I gotta jump in on this one.....


First off, I doubt that id the Marine Corps was the size of the Army they could maintain the high standards they do... Compare the USMC with the 18th Airborne Corps alone.

USMC total active strength as of FEB 2000- 172,071

US Army active strentgh- 472,228  I cannot find exact figures for the 18th Airborne Corps but I know it approaches 80-100,000 when you include all the subordinate commands.

The larger the group the more difficult it is to maintain high standards across the board. You have to set your priorities.

Also, the USMC has the luxury of having the Navy do a good portion of its non-combat work that the Army does not. Does the Navy still provide all the medical personell? Those are some of the "slackest appearing" units in the Army, but they do get the job done. When Marines deploy on ships do they take thier own cooks, medics, etc on board or depend in part on the Navy?

Do we have pouges and pouge units? Sure, but you guys have the Navy. There is a USMC Reserve ammo supply company not to far from me that is a story in itself. My unit has picked up several transfers from Marines that wanted to actually train for combat instead of spending half the weekend on the drill pad. They are much happier with us.

On a similar note, we had the oppertunity to train with soem Marine reservists a few years ago. They looked sharp, talked a good game, and made all kinds of wierd sounds. When you trained in normal situations they were pretty dammed good. But when you threw them something that was outside thier experience they were not as nearly quick to adapt to the situation as most soldiers I have trained with, and seemed to not "think outside the box" as much. Not saying that this is the rule, just my experience.

The Army is suffering from a severe lack of senior leadership at the moment, and that has a lot to do with our problems.  After the last 8 years of Clinton appointee's I sometimes wonder if we have started hiring our General Officers at the unemployment office. As an NCO I spend alot of time just undoing stupid things that get sent down to me. But all I can do is soldier on and hope things improve, and take care of and train my troops as best I can.

As far as the way some soldiers dress, you have to remember that the military is a reflection of the society that it is drawn from. You cannot take  a 18 year old from Harlem, send him to 12 weeks of training, the send him to rural Oklahoma and expect him to act and dress just like the natives. And how a person chooses to dress or cut their hair has nothing to do with their ability to fight. I know a man who has hair as long as the Army will allow and then a little, as much mustache as he can get away with, and wears tie dye shirts, ratty shorts and sandals all the time. He drives a beat up Blazer with greatful dead bears on the back glass. To look at him you would figure he was a big time loser. But he is one of the Highest speed SF medics I know, and can out PT, shoot, and soldier just about anyone alive.