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Current Events

The Corps Part V

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LOL. This one is funny even if it is a tragedy. I can see it coming. Cpl  Finicnick reports to his company commander that his Lt is an asshole and uses drugs. It matters not that Cpl Finicknick was a Sgt six months ago. OMG This reminds me of the HQMC imposed HumRel classes in 1970  that required us to sit in groups of officers and enlisted and everyone was allowed to say whatever they wanted. LOL, That did not happen in our battalion thanks to Major John I. Hopkins (MajGen, USMC (Ret) Deceased). God Bless him.  But I heard absolute horror stories from my peers from other units.

The Marine Corps wants junior Marines to have a say in who their leaders are

“Beginning in 2022, we will institute 360-degree feedback for leaders, on a pilot basis” says Commandant Berger.

BY  | PUBLISHED NOV 24, 2021 8:51 AM

Junior Marines could help determine whether officers and senior enlisted leaders are selected for promotion as part of the Marine Corps’ efforts to revamp its evaluation process.

Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger is calling for promotion boards to incorporate “360-degree feedback” into their decisions about which leaders will be selected to advance to the next rank.

Berger’s direction on using 360-degree feedback is part of his Talent Management plan, which was released on Nov. 3. The plan also requires the Marine Corps to retain more first-term Marines and creates the possibility that civilians with critical skills could bypass boot camp to join the service.   This will be Part VI, so stay tuned.

Currently, promotion boards largely base those decisions on Marines’ fitness reports, which only include notes on their performance from two of their supervisors, Berger wrote. In some cases, those supervisors do not serve in the same location as the Marines they are evaluating or don’t interact with them often.

“[Three hundred and sixty]-degree feedback, by contrast, includes the perspectives of a larger number of seniors, peers, and juniors and can include unflattering feedback that is prohibited from inclusion in a Marine’s FITREP,” Berger wrote.

This type of evaluation is already in use elsewhere in the Defense Department and it has shown to be effective in “identifying traits of toxic leadership” and helping to reduce the chances that toxic leaders will be promoted, according to Berger’s plan.

“Beginning in 2022, we will institute 360-degree feedback for leaders, on a pilot basis,” Berger wrote. “This feedback will be made available to the Marine and their reporting senior, with the aim of encouraging leadership growth. No later than 2024, we will incorporate 360-degree feedback into the selection board and assignments processes to ensure that this important input is properly considered by those selecting and assigning our future leaders.”

The Marine Corps has looked for lessons from business leaders as well as other military branches as it developed the pilot program for the 360-degree reviews, said Yvonne Reed-Carlock, a spokeswoman for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.

“The purpose of implementing 360-degree leadership reviews is to equip Marine leaders with real, honest feedback to identify their hidden strengths and unidentified weaknesses and to provide them with professional coaching to further develop and advance the capabilities of our force,” Reed-Carlock said. “To accomplish this, the pilot will solicit input from a Marine’s seniors, peers and subordinates to fully inform the picture provided to the Marine.”

The pilot program early next year is expected to include about 200 people to fine-tune the questions leaders are asked and to make sure that the right type of feedback is collected, said Lt. Col. Jim Armstrong, who works for the Marine Corps’ Manpower Management Division.

The Marines taking part in the pilot program will be field grade officers – majors, lieutenant colonels, and colonels – as well as senior enlisted leaders such as master sergeants and sergeants major, said Armstrong, who serves as the operations officer for the officer assignments branch.

Based on the pilot program’s results, Marines at other ranks and leadership positions could also receive 360-degree feedback, Armstrong said.

A 360-degree evaluation system is meant to prevent the promotion of senior leaders who may later be deemed unfit to command, such as one colonel who asked a former captain if she had been drinking before she was raped rather than referring her to trained staff for help. More robust performance evaluations may have also identified a brigadier general as a toxic leader before his subordinates reported him to the Department of Defense Inspector General’s Office, which determined that he had “disparaged, bullied, humiliated them, and devalued women.” 

For years, proponents have been calling for the Marine Corps to adopt a 360-degree evaluation system, but other military branches such as the Navy and the Air Force have used this type of feedback sparingly and for certain leaders and civilian executives.

After the Fiscal 2014 National Defense Authorization Act required the defense secretary to look into using this sort of feedback in evaluations, a study from the RAND Corporation recommended against doing so. Wow, sanity from the RAND Corporation for a change.
A sergeant instructor, evaluates officer candidates during close order drill at Marine Corps Officer Candidates School aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, June 21, 2019. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Phuchung Nguyen)

Many of the people whom RAND interviewed for the study, including experts within the Department of Defense, said they did not feel that 360-degree feedback was the best tool to combat toxic leadership, especially in cases where toxic leaders had no desire to change their ways.

“Participants again pointed to other ways of finding these people that would be much more cost-effective (such as through anonymous reporting channels, climate surveys, informal discussion, or inspector general complaints),” the study says.

While federal agencies have used 360-degree feedback as part of coaching and mentoring, the government as a whole – including the Defense Department – has been reluctant to include this type of feedback for promotions, said Katie Kuzminski, a senior fellow and director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at the Center for a New American Security think tank in Washington, D.C.

“There was a fear that if the [360-degree feedback] were used for promotions or true evaluations as opposed to personal development that there could be some challenges with that – particularly if your peers in your unit are also your competition: There would be a way to skew the outcomes to make yourself look good by making someone else look bad,” Kuzminski said.

Berger is going much further than the rest of the military by looking at how the Marine Corps can use this type of feedback for promotions, she said.

“I do think that if any service can take the lead on this front, I think it would be the Marine Corps,” Kuzminski said. “Just from a cultural perspective, I think the real value that they place on taking care of fleet really matters – and certainly for more senior positions, there’s this saying that you hear from senior folks: If you had a helicopter full of 10 general officers in the Marine Corps crash today, you would have equally high competitive talent remaining to replace them.” Really? In today’s Corps? Hell that may even help save us. Let’s make it a C-130 with 50 on board. LOL Just kidding, of course.
I trust everyone caught the name of this new plan; the “Talent Management Plan..” That says it all; when was the last time you heard anything coming out in the Corps dealing with “management.” In my day that word was toxic to Marines. Oh well, just another day in the “New” Corps. When will it end? Surely this action will help recruiting; just knowing they can have an effect on their mean Gunny should help. 

Originally posted 2021-11-28 08:33:35.

Current Events

The Corps Part IV

15 Comments

Okay Marines, don’t know if you picked up on this back in September when it happened. I did but I saved it for this series on “The Corps.”

A Sikh Marine is now allowed to wear a turban in uniform

From The Marine Times

By Philip Athey

The new headgear for Sikh Marines.

On Sept. 23, 1st Lt. Sukhbir Toor possibly became the first Marine lawfully wear a turban in a Marine Corps uniform.

The Marine Corps granted Toor the ability to wear his turban, uncut hair and a beard in uniform, in accordance with his Sikh faith, unless he deploys to a combat zone or while he is wearing a dress uniform in a ceremonial unit, The New York Times first reported.

The young Marine and the lawyers who represent him said the accommodations mark progress, but do not go nearly far enough accommodate the Marine in his Sikh faith.

The accommodations he was granted, “effectively amounts to a denial … it’s almost asking someone to compartmentalize their identity,” said Giselle Klapper, his lawyer from the Sikh Coalition advocacy group.

After several requests and lawsuits the Army changed policy in 2017 and now allows Sikh soldiers to wear articles of their faith and turbans with minimal restrictions.

Toor, the son of Indian immigrants, joined the Corps in 2017 and is serving as an artillery officer in 3rd Battalion, 11th Marines, at Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center Twenty nine Palms, California.

The Marine told The New York Times that when he first joined he was willing to cut his hair, shave his beard and wear the traditional Marine Corps covers, believing it was wrong to ask for something from the Marine Corps before he gave anything back.

But when he was selected for promotion to captain in the spring, he decided it was time to ask.

“I finally don’t have to pick which life I want to commit to, my faith or my country,” Toor told the Times. “I can be who I am and honor both sides.”

Sikhs traditionally wear five articles of faith that signify commitment to their religion. The articles include a small wooden comb known as the “kanga,” a small knife or ceremonial sword called “kirpan,” cotton “soldier shorts” or slightly longer underwear called the “kachera,” a small steel bracelet known as a “kara,” along with going without cutting their hair or beard, known as “kesh.”

The turban, or dastaar, over the centuries became closely linked to the Sikh religion. It is in the code of conduct and bears nearly the same amount of importance as the other articles, according to Learn Religions.

In June Lt. Gen. David Ottignon, the head of Manpower and Reserve Affairs wrote a letter granting Toor the ability to wear the turban and unshorn hair, but only in limiting circumstances.

“The real world consequences of the failure of a forward deployed Marine unit, such as the one you lead, could jeopardize the lives of Marines and those relying on them to complete their mission,” the general added. “The Corps cannot experiment with the components of mission accomplishment in forward units without assuming the risk of mission failure.”

Under the initial restrictions Toor was prevented from wearing his articles of faith while he was assigned to units that may deploy on short notice, like 3rd Battalion, 11th Marines, where he currently serves.

“Look, I’m on the ground level with the trigger-pullers every day,” Toor told the Times. “To them, I don’t think it makes a difference. We have men, women, people of all races in my platoon. We all wear green, we all bleed red. My Marines didn’t respect me because of what I had on my head.”

Toor also was banned from wearing a turban or beard in dress uniform in any ceremonial position, arguing it would hurt recruitment along with the Corps’ ability to convince the American people that it was “cohesive group of warriors capable of defending the nation’s interest.”

Toor immediately appealed the decision and received slightly greater accommodations that allowed him to wear a turban and beard while in garrison.

But he says the deployment restrictions and the restrictions on ceremonial units that remained were still unacceptable.

Klapper argued the deployment restrictions might put Toor’s career at risk if the Corps forced him to choose between a deployment and his beard.

She was also appalled by the reasoning by the Marine Corps when it came to ceremonial units.

“We’re saying the reason you can’t serve, or you can’t maintain your religious identity, the reason we have to erase essentially your religious identity is because you are in a public facing role” the lawyer said. “That to me is problematic because in reality it’s not under the law a reasonable argument and it’s also just extremely outdated in my view.”

The Marine Corps has not yet responded to questions about Toor or the branch’s decision to limit his accommodations.

Klapper and the other lawyers representing Toor have since sent a letter to the Marine Corps asking it to reconsider its decision in this case with the hopes that the Corps will either follow the Army’s precedent or at least work with Toor’s representatives to come to an agreeable solution.

But, if the Marine Corps does not come to the bargaining table or accept greater accommodations, the lawyer is prepared to sue the Corps in federal court, she said.

Appears no one in authority within the military is capable of uttering the word: “NO”. What about Women Marine Sikh’s. Can they wear that diaper on their head and cover their face? Of course, CMC Berger can’t say no, SECDEF will chew him out. Plus, we have to follow the U.S. Army’s lead. I mean hell we are no longer a separate and distinct service. Check out the Army’s story. Copy and paste the link below; you won’t believe it! If it wasn’t so tragic it would be laughable. I’m sure this uniform change will really help the poor recruiting issue.

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-army/2017/01/05/new-army-policy-oks-soldiers-to-wear-hijabs-turbans-and-religious-beards/

Originally posted 2021-11-27 10:03:48.

Current Events

The Corps Part II

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Received an email from a fellow retired Marine—whom I highly respect—that included the following messages. I share these with you as my second blog post on the current recruiting plan put forth by our CMC significantly touted as, “Operation Semper Fi.”

* * * *

Marine Brothers, one and all. I forwarded this to a select few generals. I intend to email Senator Rick Scott…former navy officer. The words and thoughts are harsh but should not be ignored. I fear we are back to 1947…which way will it go?

I want to share these inciteful comments from a distinguished Marine, the father of two outstanding Marine officers (one infantry, the other combat engineer), both of whom had multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“I feel sorry for the head of recruiting. At the same time that the CMC insults and denigrates previous generations of Marines and their flawed culture he is trying to rally retired Generals and Marines to help the Corps recruit. Sending it to retired Generals is preaching to the crowd that at about 80-90% supported or fell silent on the critical issues of perversion, depravity, fraternization, reverse racism, sexual preference for women, unisex uniforms, women in the combat arms, the elimination of tanks, tube artillery, numerous infantry Bn’s, 25% of F-35’s and CH-53F’s, female grooming standards, 18 months of maternity leave, the destruction of the MAGTF concept, the vapid attacks on the culture of the Corps and its racist/sexist heritage. Add to that a bevy of Generals who went from Warriors to politicians and openly and repeatedly insulted a sitting President.

 A Marine four- star CINC presided over a catastrophic NEO from Kabul taking orders from the Taliban about who, what, when, how, and why and then fled in the dark of the night with his tail tucked between his legs.

Our beloved Corps is at an historic low point with few allies on the Hill and an American people who view us as mere victims. Eighty percent of our Generals appear to have been intellectual midgets without a spine, charisma, presence, or persuasive verbal skills. They appear be average to below average men by every measure. When the time to stand up and be counted came, they opted to pass. This made it even harder for those willing to do the right things, the right way, for the right reasons.

We know who has a high propensity to enlist and we don’t want them. Instead, we chase after the misanthropes, the gender confused, the lost souls, and those we know are poorly suited to the battlefield. We encourage those to join the Corps whose interests are totally self-serving, to then change the Corps.

The Corps must reassess the culture it has abandoned if it expects the endorsement and support from those who have retired. I cannot, at this juncture, encourage an 18 year old to join the Corps. I say that with a very heavy heart.”

I must admit that with a very heavy heart, I have already convinced one 18-year-old to forego his lifelong desire to become a Marine and go on to college in hopes that—just maybe with God’s help—the Corps will be back on track.

* * * *

Another highly respected Marine known to me wrote:

Sometime back, I opined that the success of Berger’s “Great Leap Forward,” his “re-imagining” of our beloved Corps to make it more “representative of our country,” would be reflected in the retention rates of serving Marines and the recruiting of new ones. The following is from a Brother Marine regarding the missive recently sent to all retired Marine generals by the CG, USMC Recruiting Command requesting their support of “Operation Semper Fi:”

“My response: I will watch… but if they think they can muster Marine Veteran support if they continue the march to “woke land” …and all that implies including fostering Marxist ideology masquerading as modern liberalism they are sadly mistaken. Veterans will support traditional Marine values not forced ideas that are counter to common sense and successful traditional values. The thinking of those forcing the “new order” is being brought to us by the same people or their progeny that abandoned us in Vietnam and tried their best to turn the entire country against us—they failed but as a result they are now working from the inside of government (civilian and military) to have their way.”

Please stand by Marines, and others. There is much more to come in the ensuing days regarding this disgusting issue. It will end with my open letter to General Berger!

 

 

Originally posted 2021-11-25 08:29:08.

Current Events

The Corps

4 Comments

Good Morning all. Sorry, have been off the net for a while. Just returned from an RV trip to one of our—one time favorite places—Key West. Used to go there every winter when we were snowbirds; however, last time was 2010. Wow! Has it changed? Still expensive as all get out, but the base where we always stayed—Sigsbee Island—has significantly changed. More rules and regulations, most of which were senseless, superfluous,  silly, unnecessary stuff, that for 36 years I put up with because I had to. Had to laugh at all the demands placed on us visitors, but no guards at the gate. I asked and someone informed me they are short of personnel so the moved them to other bases. Oh, OK, guess that makes sense to. . . . . . someone? But if you want to take advantage of the lower site costs, $27 for full hookups, one must grin and bear it.

Can’t believe what is happening within our once proud Marine Corps. I am planning on posting several posts in the next few days, so hang in there and follow along with me. I can assure you they will get better each time. So, hear is the first one announcing the Commandant’s new recruiting plan. The following was sent out to all retired Marine generals by the Recruiting Command CG.

Generals,

Greetings from Quantico.  I hope you and your families are well.  Thank you all for the tremendous contributions you have made, and will continue to make, to our Corps and Country.  I would once more like to ask for your assistance and service.

This month, Marine Corps Recruiting Command initiated a new campaign titled, “Operation Semper Fi.”  I am sure it comes as no surprise to you that Marine veterans are the most loyal to their service.  However, recent history has demonstrated that they can also be our Corps’ most vocal critics.  I am asking for your help in addressing this.

Support of our Marine veterans as influencers and ambassadors within our local communities is more important now than ever.  Public opinion of the military as an institution continues to drop, propensity to serve is at historic lows, and the Marine Corps seeks significant support to operationalize Force Design 2030 and other initiatives.

I believe that rebuilding trust and maintaining America’s “want” of a Marine Corps must begin with our Marine veterans.   Operation Semper Fi seeks to rekindle the pride that all Marine veterans experienced having earned the title Marine.  It is designed to remind Marines of the special bond that exists between those who live by the motto of Semper Fidelis.  It acknowledges the fact that we have all been through tough times and may not always agree; however, despite these shared hardships and challenges, we still remain family.

Operation Semper Fi is a call to action to re-connect Marine veterans and to build on the pride they have for the Corps. This in turn will foster increased and positive advocacy for the Marine Corps institutional priorities and the challenges Marines face at home and abroad.  Additionally, this revitalization will assist recruiting operations by developing and sustaining relationships with influencers in communities across the Nation and set conditions to increase prospect referrals. The enclosed document provides greater detail on the campaign.

As part of the campaign, this Veterans Day, we launched a public service announcement entitled “Full Circle.”   This PSA showcases one Marine’s journey of service over the course of their life; from inspiration, to training, to active duty, and community service following.  A Marine’s drive to serve their country endures and inspires the next generation. When they earn the title, Marines make a solemn promise to remain faithful to the cause of our Nation, to the Corps, and to each other.

You can view the PSA at YouTube Link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IfVnhxZpv98 or with access to DVIDS at https://www.dvidshub.net/video/821534/full-circle

I am confident that your positive examples and community connections can help strengthen advocacy, gain access, and help inspire Marine veterans and those they influence to support our Corps. I respectfully ask each of you to reach out to your local Recruiting Station Commanders to see how you might assist.

Additionally, please contact our community engagement team at community@marines.usmc.mil or (703) 784-9454, or feel free to contract me directly at jason.bohm@marines.usmc.mil or (703)784-9400 if you are willing to support our national outreach efforts in support of recruiting.

Your willingness to assist in this effort is greatly appreciated.  You are living proof of the adage, “Once a Marine, Always a Marine.”  Thank you for remaining “Always Faithful.”

Very Respectfully,
J.Q. Bohm
MajGen Jason Q. Bohm
Commanding General
Marine Corps Recruiting Command

Yes sir, I "ain't" a general, but I am retired. Okay Marines, did you get all that? Understand now what CMC wants you to do? Okay, stand by!
Jim

Originally posted 2021-11-24 10:27:56.

Current Events, Recent Posts

Marines VS Marines

6 Comments

Marines, beware, you are not going to like this story — trust me. We are more worried about wokeness and evicting extremists from our ranks. And we got our asses handed to us because we no longer train to fight and win. I find myself speechless. I have no idea what I will say tomorrow night in Phoenix. Help me Lord

Trounced on home turf: British Royal Marine commandos force US Marines into humiliating surrender halfway through five-day war training exercise in Mojave desert

  • British forces took part in a five-day mock battle at the US Marine Corps’ Twenty nine Palms base in California
  • Combatants used training ammunition along with hi-tech simulators for heavier firepower like artillery
  • Seeing no opportunity for victory, American combatants asked for the exercise to be ‘reset’ halfway through

By HENRY MARTIN FOR MAILONLINE

PUBLISHED: | UPDATED: 

Royal Marines commandos ‘dominated’ US troops and forced them into a humiliating surrender just days into a mass training exercise in the Mojave desert, it has been revealed today.

British forces took part in a five-day mock battle at the US Marine Corps’ Twenty Nine Palms base in southern California, one of the largest military training areas in the world, and achieved a decisive victory against their American counterparts.

The Royal Marines, along with allied forces from Canada, the Netherlands and the UAE, destroyed or rendered inoperable nearly every US asset and finished the exercise holding more than 65 per cent of the training area, after beginning with less than 20 per cent.

Combatants used paintball-style training ammunition, which fires with reduced pressure and velocity, along with hi-tech simulators for heavier firepower like artillery, and live ammo on expansive ranges.

Seeing no opportunity for victory, American combatants asked for the exercise to be ‘reset’ halfway through the five-day exercise, having taken significant casualties from British commandos.

Troops from 3 Commando Brigade and Taunton-based 40 Commando had spent the last two months in the Mojave Desert preparing for deployments next year.

 Their time in the US culminated with the five-day simulated conflict Green Dagger, which is designed to test the US Marine Corps prior to units deploying overseas.

The mock battlefield covers more than 3,500 square kilometers of mountainous and desert terrain, including urban settings where actors, who are not following a script, play civilians who can choose to help or hinder the military forces.

The Royal Marines trained with counterparts from the US, Canada, UAE and the Netherlands in the weeks before the main exercise.

The British forces achieved their victory by targeting the American headquarters and equipment, severely hampering the ability of US combatants to launch counter-attacks.

Artillery units also concentrated on eliminating vehicles and opposing artillery.

A long-range commando assault with fighter jet support eventually defeated the American forces, who had launched a last-minute attack but were repelled.

British forces were trailing the new Littoral Response Group (LRG) structure, which will be the new template for commandos – who are to become more flexible and mobile under reforms directed by First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin.

LRGs are Royal Navy task groups centered around commando forces and set up to respond to world events.

Following the restructuring of the Marines, NATO’s northern and Baltic flanks will be covered by the UK-based LRG (North).

LRG (South), built around Taunton-based 40 Commando, will be based around Oman’s port of Duqm, operating with a focus on British military activity in the Indo-Pacific.

Each LRG will be capable of working with the carrier strike group to assemble an expeditionary strike force which can operate anywhere in the world.

The exercise focused around three urban sprawls which were defended by allied forces, the largest of which consisting of 1,200 buildings purpose built for military testing.

The Marines won decisive battles early on and gained ground from their enemy, but amid a US Marines counter-attack, commandos carried out raids behind enemy lines.

The exercise concluded with a last-minute assault by US forces, which was repelled.

‘Our success has proved the new commando force concept is more lethal and sophisticated than ever before and I am immensely proud of every member of the LRG and their vital contributions,’ said Lieutenant Colonel Andy Dow, Commanding Officer of 40 Commando.

‘Operating alongside our partners from the USA, Netherlands, Canada and the UAE gives us a fantastic opportunity to test, integrate and continue to push our capabilities in new and innovative directions.

‘Throughout this deployment our focus has been on integrating game-changing capabilities from across the commando force to deliver disproportional effect in the face of a free-thinking peer adversary.’

 

There is so much more to this story should you want to peruse it along with lots of photos taken during the exercise. Of course this article was obviously written by a Brit (spelling), and he made some errors e.g. we were born in 1884. The Corps has come out and rebuffed this article, but one would expect that. Please go to::

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10159949/Royal-Marines-commandos-force-troops-humiliating-surrender-training-exercise.html

It’s hilarious what you will find in the comments if you go to the story. Marines trying to justify this disgrace with historical  quotes that don’t  mean squat in this day and age. Get real Marines, we are losing our edge, or perhaps we have already lost it?

Originally posted 2021-11-05 09:36:25.