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2005-11-03 Home Front: WoT

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Posted by Steve 2005-11-03 09:47|| || Front Page|| [5 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 The Marines are assigning two battalions to SOCOM, bringing to mind the 1st and 2nd Raider Battalions of WWII. These outfits were disbanded because the top Marine brass didn't like the idea of having an elite force within an elite force. The Navy SEAL program was created from the RECON Marines, but few people know about RECON. The Corps believes that a Marine is a Marine, and that SEALs and Green Berets are still "squids" and "doggies".

Posted by usmc6743 2005-11-03 11:12|| 2005-11-03 11:12|| Front Page Top

#2 The Corps believes that a Marine is a Marine, and that SEALs and Green Berets are still "squids" and "doggies".

Reminds me of the retort I heard from an old roommate who was in the Navy:

"Who're you calling a squid, ya freakin' jarhead?"

Posted by Raj 2005-11-03 11:24|| 2005-11-03 11:24|| Front Page Top

#3 I could care less what you call a Marine, as long as he's whacking haji's and terrorists he's damn sure "Special" to me!

Posted by Besoeker 2005-11-03 12:19|| 2005-11-03 12:19|| Front Page Top

#4 Though it's far less popular song than it used to be, it used to bug Marines intensely that the lyrics of the Marine Hymn fit perfectly to the country tune, "The Wabash Cannonball".

(I am far from anti-Marine, BTW. I had a great uncle Marine who had the fourth highest "peace bond" of any Marine in WWII. Great combat NCO, but you just couldn't send the man on shore leave without creating an international incident.)

Posted by Anonymoose 2005-11-03 12:31|| 2005-11-03 12:31|| Front Page Top

#5 Name was "Percy". Imagine how it was like being a Marine named Percy.

Posted by Anonymoose 2005-11-03 12:31|| 2005-11-03 12:31|| Front Page Top

#6 It's going to be interesting. Having worked with Marines while running an ODA -way back in the mid-eighties, I found them to be disciplined, motivated, general assault troops but a far cry from adequate for foreign internal defense, insurgency or other non-direct action missions.

Posted by WhiteCat 2005-11-03 13:51|| 2005-11-03 13:51|| Front Page Top

#7 White cat: Roger Roger, Tng MTT's, FID and DA fir sure maybe, UW prolly not their cup of tea. BHG too tightly wrapped I'm afeared. But rat now, suspect we can use the aug.

Posted by Besoeker 2005-11-03 14:00|| 2005-11-03 14:00|| Front Page Top

#8 From what I've heard, though, WhiteCat, 21st-century Marine NCOs have been great as MTTs; there was an article on it back in April by Robert Kaplan, "America's African Rifles."

Posted by Edward Yee 2005-11-03 16:15|| http://edwardyee.fanworks.net]">[http://edwardyee.fanworks.net] 2005-11-03 16:15|| Front Page Top

#9 I like the Marine spirit that "We don't have any special operations troops or that all Marines are special operations troops." Kind of like Joe Paterno and not having names on football jerseys. On the other hand, the Marines coming into SOCOM can't do anything but add to.

Posted by John Q. Citizen 2005-11-03 19:43|| 2005-11-03 19:43|| Front Page Top

#10 I found them to be disciplined, motivated, general assault troops but a far cry from adequate for foreign internal defense, insurgency or other non-direct action missions

1980s? Gee, somebody ought to tell the jarheads that they didn't do it right in China, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, or the Philippines. Oh, and that their 'Small Wars' manual is all wrong. I guess you ought to inform the State Department, which used the Corps in foreign ops some 180 times in the 20th century...

Posted by Pappy 2005-11-03 21:22|| 2005-11-03 21:22|| Front Page Top

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