the man...the mission.There are only two logical posiibilities,
1. Both men are so absolutely stupid that they actually beleive, either a US Marine with 16 weeks of training is fully capable of independently carrying out comabt operations without the help of officers or other marines with more experience or it is just as difficult to train the typical Marine, as train a non-english speaking iliterate Iraqi villager.
or the other logical possibility
2. Both men are fully aware of the absurdity of their premise and are knowingly and delibertly trying to deceive their listners. To put forth a question based on a premise you know to be false is dishonest, plain and simple.
Bob Schieffer's question is logically identical to -
"Seantor Kennedy, "How can you critiscise the Vice-Presidents delay in reporting the accidental wounding of his hunting companion; when you took much longer to report the deliberate drowning of your pregnant mistress?"
So .. the implication is .. after 16 weeks they stop being people ..??
Good grief!
Right. The US Marines have a command structure and 225+ years of tradition. Iraq has none of that. What fools these MSM goons are.
That's a pretty dumb question coming from a person that doesn't know what an NCO Corps is and how long it takes to generate one. Ya can't just take a bunch of green Marines right outta bootcamp and throw 'em into battle all by themselves and expect them to perform like a Marine unit.....without the experience of their NCO Corps.
Emphasis on the ex. Schieffer got that part right. Shields is a mental eunuch.
Back in 91, on my way down to take the ASVAB, I asked my recruiter about the Marines and how "elite" they are compared to the Rangers. He said "well, we don't brainwash our recruits". I replied "Brainwash? What do you mean?" He said "Yes. You get out of Marine boot camp and you'll do anything they tell you to do. Anything.".
It's not so much the questions these morons ask, it's the context and tone of the questions. They infer they know the answer before the reply and our military leaders are all dummies. These people are supposed to be on America's side, not the enemies.
the man...the mission.My forthcoming book, "America's Victories: Why Americans Win Wars and Will Win the War on Terror," (May) covers this in detail in one chapter. Our troops have 200 years' worth of culture behind them, so it's NOT six weeks or sixteen weeks but 200 years!
In 16 weeks you'll get a Marine Private not combat hardened Marine.
Retired GySgt of Marines!
And HAMAS can take someone right off the street and make him/her a successful suicide bomber with a couple of hours training. What does that prove? I vote for the first option - both men are stupid.
Of course most units (especially Yankees) performed abysmally until blooded several times.
Could it be that the average western/American teenager is better raw material for soldiering than the average Arab? I think there is also a cultural component at work here.
Well, the Liberals can take a man and, in less than 16 weeks, turn him into a six-foot-long tapeworm with his mouth stuck to the wall of the government's intestine. THAT's impressive.