Top Marine: Troops under too much strain

CNN ^ | 11/22/06

[bnelson44]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The new Marine Corps commandant said Wednesday that the longer than anticipated pace of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan is putting an unacceptable strain on his troops.

Gen. James Conway said the service is unable to meet its goal of giving Marines twice as much time at home as in a war zone.

He said unless the demand on the corps eases, he may have to propose increasing the size of the force.

The Marine Corps is the smallest of the Pentagon's military services. The Coast Guard, which is even smaller, is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

Currently there are 180,000 Marines on active duty and about 40,000 in the active reserves. Marine units serve seven-month deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Conway, who led Marine units into Iraq in 2003 and served on the Pentagon's joint staff, said his troops should get 14 months of relief before they are sent back.

Typically, however, they get only seven or eight months home before being returned to combat, he said.

Assuming the Marines' top job little more than a week ago, Conway told reporters at a Pentagon roundtable discussion that he sees two ways to alleviate stress on troops.

"One is reducing the requirement [of a set deployment time]. The other is potentially growing the force for what we call the long war," Conway said.

Some units are serving their fourth tours in Iraq, and the strain on their families has raised concern that Marines will start leaving the service when their enlistments are up.

[bnelson44]

He may be right. You can only take it so long before either your family breaks up or you leave and find another job.

This is going to be a very long war. This is not something we have faced before.

[A.A. Cunningham]

TOs have been undermanned for a long time but the facts are that a lot of trigger pullers are pulling the plug once their active duty obligation is completed. However, the reenlistment rate for grunt MOSs has never been what one could call stellar, regardless of how much of an optimist you think you are.

[Gator113]

If the MSM and the traitorous dims had gotten behind the President and not been doing EVERYTHING they could to cause us to lose, this battle would be over and most of our Troops would have been home over two years ago!

[Torie]

I don't mind contributing. Write me down. LOL.

[SandRat]

Told ya! Cresant Noose Nothings spinning the headlines and story to fit their anti-American agenda.

[SandRat]

and the WWII Generation of waiting wives/children waited for 2, 3, 4, 5 straight years before VE & VJ day brought their husbands and fathers home.

[pacpam]

The draft requires you serve your country, love it or not. The 'nots' are who create problems and you only have Vietnam to see the proof. A discontented military contingent is easily swayed by outside influences.

[stylin19a]

Two-thirds of the men who served in Vietnam were volunteers, two-thirds who served in World War II were draftees.

it aint the nots who are the problem...it's the morons who wont let winning happen.

[Valin]

The Generals down to the lowest boot say they don't want it. If you don't want to be there, they don't want you.


I'm personally all for it and don't think the military quality will suffer a lick because the standards will ensure that the best people are put in the best positions.

Right. I'm 6 feet tall and 135 lbs soaking wet, so what the Air Force make me? Why a Security Policeman of course.


I don't mean this to sound like a flame, but were you ever in the military? Cause I got to tell ya it sure doesen't sound like it.

[pacpam]

It was the third who created an environment at home that let the anti-war movement succeed.

[OldFriend]

There is no one stopping you from serving your country. You just enlist and you're on your way.

[PAR35]

We need 4-6 more Regualr Army divisions, heavy on the air cav and light on the armor

Or a thousand B-29s and an unlimited supply of 500 lb bombs to soften things up.

[stylin19a]

amen

[TomasUSMC]

The draft IS a good and necessary idea in a time of war. FDR started one up before Pearl Harbor, because he knew we would need it sooner than anyone thought. Now we are already at war and we don't have enough troops to do this stupid KGC (Kinder Gentler Compassionate) warfighting the White House is saddling our troops with. ( Recently I met Marines just back from Iraq who told me that they can't shoot to kill unless the target keeps coming to within 50 meters - and that they feel the Marine Corps is just waiting to burn them for something.)

We have less than 700,000 active duty land forces... for a country of 300 MILLION, that is pitiful.

Of course, - we shouldn't have any troops in Iraq unless we free them from the worse than Vietnam's type rules of engagement, and stop prosecuting them, and for Gods sake stop fighting to prop up a government whose constitution states...
NO LAW SHALL CONTRADICT ISLAM.

[greasepaint]

I don't buy any of this.

Iraq won't last forever.
after that, President Whoever should have to
live with what he has.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

He is the new kid on the block...

No, Conway is not the new "kid on the block." He's been around for a long time and is well respected both inside and outside the Corps. He commanded I MEF during the drive to Baghdad in 2003, and worked very closely with his 1st MarDiv commander General Mattis to completely steamroll Saddam's Republican Guard and Fedayeen up Routes 1 and 7. Like all of our other top military commanders who are on the spear tip of GWOT, the public at large has almost never heard of men like Conway or Mattis, who in my opinion are equivalent to Bradley and Patton during World War II.

CNN video butchering aside, Conway knows exactly what he is talking about, and if he says that there is a big problem brewing with the Corps right now, then we can only disregard his warnings at our own peril.

(http://www.usmc.mil/genbios2.nsf/0/24F33DF7BF06B3A2852568030060440A?opendocument)

[Marine_Uncle]

Whoops. My old brain is getting worse then I think. Sorry for the incorrect salutation. But thanks El Gato for all those long hours of feeds you have provided us over time concerning mostly our troops.
To both. Have a nice and safe Thanksgiving Day.

[Future Snake Eater]

So optempo shouldn't be considered? Plus, just b/c congress authorizes an increase in strength doesn't mean willing applicants will be immediately found. In the meantime those same Marines who've been burned out by all these deployments will continue to be burned out.

But I'm sure the answer is as easy as you say.

[verity]

"Marine units serve seven-month deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan."

Here is part of the problem.

[leadpenny]

No, Conway is not the new "kid on the block." He's been around for a long time and is well respected both inside and outside the Corps.

And you think that'll hold back the steamrolling "FreeRepublic Armchair General/Keyboard Warrior Division?"

Once the cyber bullets start flying, all that's left to say is "bttt."

Need I say, "/sarcasm?"