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I certainly agree but at the same time there is more than one factor that has caused us to have a large military. At the end of the day we're better off having a large military instead of waiting for other countries to surpass us and then playing catch up. That was my point.
And what is that? I know the marines train to have an amphibious assault role but when was the last time the U.S. marines stormed a beach?
Again, I don't mean to insult Marines everywhere but why? The army has lighter units that are more mobile, and they have armor units. etc. why couldn't they have units that are trained for amphibious assault? Not that we do a lot of that. It has always seemed like a silly distinction, army vs. marines. Why not move army paratroopers to a different branch since they have different training too?
The Army does indeed have light infantry, airborne units, and special forces that could be deployed very quickly. However, that is not true for the regular infantry, mechanized infantry, artillery, or armor units. Those units cannot be deployed quickly, and will take months before they are ready to fight.
If you recall, Operation Desert Shield began in August of 1990, but Operation Desert Storm did not begin until January 1991. The Army needed that four month period to deploy and organize their units.
The Marine Corps, on the other hand, is able to deploy very quickly, including their armor (which is why the Marines still use the M60 main battle tank and not the M1A3 main battle tank the Army uses), their artillery, mechanized infantry, and their own air force to provide support. The Marine Corps can deploy all of their units within 24 hours.
The Army did train for amphibious assaults at both Normandy and Okinawa. Both with disastrous results. Normandy had 6,603 US casualties, 2,499 of them fatal. On Okinawa the Army suffered 62,000 casualties, with over 12,000 KIA.
The Army does indeed have light infantry, airborne units, and special forces that could be deployed very quickly. However, that is not true for the regular infantry, mechanized infantry, artillery, or armor units. Those units cannot be deployed quickly, and will take months before they are ready to fight.
If you recall, Operation Desert Shield began in August of 1990, but Operation Desert Storm did not begin until January 1991. The Army needed that four month period to deploy and organize their units.
The Marine Corps, on the other hand, is able to deploy very quickly, including their armor (which is why the Marines still use the M60 main battle tank and not the M1A3 main battle tank the Army uses), their artillery, mechanized infantry, and their own air force to provide support. The Marine Corps can deploy all of their units within 24 hours.
The Army did train for amphibious assaults at both Normandy and Okinawa. Both with disastrous results. Normandy had 6,603 US casualties, 2,499 of them fatal. On Okinawa the Army suffered 62,000 casualties, with over 12,000 KIA.
You did a great job of giving specific instances and examples of how the Army and Marine Corps differ. I agree and those differences might seem small when you are on the outside looking in but they are absolutely huge when you are dealing with actual missions.
Clinton thought the same thing and worked towards eliminating the Marine Corps when he was President. I served in the Marine Corps during that time and it was pretty bad. We were still required to support missions but did so without the needed supplies and support. We lost a lot of great Marines with strigent up or out policies, creating a huge vacuum in our senior leadership for many years.
The Marine Corps has a completely different structure than the Army and more importantly, a different method of training. We stay small on purpose. Every single Marine is a marksman so there will be no instances of being an Admin and not knowing how to be a warfighter when called upon or needed. Even our boot camp is a totally different experience, better preparing Marines for the ops tempo they will face upon serving.
We always hear this call to disband the Marine Corps after major conflicts. But, each of those major conflicts have shown the utility and use of the Marine Corps. We're a forward deployed force that can move with the speed necessary to secure the ground before the Army comes in. The Army is huge and slooowwww.
And on top of that, we should not discount the historical element that the Marine Corps is the first fighting force and our reputation as a superior fighting force has its own element of power on the world stage.
Well said. Semper Fi you Devil Dog!
I served with the 1st Marine Division, 1st FSSG, 7th Eng. Battalion from 1972 through 1980, and I empathize with you having to serve under Clinton. I experienced something very similar under Carter and I feel for those serving under Obama now.
I served with the 1st Marine Division, 1st FSSG, 7th Eng. Battalion from 1972 through 1980, and I empathize with you having to serve under Clinton. I experienced something very similar under Carter and I feel for those serving under Obama now.
I know, my buddies still in tell me just how bad it is right now. It's the rules of engagement that are tying their hands now. Plus, they've got an administration that acts like they're rogue criminals or something. It's tragic. Of course, most of the people I know now are pretty high up senior leadership so they see the policies and have to deal with them all the time.
Hey - y'all are the guys that got to blow stuff up! That's cool. I was Intel, a linguist, usually attached to one truck company or another. Us Intel types tend to be that way. Husband was a grunt, 4th Marines, eventually made his way over to SOI where he taught our young boots how to be hard charging devil dogs.
Over half a million active duty personnel isn't large?
Compared to what it was during Vietnam?
Korea?
World War II?
We are not Liechtenstien
We need to Draft everyone between 18-20 and take millions of unemployed off the streets.
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I was Intel, a linguist, usually attached to one truck company or another. Us Intel types tend to be that way. 
Husband was a grunt, 4th Marines, eventually made his way over to SOI where he taught our young boots how to be hard charging devil dogs.
