The Corps Today, Yesterday, Tomorrow.

[USMC 2571]

Another thread got me thinking----what about a topic all are interested in. Namely the past, present, future Marine Corps. We served, but we are not in the know when it comes to what's going on now, the different changes, the trends, how the Corps differs from when we were in, 1963 to 1967 in my case. Mongoose and I talked about how Leatherneck Magazine just isn't what it used to be, to us, as we have no idea what they're talking about half the time, the newer terminology, the technology, the customs etc have changed somewhat. So I decided to start this thread.

Depending on what happens, this thread might end up being moved to the Marine Only section of this forum, but that is for others to decide.

Similar Threads:

• Milblogs: Yesterday and Today
• Yesterday's warriors of service to today's
• Visited a college campus yesterday/today
• Planning for Tomorrow, Today
• The US Marine Corps, Ready Today, Better Tomorrow

[USMC 2571]

One of many big changes in in the area of the MOS. When I was in, we had absolutely no say in what MOS would be handed to us. Classification Tests at boot camp, plus the ever-present "needs of the Corps" determined what our jobs would be. Nowadays people can choose the field but not the specific job within that field, which leads to untold of anxieties and concerns, will I get this, can I get that, can I go into Recon after a week in boot camp??? So maybe the old days were better, you joined because you wanted to be a Marine.

[USMC 2571]

Anyone have any info or insights as to what the Corps is about these days? Post it here please. We who served some time ago have no other way to know how things have or have not changed.

[advanced]

I landed in Parris Island in January 1967. Back in that day almost all Marines were volunteers and in my mind, and I believe the minds of others, we all thought of the Marine Corps as only infantry. So, as I went through my training at PI there was no other thought in my mind that I would be anything other than infantry. We were trained as infantry, and at the end about 85 of the 96 recruits in my platoon were sent to infantry, needs of the Corps. Many of us then went on to make more Marine Corps History.

Sorry, I know nothing of today's MC. I only hope that they are as dedicated as we were.

[Mongoose]

Well Brother Dave.......one difference is....we were not brain-washed into PC nice guys. We came out of boot-camp with a chip on our shoulder. We didn't join to get funds for a future education. In our time we joined to fight, which is what Marines are there for. We wanted to get into the thick of fighting for our Country.

[USMC 2571]

True---you and I have talked by phone many many times about the fact that we had no IDEA that there even were "jobs" in the Corps. I figured all Marines were Marines and they had no specific job. We actually had no way of knowing much about it with no Internet around.

[USMC 2571]

And the thing is, our ignorance was in fact bliss. We knew nothing about the Corps or who did what or what would happen. And it was a blessing, because all we have to do is look at Ask A Marine section to see the anxiety about how much time the DIs will give them to tie their shoelaces in the morning. They worry about everything, they want to know the whole future right now. We did not care about any of that. Whatever happened, happened.

[USMC 2571]

Here I am wondering why I don't know much about today's Marine Corps, then I realize that I went in just 18 years after the end of World War II.

I guess that explains my lack of knowledge about today's Corps.

[USMC 2571]

This thread may not work out well at all----

because all we know is the Corps we are or were in. If, in the 1960s, someone had asked me, hey, how has the Corps changed in the last fifty years? How should I know? I have no idea what it used to be like. All I know is the here and now.

So----your thoughts are still welcome, but the question probably should be "What is the Corps like today?"-----then we can figure out for ourselves what changes have occurred.

[Zulu 36]

Well, among you guys I'm the boot. I went to boot camp in 1971. I had been "prepped" by my father, a WWII Marine, and a boss of mine who was a Korea Marine. While things had changed since their day, the underlying stuff was still there. Needs of the Corps, very hostile DIs, picky attention to detail, etc. I did OK in boot camp and 90% of it was a surprise I just had to deal with. My father thought my uniforms were "officer's material," and my making meritorious PFC was new for him, but much of the rest I told him was pretty familiar. Sure I used the M14 and he used a Springfield 03, but some changes are inevitable.

I knew going in that there were multiple MOS fields available and they would be assigned based on tests and needs of the Corps. I was made a truck driver. I expected to be made infantry, but the Corps needed truck drivers and a bunch of us from my series were sent to truck driver's school after ITR. I didn't like Motor T, although it set me up for adventures and experiences that I may not have had otherwise (including nine months in the Nam).

When I went in, the Corps was transitioning into a peacetime outfit. Vietnam was essentially over for the Corps. However, my unit out of Iwakuni, Japan, was sent to Vietnam in May 1972 for the Easter Offensive to provide air support in the An Loc area. We stayed until the war ended in January 1973.

Coming back to the States, I came back to a different Marine Corps. Discipline sucked, racial strife was rampant, drug use was up. I didnt like it. I was at Camp Lejeune and it was like being back in Detroit with vicious assaults and murders taking place. Still, I re-upped and moved to MPs. I stayed with MPs until Oct 1977 when my enlistment was up and I got out. My CO tried to talk me into staying, but I felt I could do better in the civilian world. I did. I went into civilian police work and retired as a deputy chief.

I did do a year in the Marine Reserves, but that was a waste of time. Then I was talked into the Michigan Air Guard and I did 14-years there (including a trip to the sand box in 1990-91).

[madsox]

Good thread, Dave - we can bump it and get some attention. I'll chime in with what I experienced in the 80s and 90s.

It was different but a lot the same. In boot camp (1984), my Senior DI and many of the others were Vietnam vets, so we got trained with mostly the same mindset that you did.Yes, it was peacetime and nothing big was going on, but the Marines who were teaching us knew what it was like to be dropped into the shiz, and were determined that we'd be as ready as they could make us.

We could, by that time, request an MOS field (I was pre-assigned, because I went in Reserve, so it was for a specific billet at the unit I was going to come back out to), but there was still no guarantee. I think most recruits went in on open contracts. Late in third phase we got called into a school circle, and the SDI called out who was going to what MOS school.

Lots more changes were coming along, but that's good for the first blast. Training was hard, recruits got thumped out behind the barracks when they needed it, and we survived it just fine!

s/f and more later 8-)

[USMC 2571]

Excellent posts as always, Chris and Andy----

[Tennessee Top]

I am still connected to the Corps today by some small degree. One of my former corporals is now a CWO and career recruiter so he is a valuable source of info when it comes to recruiting matters (he is an operations officer at a recruiting district headquarters and handles all of the waiver requests). He is nearing retirement however so this resource will be gone soon.

When my niece was going through bootcamp at PI couple years ago, I joined a parents of Parris Island support group on Facebook. Still a member so get some insight with what recruits are doing (I can see their training matrix).

My niece had her ankle broken in a MCMAP match (that's the USMC's official martial arts program) by a male Marine. It did not heal properly after surgery so she was given a medical discharge recently. She is a source of information about the Corps - albeit from a female's perspective.

I receive a daily email that has updates and news articles from the Military Times and Navy Times. Obviously, most of those are ignored by the mainstream media because they're not controversial enough but they are informative to me.

As a retiree, I receive a monthly newsletter from Headquarters Marine Corps. It's geared towards retirees but also keeps us up-to-date with important current events around the Corps.

So. I still have a connection but it's not much.

[USMC 2571]

But it's enough for you to be able to help out quite a bit in the Ask A Marine section of this forum. You certainly help a lot there. Thanks for all your posts, they are always informative.

[Mongoose]

I can't really talk about very much about the Corps. For me it was fast and furious. Sometimes it seems like a blur. In 67, bootcamp had shortened because of demand in Nam. The rest of our training, such as ITR and BITS was also shortened. 10 day leave, then Staging. Spent 12 months in Nam, was wounded twice. The last time put me in the Philly Naval Hospital for 9 months, off and on. Went on and was medically separated. I never got to be an actual Marine. Didn't get to travel any where, or enjoy the week-ends with brother Marines. However, I would not change anything.