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I was trying to put myself in such position, like how I would refer to myself. However, I do not feel my quals line up correctly, plus I lack the cultural, let alone official, knowledge about the term "Ranger".
So for example, if I am say in Iraq, deployed with a SEAL team but not a SEAL, would I say "my time as a submariner in Iraq..."? Or my friend who is a SEAL, but deployed often not in a SEAL team, but he always referred to himself as a "SEAL" despite doing duty with a team or not. Not being on a SEAL team does not make you not a SEAL. I mean I am always a submariner despite what duty I am doing.
It actually seems odd now that I think about it, that you can graduate from Ranger school, get the little tab thing or whatever it is called, yet still some prohibitions on calling yourself a Ranger? You cannot say you are a Ranger and you are attached to such and such command?
A SEAL can be pushing papers in DC, and still say "as a SEAL pushing papers in DC..." because that is what he is, despite what duty he is doing at the moment.
Well if every other platoon and squad leader in a Light Infantry Division's infantry forces has a tab then those in Ranger units have a weaker case for calling themselves elite. That Ranger schools and its graduates were in the force when there were no Ranger companies between WWII and the end of Vietnam complicates matters.
And even further when many of the US Ranger qualified troops who were members of the Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols which rebranded became Provisional Ranger Companies went to the in theatre Recondo School before going on their specialized patrols.
If the highest ranking (former) O and E from of 75th Ranger Regiment/SOCOM said it is Ok, then who am I to judge?
Okay. Just clearing that up. I sure wish we had some way of clarifying who served in a Ranger unit and who is a qualified Ranger, but the terms are essentially the same, whether it is misleading to use it in this context or not.
I was trying to put myself in such position, like how I would refer to myself. However, I do not feel my quals line up correctly, plus I lack the cultural, let alone official, knowledge about the term "Ranger".
So for example, if I am say in Iraq, deployed with a SEAL team but not a SEAL, would I say "my time as a submariner in Iraq..."? Or my friend who is a SEAL, but deployed often not in a SEAL team, but he always referred to himself as a "SEAL" despite doing duty with a team or not. Not being on a SEAL team does not make you not a SEAL. I mean I am always a submariner despite what duty I am doing.
It actually seems odd now that I think about it, that you can graduate from Ranger school, get the little tab thing or whatever it is called, yet still some prohibitions on calling yourself a Ranger? You cannot say you are a Ranger and you are attached to such and such command?
A SEAL can be pushing papers in DC, and still say "as a SEAL pushing papers in DC..." because that is what he is, despite what duty he is doing at the moment.
To complicate matters further, many of the Privates and Specialist Airborne Rangers in the Ranger Regiment are waiting for their opportunity to attend Ranger School to qualify for the Ranger tab as oppose to the unit shoulder patch..
To complicate matters further, many of the Privates and Specialist Airborne Rangers in the Ranger Regiment are waiting for their opportunity to attend Ranger School to qualify for the Ranger tab as oppose to the unit shoulder patch..
and many of them assigned, deployed, and completed their enlistment contract with Ranger Regiment and still did not earn the tab for whatever reason. Yet, they still get to wear that tan beret.
Well, thank you for the insight from you posters, as someone never in the Army, is certainly is not something I am familiar with.
In any case, I do not feel Cotton lied, misrepresented, etc, about his service.
My own opinion after reading everything is that if a person graduates the school and gets awarded the tab, they are a Ranger, whether with a Ranger regiment or not. I base this upon the tab is the award, mark, of someone who graduated the school and no one else gets it, and comparing it to the SEALs that upon awarding of the Trident, they are a SEAL whether they go to a team or not.
As for the lingo, I just feel it is what you are, accomplished, you refer to yourself usually in the context of your highest accomplishment. Him saying "as a Ranger..." I think is fine and accurate, as him not being with a Ranger regiment does not make him less of a Ranger in my opinion, just as a SEAL, a pilot, a medical doctor, etc, is no less of one doing something else.
I even gotten the "what is an submariner doing out here?" jokingly manner when I was shore duty overseas, far away from a submarine, lol. But I have my warfare insignia on, me pulling security duty somewhere did not make me any less of a submariner, and me saying "as a submariner pulling some boring security duty in country A..." is not an inaccurate statement.
It is splitting hairs. People should read the entire story. Below is one part of the article.
Cotton, however, did not serve in the 75th Ranger Regiment. He attended the U.S. Army's Ranger School, a roughly eight-week leadership course that teaches service members light-infantry tactics. The school is open to volunteers from all of the U.S. military's branches, including the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. Ranger School graduates are allowed to affix a "Ranger tab" — a symbol denoting the completion of the course — on their uniforms.
If he completed the course he's Ranger qualified and allowed to wear the tab above his organizational patch. Personnel in Ranger battalions wear the organizational patch while assigned to those units.
The tab is as essential a promotion worthy accomplishment as the EIB. Centralized promotions to ranks of O-3 and E-7 in the 11A and 11B fields are almost automatic with the previously mentioned achievements.
I read where Tom Cotton did his four years of active and four in the AR. He was a PL during OIF for six months as part of the 506th PIR.
Later he went to Afghanistan as a staff officer in a FOB.
Those are the facts as I know them. When I served a person who earned the tab was considered Ranger qualified. When I attended Sapper Leader Course class 6-95 all the instructors were Ranger qualified because it was a prerequisite.
Even today the 75th Regiment expects personnel to serve 18-24 months before a 4187 will be considered.
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Originally Posted by victimofGM
It is splitting hairs. People should read the entire story. Below is one part of the article.
Cotton, however, did not serve in the 75th Ranger Regiment. He attended the U.S. Army's Ranger School, a roughly eight-week leadership course that teaches service members light-infantry tactics. The school is open to volunteers from all of the U.S. military's branches, including the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. Ranger School graduates are allowed to affix a "Ranger tab" — a symbol denoting the completion of the course — on their uniforms.
The US Army should really differentiate the two a bit more clearly, as Ranger School (including Leadership courses) and the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program (RASP) which a candidate must pass in order to be effective member of the 75th Ranger Regiment are clearly very different
I think the different Ranger tab and scroll confuse matters even further.
Perhaps they should use 'Ranger Leadership Course' or 'R Company'.
In Britain you have the 'All Arms Commando Course', however this is very different to qualifying as a Royal Marine Commando.
The same is true of 'P Company' which is a tough 'Pre-Parachute Selection' course but does not mean you are a member of the Parachute Regiment.
Both the 'All Arms Commando Course' and 'P Company' are open to other members of the armed forces and even overseas candidates, and they must be completed by all units supporting 3 Commando Brigade and 16 Air Assault Brigade.
There are also leaderships badges, but again they just mean you have passed a course rather than you belong to any particular regiment or organisation.
Last edited by Brave New World; 04-30-2021 at 07:32 AM..
And therein lies the problem, but, yes, your point went right over his head. We either have one standard for everyone or we don't. You're either a Ranger if you graduated from Ranger School or you're not. Calling Cotton a "poser" while calling females who are in the exact same boat as Cotton "Rangers" is foolish and merely shows your partisan stripes.
So he graduated from Ranger School, earned the Ranger Tab, and served a combat tour with a different unit.
I do not see the problem.
I served 20+ years [1977-to-1983 and 1987-to-2001].
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