karlunity Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Army General kicks out Marine recon unit!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WASHINGTON (Map, News) - The top American general in Afghanistan has expelled a U.S. Marine special operations company for the way the men responded to an ambush March 4, Marine sources said. Maj. Cliff Gilmore, a spokesman for Marine Special Operations Command, confirmed to The Examiner that the company of 120 Marines is redeploying. He said the decision followed an ambush on the company's convoy by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device. A second Marine source said the Marines retaliated and some civilians were killed. The action brought an abrupt end to what promised to be a historic deployment. The unit sailed in January from Camp Lejeune, N.C., as the first Marine Corps special operations company sent overseas. The Corps joined U.S. Special Operations Command a year ago. The company is now redeploying to Kuwait after just a few weeks in Afghanistan in what was supposed to be a six-month tour. Marine officer assigned to special operations said Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, the top U.S. commander, took the extraordinary step of expelling the unit after he consulted with Afghan Prime Minister Hamid Karzai. A spokesman for Eikenberry could not be reached today. Gilmore said, "The unit responded to the ambush and the local population perceptions of that response have damaged the relationship between the local population and the Marine special operations company." rscarborough@dcexaminer.com Place: Army general's office. Marine Recon unit receiving "office hours" Army General. You young Marines had best standby!! Firing rifles at people..with REAL bullets..what in the hell has gotten into you? Have you considered the effect of noise pollution on the environment!! What if you had HURT someone? You! Marine in the rear rank..what is your name? "Cpl. Karl sir." Well, Cpl. Karl is it? What the hell is so funny. "They were shooting at us sir. " God ... I mean Allah damn it Cpl. Were you the one reading the "playboy" at the Culturally awareness and embrace diversity lecture? It is part of their culture to express their feelings that way. We have to understand... Stop that laughing .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roscoedoh Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Well darn Karl. What can I say? I guess you Marines are just a bunch of barbarians. (But that's why we keep you guys around. ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonic1 Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 all jokes aside ..the way i see it Marine Recon is trained to kick ass and kill people...don"t call them to direct traffic and hand out candy.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usmc0332 Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 I have said many times that I am surprised that there has not been more trouble. Marines are not the best at police work. Storming beaches, kicking doors, destroying the enemy with fire and close combat, that is their forte. They have generally been better at destroying things than maintaining peace. They have done a commendable job thru the PC curtain. My hat is off to them. Must be a far cry from our old saying,"There are no friendly civilians." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlunity Posted March 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 "Must be a far cry from our old saying,"There are no friendly civilians." Or "If it moves and it is not green, kill it". karl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sailormilan2 Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 When it absolutely, positively has to be destroyed overnight.......................................................call the Marines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken98k Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 I was under the impression that the marines didn't have special ops? I thought the Marines were special. My Marine brother told me a regular Marine was as good as an Army Ranger or Navy Seal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlunity Posted March 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Your brother is right. Recon is just another MOS. Either you are a Marine or you are not. karl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usmc0332 Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Marine Force Recon is used 300+ miles behind enemy lines, often long before an invasion (like Afghanistan). They are the Marines with SCUBA certification, and jump qualification in their job description. They go to places we never were, and do things that we had nothing to do with. They also cross-train with groups like the FBI, DEA, CIA, LA SWAT, etc. I did a little training with them as instructors. Good instructors also. It is true, every Marine is a Rifleman, and every Sailor is a Firefighter. Even clerks and cooks qualify on the riflerange every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlunity Posted March 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2007 Fellas. I want to make it clear that I was not putting Ricky Recon down. I remember seeing him hanging from ropes that were dangling from choppers flying around free-fire zones in the Nam. They are excellent Marines, well trained and motived. But we don't want to follow the mistake the Army made by dividing the Corps into "Elites" and "dog faces". Can you see the Corps handing in their utility covers for Berets??????? Karl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roscoedoh Posted March 28, 2007 Report Share Posted March 28, 2007 Can you see the Corps handing in their utility covers for Berets??????? The Horror!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken98k Posted March 28, 2007 Report Share Posted March 28, 2007 "But we don't want to follow the mistake the Army made by dividing the Corps into "Elites" and "dog faces"." That's what we (my brother and I) were discussing. I'd pity the fool that was dumb enough to tell him he was just regular marine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usmc0332 Posted March 28, 2007 Report Share Posted March 28, 2007 They did a job that was way more work than I did humping M2 .50 machinegun parts around. Not a job for everyone. Not a job for me. They are kinda top of the grunt heap. And they are my Brothers, God Bless 'Em. The Marine Corps is a Brotherhood. All parts function as a whole. They are Elite Marines, maybe a bit arrogant, but we all got the same haircut after hitting the "YELLOW FOOTPRINTS." Besides we all love Chesty. ((WARNING, this is an aside)) One of my personal Heroes was 3rd Recon in VN. He always kicks me in the ass, and lifts my spirits. I met him on a construction site due to my Eagle, Globe, and Anchor sticker on my lunchpail. He might be my Dads age, and seen what I can only imagine, but we were Marine Brothers before we shook hands and exchanged names. I was Honored to be invited to his Bronze Star ceremony 2 years ago. There were 4 of his teammates there. In my eyes I was in a room of Giants. They accepted me as an equal Brother. You can read about them in Never Without Heroes, by Lawrence C. Vetter Jr. They are the survivors of Team Striker. My friends name is Jeff S. I was around lots of Elite types while deployed. They all treated me well. Marines are family. The Marine Corps did a study about styles of covers around'88. They determined that the beret was a worthless piece of headgear. It didn't keep the sun out of your eyes, nor did it break up your outline. They found value in boonie type covers, but thought they lacked 'military appearance'. They stuck with what they had. I see they do use boonies some now. I also know they wear regular style covers with MARPAT cammies. I doubt berets are in their future. I felt bad for Army Rangers when the whole Army got the headwear they worked so hard for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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