Red Tape BS!

Well, we just haad another exercise/inspection on base. The base as a whole failed it while I was deployed, so we had to do it again. Instead of making the people who did it before and failed do it to make sure they finally got it right, they make those of us that were deployed do it. Talk about wrong.
Anyway, there is so much red tape for everything in the military. I got orders to Japan, so I'll be leaving in a few months. I was selected for my new assignment on 24 November, they notified me of it a week and a half or so later. Then I get my checklist of stuff I'm supposed to do in order to get my orders and actualkly leave, and they have a briefing that I'm already overdue on. How am I supposed to go to a briefing for my transfer on 20 November, if they didn't even select me for the transfer until the 24th? Talk about garbage.
I can't take my car or truck, I have to get a passport for my wife, and I have to make arrangments for my dog to go with me. I have to get medical clearnaces for my wife, which takes forever because paperwork has to be done and if the civilian doctor puts something the military doctor doesn't like, I have to get the civilian doctor to change what he/she wrote, eiother by explaining to them what the military doctor needs/wantas, or by getting an appointment for my wife to have surgery, or a checkup or whatever the cilvilian doctor requires before he/she will change what they wrote. This goes for dentists too.
Then, there is the exercise that I spoke of. I have to do it at the same time I'm doing my outprocessing stuff. People aren't in their offices to sign my papers, or no one answers the phones to answer questions or make appoinments, and there is no such thing as having any of it waived for reasons that are beyond my control, like these people making themselves unavailable.
The Air Force has gone electronic with everything. Our records are all online now. Our personnel flight that is supposed to be there to answer questions about our records are online. All in/out-processing is online for paperwork, but we still have to go around and get physical signatures on our checklists. So, we take tests on computers over the internet to cut down on paperwork, then they do something incredibly stupid. you see, they set up the syustem so that no one can access the training certificates, or the electronic out processing paperwork, or practically anything else anymore, except for the person who the records and information actually pertains to. Which means I now have to print out 6 copies of the certificate or other confrimation paparwork, and hand deliver to the different agencies on base, there by using more paper than we would have used had we still been doing everything by hand. What is the point of going high-tech and doing everything on the computer, if we don't give access to the agencies that need that paperwork? Its rediculous. Oh, and don't let the power go out, because doing the paperwork by hand is unacceptable for any reason. I'm telling you, if there is a big storm that knocks the power out, or a major EMP event, then the Air Force, or at least my base, is going to come to a screeching halt. No work orders get done, no in/out-processing gets done, no training gets done, nothing gets fixed, no planes fly, we are simply shut down! How stupid is this?
Anyway, That is all I want to rant about today. I know I do a lot of griping here. It makes it sound like I hate my job. I'll be honest, I do. I hate it because of where I'm currently stuck, and the garbage that I have to go through that I shouldn't have to deal with. I've been deployed to a combat zone on three seperate occasions, and if the people running my base were running those deployments, I have no doubt that half my squadron would be lying in graves somewhere with little white tombstones honring their service.
That being said, I am very proud of what I do. My next few posts will talk more about that. I am glad to be in service of my country.
I re-enlisted on 2 Jan 2009 for another 5 years. I must like something about what I do if I keep re-upping with the military. I will shed some good light in my next few posts to counter act the bad that I have been shining in these last few posts.