Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Why do we have berets for the whole military now? I thought they were just authorized for elite units ex. Rangers, Special Forces, paratroopers, etc? What idiot decided the whole Army should wear the black beret traditionally only worn by Rangers?
Personally I think they should be abolished (except for the above mentioned units) in favor of the peaked cap for the Army Service Uniform and the patrol cap for the Army Combat Uniform.
I believe the US Army has become very sloppy when it comes to uniforms. I have seen troops on recruiting details and pictures of troops at award ceremonies and the like in the ACU when such events clearly call for the ASU Class A uniform. I mean show some pride in your service and not dress like a slob, wearing the combat uniform to an award ceremony would be akin to me in the civilian world wearing a t-shirt and shorts to a board meeting with a CEO.
Why do we have berets for the whole military now? I thought they were just authorized for elite units ex. Rangers, Special Forces, paratroopers, etc? What idiot decided the whole Army should wear the black beret traditionally only worn by Rangers?
Personally I think they should be abolished (except for the above mentioned units) in favor of the peaked cap for the Army Service Uniform and the patrol cap for the Army Combat Uniform.
I believe the US Army has become very sloppy when it comes to uniforms. I have seen troops on recruiting details and pictures of troops at award ceremonies and the like in the ACU when such events clearly call for the ASU Class A uniform. I mean show some pride in your service and not dress like a slob, wearing the combat uniform to an award ceremony would be akin to me in the civilian world wearing a t-shirt and shorts to a board meeting with a CEO.
Sole reason was marketing...It simply looks cooler..."In the army, you're guaranteed a beret, in other services you most likely won't"...No way of knowing specific numbers but I'm sure it SOMEWHAT had a subconscious affect on potential recruits and ultimately slightly increased recruitment...Air Force did the same thing with security forces (AF military police) and the air force has been struggling to recruit that job...You are correct, it completely devalues the elites...Seniors officials made the change, now and we have to obey "shut up and color" lol
As far as pride of the uniform and the CEO analogy...Don't agree with looking pretty...We're in the military, I don't think there's any need for any sort of dress uniform in any service at all...If you're on base, you're always a target and an attack or freak disaster can happen at anytime, even during award ceremony...You may be expected to protect or help others...
That's my opinion, I'll bet few will agree with me...Military could save a lot of money by not having any service dress
...Air Force did the same thing with security forces (AF military police) and the air force has been struggling to recruit that job...You are correct, it completely devalues the elites...Seniors officials made the change, now and we have to obey "shut up and color" lol
I got to call foul on that one. Air Force Security Forces/Security Police/Air Police have worn the Blue Beret since 1975. We have trouble with retention because it is the worst, the toughest and most "military" job in the Air Force. Elite??? Well, we are the Infantry of the Air Force. I should know; I worn my Blue Beret proudly for 24 years until last summer.
I got to call foul on that one. Air Force Security Forces/Security Police/Air Police have worn the Blue Beret since 1975. We have trouble with retention because it is the worst, the toughest and most "military" job in the Air Force. Elite??? Well, we are the Infantry of the Air Force. I should know; I worn my Blue Beret proudly for 24 years until last summer.
I don't mean to hijack this thread, however I heard that the Air Force has become some what hard to get into because they aren't putting many waivers through even if you request Security Forces. Is there any truth to that?
I was active duty (enlisted) in the Army in the 70s and reserves in the 80s. I agree that a beret as standard issue headgear for all Army units has the effect of "watering down" the beret as a symbol of the elite combat units. What, no more "bus driver hat"? No more "garrison cap"? I always thought the garrison cap with khakis looked pretty sharp. Most of my Army time was in combat engineer units. We were usually building bridges or roads, hauling stuff around, occasionally blowing up stuff or generally working pretty hard out in the dirt on near a river. Wearing Class A or Khaki uniforms was pretty rare, just a few times per year.
I got to call foul on that one. Air Force Security Forces/Security Police/Air Police have worn the Blue Beret since 1975. We have trouble with retention because it is the worst, the toughest and most "military" job in the Air Force. Elite??? Well, we are the Infantry of the Air Force. I should know; I worn my Blue Beret proudly for 24 years until last summer.
Correct...But even since 1975 SF/SP/AP has always had retention problems...One could argue absolutely any job in the AF is an "elite"...IMO one of the worst things about SF is it's currently near impossible to cross train out of it...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Packersnut21
I don't mean to hijack this thread, however I heard that the Air Force has become some what hard to get into because they aren't putting many waivers through even if you request Security Forces. Is there any truth to that?
They never really did a ton of waivers and it depends what's it for such as breaking laws or what...A recruiter told me bad credit and too many kids are the two most common waivers they issue...Not sure if he meant air force wide or just his recruiting office...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kalbo
The Air Force has never had much of a recruiting problem, rarely are waivers issued. Even prior service members have a hard time getting back in.
Air Force as a whole, yes...But they've always had hard to fill AFSCs which are on the critical list...Most of which have long tech schools with a high failure rate...Because these slots are so undermanned, high odds you'll be working long hours and have long and frequent deployments...
As far as pride of the uniform and the CEO analogy...Don't agree with looking pretty...We're in the military, I don't think there's any need for any sort of dress uniform in any service at all...If you're on base, you're always a target and an attack or freak disaster can happen at anytime, even during award ceremony...You may be expected to protect or help others...
That's my opinion, I'll bet few will agree with me...Military could save a lot of money by not having any service dress
Didn't Patton require everyone to wear a tie? He was definitely a hard-charger if there ever was one and seemed to think that a certain level of dress was appropriate.
Now contrast him with beaurocrats like Shinseki (although he was right about Iraq. Too bad he was fired for it.) and Casey. Now we can't even roll up our sleeves when it is 100 degrees outside because it isn't part of the "warrior culture." Give me a break.
P.S. The berets never made any sense.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Air Force Security Forces/Security Police/Air Police have worn the Blue Beret since 1975. We have trouble with retention because it is the worst, the toughest and most "military" job in the Air Force. Elite??? Well, we are the Infantry of the Air Force. I should know; I worn my Blue Beret proudly for 24 years until last summer.
