Posted on 07/03/2005 1:02:58 PM PDT by saquin
Twenty years ago, "Marine Sniper" - the biography of Carlos Hathcock, the top gunner for the Marines in Vietnam - became one of those seminal military bestsellers that stays in print continuously. In fact, its tale of the sniper shooting a bullet through an enemy's rifle scope has not only become the stuff of legend, but it also has been copied in countless.
Hathcock's book, however, was more than just fodder for buffs, as Gunnery Sgt. Jack Coughlin recounts in his new memoir, "Shooter." As Coughlin tells it, "Students (at Marine sniper school) can pick up an extra ten bonus points on an exam by answering a bonus question that almost always comes from "Marine Sniper."
Look for Coughlin's "Shooter" to have the same impact on future generations of Marines and military buffs. This is an important book about sniper doctrine, as well as a highly readable, personal account of combat that is fascinating throughout.
The book opens with Coughlin supporting a Marine mission in Somalia, using the tactics pioneered by Hatchcock in Vietnam. Hathcock rewrote sniper doctrine by changing it from a shooter sitting in a fixed position all day to "hunters and shooters," who would stalk their prey and set up their position closer to the enemy.
During the 10 years between Somalia and Iraq, Coughlin was rethinking sniper doctrine while on missions apparently too secret to recount in this book. Finally, frustrated by the lack of attention to his theories, he and his team threw a "Dirty Dozen"-style monkey wrench into a major war game.
Coughlin was given the thumbs up to develop his Mobile Sniper Strike Teams, but before much progress was made, the Iraq War began. Like Hathcock, Coughlin had to perfect his approach on the battlefield - although his shooting war lasted only three weeks.
He also had another seeming obstacle: Lt. Cmdr. Brian McCoy had been his toughest critic and was now his commanding officer. The critic who spurred Coughlin to prove himself soon became his advocate, however, as Coughlin and his spotter, Casey Kuhlman, rewrote the rule book in devastating fashion.
Eighty years ago, Gen. Billy Mitchell was court-martialed for too aggressively challenging entrenched military doctrine. In today's military, a Marine gunnery sergeant not only can propose changes to long-held procedure, but he also is given the flexibility to change it on the fly in a combat situation. And the force adapts along with him.
That's the genius of the modern American fighting force. Knowing the maxim that "no battle plan survives contact with the enemy," American commanders on the ground have always had more flexibility than their counterparts, but the adaptability of the current fighting force is without parallel in history.
While two set pieces - the battle for Diyala Bridge, and the initial thrust into Baghdad - are as intense a recounting of modern urban warfare as I have read since "Black Hawk Down," this is hardly a book of unrelenting bravado.
Coughlin relates that while a sniper operates from a distance, to the detriment of his head and heart, he is far more likely to see the face of his enemy than the average infantryman.
A devastating chapter tells the story of how civilians stormed the Diyala Bridge in a mad dash for freedom at the same time as fedayeen and suicide bombers were making their final stand. Despite the Marines' best efforts, they could not always tell who was who, and Coughlin nearly broke down when that stress piled on his exhaustion.
Coughlin also is honest about the effect his job has on his family, which is the ultimate factor in his retirement as he realizes others can carry on his work but only he can be "Dad."
"Shooter" is mostly free of politics aside from a delicious episode near the fall of the Hussein statue. As Kuhlman was saving the day by replacing an American flag over the falling monument with a vintage Iraqi flag, Iraqis greeted the Marines as liberators, complete with offerings of flowers.
The only sour note of the day came from the so-called "human shields," leftists who had gone to Iraq supposedly to protect the people from the U.S. military and leave them safe in the arms of Saddam Hussein's secret police. They stormed out of their shelters and began cursing the Marines as "baby killers."
A group of "surly" Iraqi men approached Coughlin and offered to beat the liberal protesters to death for their insults. In the ultimate act of irony, he explained to the gathered Iraqis that democracy would mean having to let such people blather from now on as he physically imposed himself between the leftist activists and their supposed beneficiaries.
Coughlin lets the story stand as an analogy for the whole situation and a fitting end to his service in Iraq.
Oh, how I would have loved to have seen that. Maybe not "to death" but certainly "to pain". :-)
its tale of the sniper shooting a bullet through an enemy's rifle scope has not only become the stuff of legend, but it also has been copied in countless.
It was also copied in Saving Private Ryan when the US sniper took out the German sniper with a shot right through his scope.
I've read thru half of it so far. I highly recommend it
I see that book at the Military Book Club. I've gotten a few good ones there over the years. I think my favorite is "The forgotten soldier" by Guy Sajer. Great book.
I believe I'll pick this one up as well.
He was also an unusual combination of world champion shooter and great woodsman.
I am sure the Russians had a bunch but have also read that any Russian claims from WWII should be taken with a grain of salt.
He's a better man than I am, I'd have likely gone off looking for a beer.
ping
IMHO
My choice would be "to a pulp"...
Great book. Not a big surprise that it is essentially required reading the Marines' sniper school.
Do you REALLY need to ask that question?
I didn't think so......
Semper Fi
Bless'em All, Short n Tall!
The fact that Hathcock was a world champion shooter, although obviously important, was not the part which set him apart from others imo.
I could not imagine anyone with the patience and ability to endure discomfort which Hathcock possessed.
Same thing happened in the movie "Sniper" starring Chuck Berringer.
An awesome book. I've read it many times and everytime, it has had the same effect on me. As I close the book, I say "I couldn't have done that". I think it a crime that nobody has made a movie based on that book.
I could not imagine anyone with the patience and ability to endure discomfort which Hathcock possessed.
As with any top performer, there is a combination of skills required. He had to be a top shooter but also needed patience, discipline, spacial awareness, tolerance for pain and in all probability superior eyesight.
As I think back on his medical condition, I wonder if it was really due to a parasitic infection such as lyme disease rather than an auto immune condition? Lyme disease looks an awful lot like an autoimmune response and Lyme is but one of many parasitic infections one might get when crawling around days at a time in the woods. I'm not saying what Hathcock had was Lyme but it may have been a different parasitic infection.
I once worked with a guy who was ex-SF in Vietnam, he told me that most everyone that he served with who were still alive had strange medical conditions that he attributed to something they picked up in the jungles of SE Asia.
"the so-called "human shields," leftists who had gone to Iraq supposedly to protect the people from the U.S. military and leave them safe in the arms of Saddam Hussein's secret police. They stormed out of their shelters and began cursing the Marines as "baby killers."
I see the leftists of today are "supporting the troops" just like they did during Vietnam.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.