Marines, turn off your iPhone and dig yourself a foxhole.

General Robert Neller

Marines, turn off your iPhone and dig yourself a foxhole. That’s the Commandant’s message to young Marines, based on embarrassing experiences in recent exercises. As cheap drones and other surveillance technologies spread worldwide, said Gen. Robert Neller, US forces must re-learn how to hide — both physically and electronically — from increasingly tech-savvy adversaries.

Read more here.

Ooh Rah!

Jim Geraghty writes at The Corner,

As I noted then, a former Army recruiter scoffed that the Marines would be so picky at that time: From my own experience, I have no doubt that if a 27-year-old female with a doctor or bachelor of laws had appeared before any recruiter’s desk and inquired about entry into the armed forces, that recruiter would have probably been willing to violate a half-dozen clauses of the UCMJ to get her in.

Read more here.

He liked being a Marine

Mustang brings us a speech by Colonel Mike Lowe, a Marine who passed away this month.

So what is it that I like about Marines? This is the easy part!

I like the fact that you always know were you stand with a Marine! With Marines, there is no middle ground or gray area. There are only missions, objectives, and facts.

I like the fact that if you are a self-declared enemy of America, that running into a Marine outfit in combat is your worst nightmare, and that your health record is about to get a lot thicker or be closed out entirely!

I like the fact that Marines are steadfast and consistent in everything they do. Regardless of whether you agree with them or not; that Marines hold the term “politically correct” with nothing but pure disdain; that Marines stand tall and rigid in their actions, thoughts and deeds when others bend with the direction of the wind and are as confused as a dog looking at a ceiling fan!

I like the fact that each and every Marine considers the honor and legacy of the Corps as his personal and sacred trust to protect and defend.

I like the fact that most civilians don’t have a clue what makes us tick! And that’s not a bad thing. Because if they did, it would scare the hell out of them! I like the fact that others say they want to be like us, but don’t have what it takes in the “pain-gain-pride” department to make it happen.

I like the fact that the Marines came into being in a bar, Tun Tavern, and that Marines still gather in pubs, bars and slop chutes to share sea stories and hot scoop.

I like our motto: Semper Fidelis, and the fact that we don’t shed it when the going gets tough, the battlefield gets deadly or when we hang up our uniform for the last time. I like the fact that Marines take care of each other: in combat and in time of peace.

I like the fact that Marines consider the term “Marines take care of their own” as meaning we will give up our very life for our fellow Marines, if necessary. 

I like the fact that Marines know the difference between “chicken salad” and “chicken shit” and aren’t afraid to call either for what it is! I like the fact that Marines have never failed the people of America and that we don’t use the words “can’t,” “retreat,” or “lose.”

I like the fact that the people of America hold Marines in the highest esteem and that they know that they can count of us to locate close with and destroy those who would harm them!

Read more here.

A gut punch to the morale of the Marine Corps

Stuart Schneiderman asks,

What does it mean when the president does not believe in a triumphant America?

It means nothing good:

“This is just the beginning of the reckoning and accounting,” said Kael Weston, a former State Department political adviser who worked with the Marines for nearly three years in Falluja and the surrounding Anbar Province, and later with Marines in Afghanistan.

Mr. Weston, who is now writing a book but remains in close contact with scores of the men he served with, said Marines across the globe had been frenetically sharing their feelings about the new battle for Falluja via email, text and Facebook.

“The news went viral in the worst way,” he said. “This has been a gut punch to the morale of the Marine Corps and painful for a lot of families who are saying, ‘I thought my son died for a reason.’ ”

Now, the parents of brave men and women believe that, in the eyes of their nation, their children died for nothing.

Equalizing? You mean lowering, don't you?

Aaron Clarey links to this article in Yahoo, and pleas, If you are going to send in the Marines, please send in men!"

More than half of female Marines in boot camp can't do three pullups, the minimum standard that was supposed to take effect with the new year, prompting the Marine Corps to delay the requirement, part of the process of equalizing physical standards to integrate women into combat jobs.