people off, don'y buy into it.

Mr. Ricochet -

Try thought instead of insults. It seems to be your only message.

Are you saying you are proud of the fact that they can't or won't end the hazing WW?

;) means sarcasm when used at the end of a sentence..................

Real funny....not.

I must hold you accountable for your spelling and grammar. Clean it up!

Mario, you are a @!$%#ing schmuck.

Try thought instead of insults.

Tarzan he was not a SGT he was a SFC, the young SGT is the one that was struck by the SFC. when call one a SERGEANT with out the proper grade on must spell it out! That is acceptable up to E8/MSG who can be called a SERGEANT until they become a E8 1SG or First SERGEANT! I just want to help educate the public that has no fing idea about the Military which is obvious from most of these posts seen above.

You are so right. It is helping all to see who the real idiots are.