Compassion for our troops is fine. Our troops are citizens and not subjects. But there's a reason the Army calls (called?) itself the Green Machine. Troops are cogs in a victory machine. Undue compassion for the troops that undermines victory is false compassion that will get more troops killed.
I am horrified at the implications of what the Sergeant Major of the USMC is setting out:
Can a junior Marine question whether their training is best preparing them to fight? Are there times for individuality in an organization known for its strict adherence to conformity? Is there a life after the Corps, according to the Corps itself?
In "Sustaining the Transformation," the answer to those questions is "yes."
"I know it's difficult for someone who may read this; they may be thinking the only focus is to make sure your only mission is to ensure that the Marine is ready to fight," Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Carlos Ruiz told Military.com in a recent interview. "Yes, agreed. But these are not pieces of furniture. These are people."
That attitude will get Marines killed:
This scene from Glory is instructive:
[See video above]
When I saw this with my then-wife, she was horrified that the colonel was so "mean" to the recruit in the reloading scene. That said a lot given that she really liked Broderick. I explained to her that it would have been no kindness to the recruit to be "nice." I explained there are many ways to die in battle--even when you don't make mistakes--and your own lack of training is an avoidable way to die. Avoid it.
As I wrote in 1997--and presented to a largely Army audience that year--about such false compassion as applied to the Army, citing Iraq's force protection obsession (from fear rather than compassion in that case):
Our soldiers' lives are indeed valuable, and our country's insistence that we minimize risks to them is laudable (as well as being necessary due to the small size of the Army). Undue concern, however, is false compassion and, as was the case for Iraq in 1980, could result in even greater casualties in a prolonged war should we refuse - because of the prospect of battle deaths - to seize an opportunity for early victory.
Will Marines be taught the real difference between initiative and disobedience?
Will Marines who go on to a new life after the Corps be as willing to fight and die for their comrades in battle?
I just don't think this is going to work. That is, if "work" means winning.
NOTE: TDR Winter War of 2022 coverage continues here.
NOTE: I'm adding updates on the Last Hamas War in this post.NOTE: You may also read my posts on Substack, at The Dignified Rant: Evolved.