fontman
06-22-06, 02:47 PM
POW/MIA FLAG OUTDATED?
From Capt B's Blog
Robert Dorr's recent Colum in the Marine Corps Times suggests that the POW/MIA flag is out of date and reflects out of date imagery that should be retired. His opinion of the imagery is that it is counter productive and has outlived its usefulness. Service members who become separated from their units or evading the enemy can't survive without the mere hope of being found. Their hope finds strength in that their country will come looking for them. That they are not forgotten and that won't stop looking for them.
This also applies to our family members as a constant reminder that POW/MIA will constantly be sought after. The biggest factor to us while fighting in Iraq was that we had the very best medical attention waiting for us if we were wounded. We weren't afraid of getting hurt because we knew America's best was waiting for us if we were wounded. Following that the best combat multiplier was that if were in trouble, help was on the way. We called it "Dads coming". It came from the top brass and it worked great.
If we got into a big **** sandwich or got separated from our unit we knew Dad was coming. This happened when a sniper from 3/25 was separated and detained by the enemy. The Marines brought everything they had to the town where he was last seen. It was cordoned off so quickly that the enemy had no choice but to give the Marine up. Unfortunately he expired before they decided to release him from previous wounds in an earlier gunfight. The fact is that the Marine knew dad was coming for him and after 30 aircraft, multiple special Ops teams and a Battalion of Marines swamped the small town near Haditha the enemy didn't want to be caught with the wounded Marine.
That's the same kind of positive reinforcement the POW/MIA flag instills for service members who are still MIA from Viet Nam and recent wars. Granted the Muj doesn't have too many enemy watch towers in position but who wants to fly a flag with hooded scumbags on it ready to be head a service member?
From Capt B's Blog
Robert Dorr's recent Colum in the Marine Corps Times suggests that the POW/MIA flag is out of date and reflects out of date imagery that should be retired. His opinion of the imagery is that it is counter productive and has outlived its usefulness. Service members who become separated from their units or evading the enemy can't survive without the mere hope of being found. Their hope finds strength in that their country will come looking for them. That they are not forgotten and that won't stop looking for them.
This also applies to our family members as a constant reminder that POW/MIA will constantly be sought after. The biggest factor to us while fighting in Iraq was that we had the very best medical attention waiting for us if we were wounded. We weren't afraid of getting hurt because we knew America's best was waiting for us if we were wounded. Following that the best combat multiplier was that if were in trouble, help was on the way. We called it "Dads coming". It came from the top brass and it worked great.
If we got into a big **** sandwich or got separated from our unit we knew Dad was coming. This happened when a sniper from 3/25 was separated and detained by the enemy. The Marines brought everything they had to the town where he was last seen. It was cordoned off so quickly that the enemy had no choice but to give the Marine up. Unfortunately he expired before they decided to release him from previous wounds in an earlier gunfight. The fact is that the Marine knew dad was coming for him and after 30 aircraft, multiple special Ops teams and a Battalion of Marines swamped the small town near Haditha the enemy didn't want to be caught with the wounded Marine.
That's the same kind of positive reinforcement the POW/MIA flag instills for service members who are still MIA from Viet Nam and recent wars. Granted the Muj doesn't have too many enemy watch towers in position but who wants to fly a flag with hooded scumbags on it ready to be head a service member?