Posted on 06/09/2013 1:38:43 PM PDT by null and void
A Congressional committee voted Wednesday to end service-specific camouflage in an amendment that would push the military toward creating joint combat uniforms by 2018.
House Armed Service Committee members want the Pentagon to develop a joint combat uniform over the next five years. Moving to one joint combat uniform doesn't mean there would only be one camouflage pattern. Different patterns could still be designed for specific geographic requirements such as the woodland or desert patterns. However, each service would not design their versions.
The amendment restricts the creation of any further camouflage patterns for combat uniforms unless the intention is to share it.
[Murtha] pushed the service to look for a better camouflage pattern after receiving complaints from sergeants about the UCP's poor performance in the war zone. Murtha died in 2010, just before the Army selected MultiCam as the clear winner over several other patterns to issue to soldiers deploying to Afghanistan.
The GAO estimates that the Army will have to spend another $4 billion on uniforms and equipment over the next five years when it selects its new family of camouflage patterns.
The committee approved the amendment by the closest of margins with a vote of 32-30. Twenty-seven Democrats and five Republicans voted for it, while one Democrat and 29 Republicans voted against it.
Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Col. a former Marine and soldier, was one Congressman who voted against it. He said the amount of savings gained by moving to a joint combat uniform was relatively small compared to the morale gained within the services of having separate uniforms.
"This is really a morale issue, for our men and women in uniform," Coffman said.
(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...
Sorta the PLA model.
I want to know my guys in my branch. It means that I know what that guy is capable of and what his talent may be. One less thing to think about.
Improve weapon systems and then you won’t need camouflage.
How wars has the PLA won? “Esprit de Corps’’ dude, check it out. I want the U.S military to be what it always has been, the best in the world. And you aren’t going to be that by being all the same. A Marine is a Marine, a Ranger is a Ranger, a SEAL is a SEAL, get it?
By this logic all the services should have the same dress uniform, too. Why stop at the utility/combat uniforms?
This is NUTS.
We can’t seem to keep any uniform for more than a few years anymore.
Ah, my FRiend, the PLA has won every battle to control the internal Chinese population.
That’s a dictator’s first goal, maintain power. Expansion is a secondary consideration.
Why isn’t winning the war a priority ?
There is no reason that Navy personnel should wear working clothing different than what Air Force personnel wear. The Army and Marine Corp can wear fatigues that are at least similar.
I was in the Navy 1980-1986. I had four sets of clothing: winter black, dungarees, summer whites, and dress uniforms. For the enlisted ranks below E-7, eliminating winter, summer, and dungarees and going with one set of blues makes sense.
The difference between the services can be accomplished with different covers and insignias.
Shooting your own un-armed countrymen isn’t a war. In 1944/45 we shed blood for China and the bloody Commies ended up taking over. The PLA couldn’t win an arm-farting contest. In Jan.1978 they invaded Vietnam and by the end of Feb.’78 they were running back out of it as fast as they could.
How much did the tsa just spend on uniforms?
Cause everyone has to be a sniper. Nevermind that your shipmate can’t fight a fire or your buddy can’t clean his gun. Uniform changes are degrading to morale. I hated when the Navy went away from dungarees. How humilitaing that we now looked like a warehouse worker. Not that there is anything bad about warehouse workers, we just went through military training so we could look like everyone else with a low paid job.
Because as soon as we win the war there is no justification for all the domestic spying, TSA abuse and any of a hundred other daily insults we endure.
How about airborne troops? You couldn’t expect them to wear what you swabbies wore, right?
Yeah. My dad had quite a few stories from his time there.
They have already taken the 1st steps toward neutering the services with co-ed units and calling Air Force bases "Joint Base....." Powerful forces are at work to destroy America's ability to defend itself.
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