For older Marines

[sscjoe]

Kim, I love you. Will you marry Dan.

[Theoldgunny]

heck in 52 the recruiter never said anything about an mos an no one asked as far as i know we just wanted to be MARINES

[Mongoose]

heck in 52 the recruiter never said anything about an mos an no one asked as far as i know we just wanted to be MARINES

In 67, I didn't even know what an mos was. Dont even remember hearing the word. I , just as many young men. Thought all Marines were in the middle of the shet. It honestly never crossed my mind. That there was anything but Infantry in the Corps.

[m14ed]

Graduated highschool @ 17, figured i needed to drag my feet four years anyway, BINGO!! Had never heard the term MOS untill the last part of boot when they nicely
informed us there were actually different fields we would all work in other than Infantry. Prior to that, I thought we all had to do what was needed to be done on a daily basis.
There was the Airwing option others had talked about, it wasn't a deal breaker, didn't even enter into the contract. Guess you could just mark "Sucker" on our heads back then compaired to what the kids today are getting.
The "Mothers of America" have pretty much ruined our Corps ........

[HST]

I wanted to pull butts on the flamethrower range or be the dud retreiver at the grenade pit but they both required some college. So I became a successful wireman who never wired and mustang HST/FAC radio operator who never took a written message.

[USNAviator]

I wonder how many would join today if there were no contracts.Suppose that would take us back to the days of the draft.

Greetings!!!!! One word sure to spread terror into the minds and hearts of all 18 yo American males

[sparkie]

In '69 I remember a wish list my recruiter had me fill out. I chose infantry, tanks, arty, in that order. At the end of boot I got 2841,, ground radio repair. Pretty close, hugh?
Anyone else remember a 'wish list'? Meebe that was just for us 'young' old farts.
Also remember seeing my recruiter twice on the 120 day delay program. Now I think they live together.

[USNAviator]

In '69 I remember a wish list my recruiter had me fill out. I chose infantry, tanks, arty, in that order. At the end of boot I got 2841,, ground radio repair. Pretty close, hugh?
Anyone else remember a 'wish list'? Meebe that was just for us 'young' old farts.
Also remember seeing my recruiter twice on the 120 day delay program. Now I think they live together.

I'm probably wrong but wasn't their a program that allowed you and a buddy to enlist together with a guarantee you'd at least go through boot camp together?

[sparkie]

I'm probably wrong but wasn't their a program that allowed you and a buddy to enlist together with a guarantee you'd at least go through boot camp together?

But I saw a couple o those in Boot on that program and I wouldn't wanna be them. Just a bit o extra hell. It gave the DIs extra ammo.

[sparkie]

I my opinion,,,,,,
The buddy program was a good way to gather more cannon fodder. After all, normally only 1 person gets an idea at a time. So Billy wants to be a Marine but he's kinda nervious about the thing. natural. " Hey, I'll get Mikey to join too". Now Mikey is thinkin WTF??? but ole Billy is my life long sidekick so OK, whatever you say buddy. There you have it. More meat for the freezer bags,,,but I'm a little jaded these days. If we were allowed to do the job back then, I might have a different opinion.
But thats just my opinion.

No, I don't regret my decision, or my service. I'm just as proud as the next jarhead. This is my weekend to do a bunch of stupid thinkin...........

[kenrobg30]

Had a thought,I know odd but true, before the MOS selection process started, all Marines were at the mercy of the Fates. Did any of you who went through boot before they had contracts ever think about which MOS you might get? Did you have a wish list? Did you even care?. I suspect the answer to the last one is no. Was anyone disappointed when they didn't get infantry?

The answer, as far as I'm concerned is NO, to all of the questions DAN. I do not recall being given an MOS. True. I never paid any attention to it, until I sighned up for this Site. Also True. I had a number of different jobs during my active service time, and negver knew my MOS. My time as an Interior Guard was the longest time I spent in one job. Field Radio was second longest. I liked both jobs, but I liked Radioman best. The guard job got me too close to the chucken-sh*t Feather-merchants. I far preferred Field Officers, or Marine/Navy Pilots. ( You can keep the brownie points DAN, that butter is free.) They were the REAL Marine Corps. Fair Winds, and Following Seas, and Sempre Fidelis, to all of the Brothers and Sisters.
Ken

[chulaivet1966]

I'm probably wrong but wasn't their a program that allowed you and a buddy to enlist together with a guarantee you'd at least go through boot camp together?

Yes...I joined with my best friend Terry Malone and they confirmed we would go through boot together.
We did get separated after ITR.
He ended up in I/3/5 and we just happened to see each other when I was on Op Colorado and they were passing through our LZ west of Tam Ky near Hiep Duc.
This was just after Op Hastings and the Hill 362 ambush.

Sparkie.....never felt he and I got more grief than any others. BUT....I'm sure we didn't send out any memo to the DI's that we joined together.
We hardly spoke and were not in the same quonset hut.

Time for a refill...

[Mongoose]

They called it the Buddy Program, but as you said, it only guaranteed that you could go through MCRD together. But in a platoon, you hardly ever talked to anyone else, as usually we kept our mouths shut at all times.
This is why people who were in the same platoon sometimes have very little camaraderie later on, they just never got to know each other while at PI or SD.
Had a Marine buddy of mine, we were both in Puerto Rico for two years together---we had gone through PI in the same platoon but were like strangers while at MCRD.
If you talked with anyone during the 13 weeks of boot camp, it was in a hushed tone for a few minutes during free time or square away time. Never long conversations of any kind.

Dave, my bunk mate in bootcamp was Bob Staats. Hes a member here on L.N. ( RSTA). We used to sit on our footlockers after lights out and bullshet. Got to be good friends. Still are.

[kenrobg30]

Had a thought,I know odd but true, before the MOS selection process started, all Marines were at the mercy of the Fates. Did any of you who went through boot before they had contracts ever think about which MOS you might get? Did you have a wish list? Did you even care?. I suspect the answer to the last one is no. Was anyone disappointed when they didn't get infantry?

I had a reply all typed out on here, but somehow, I lost it. Oh well. I never paid any attention to my MOS, in fact I have to search hard to remember ever having heard mine. Then I came on this site, and everyone talked about MOS. I still don't pay any attention to it. Dan, My answer to your questions has to be NO, except for the last one. I wanted infantry. I concidered the Guard detail in DC to be the pits, but you play the hand you're dealt. FRair Winds, and S?F!!!

[Old Marine]

OK.........I'll bite (meaning I'm answering in an "older" Marine question). I didn't sign up because I wanted to do anything specific - I didn't really give a fat baby's a$$. I wanted to fly something but, back then they only let women fly the slow birds like a C131 or a C5 (I think?) - anyway, it was transport planes only. My Recruiter kept telling me my MOS was Whiskey Juliet - whatever THAT was - I didn't care.

I remember taking the tests and stuff to see if any of us had a brain in our heads or not. I remember the whole platoon being marched down to some building that would hold all of us and some S-1 guy calling us up to come and get our first set of orders.

Mine said that I was going to Millington, TN to NAS Memphis for training to be an Aviation Ordnance Armament Repair Technician. Of course, I had no clue what the hell THAT was so, I asked - "what's an Aviation Ordnance Armament Repair Technician?". Do you know this man busted his gut laughing at my Southern a$$ and told me "you're going to be stacking BB's for the next four years". Hell, turned out, I had a BLAST (no pun intended) for the next 4 years!

Swing with the Wing baby! IYAOYAS!

I did over 4 years with the zoomies/wing wipers and never had to have an avaition MOS.