Any Marines on the board?

[darkhanger18]

I was just wondering if anyone is, or knows of any Marine Corps members, be it current, past, or future. The reason I ask is that I will be leaving for bootcamp on July 16, and any advice anyone could give men (besides excercise more, i already do enough of that) is very welcome. God bless anyone that is serving, has served, or has even thought about serving.

 

[Illum]

too soon to tell....I have my draft card...its only a matter of time

 

[darkhanger18]

Wasn't aware they were doing draft cards again. The only thing I thought was going on was the Selective Service number? did I miss something?

 

[swampgator]

I had a nice long response that is now lost in cyberspace. Army MP from 1992-1997.

Congrats and thank you for electing to serve our nation!

As for advice: Everyone reacts and responds differently. Keep exercising and don't get pysched out. Just suck it up and drive on. Work towards your goals.

 

[Gene]

Hi darkhanger18,
Marine here and served in VMGR 152, (combat support flight unit), from 1968 to 1970 during Nam.

Boot camp is a little different now than it was in my day but is still going to be a little hard. My recommendation is to go in with a positive mind and just tell yourself your going to get through it. You're already physically ready so it will be mostly mental.

I think you're going to be fine because you posted this thread. You are a little scared and that's fine. I was terrified when I went in and all Marines will tell you if you're not a little scared, something's wrong with you.

You'll do fine, just keep telling yourself you'll get through it and you will! Once you get through boot camp, the rest will be easy. You'll find when you graduate from boot camp and your D.I.'s finally call you "Marine", it will be the proudest day of your life!

God bless you and keep us posted!

 

[tvodrd]

Ah yes, the yellow footprints when you pile off the bus while some dudes with smokey hats scream at you! (Nam, '68-'69) See if you can find a copy of Handbook for Marines and memorize it! It's an experience you will carry for the rest of your life. :thumbsup:

Larry

 

[Uncle Bob]

I salute any lad or lady who wants to serve their country, especially in difficult times. Just remember to serve in the proudest tradition of the branch you've chosen.

U.S. Army Medical Specialist Corps ('65-'68)

 

[DieselDave]

Memorize the 11 General Orders before you go and be able to recite them from number, it will save you a lot of time.

You can find them on-line under, "Marine Corps 11 General Orders"

When asked the question, "What is your 7th General Order?" you respond with, "My 7th General Order is, To talk to no one except in the line of duty."

Don't cut your hair like a Marine before you go (no "High and Tight"). You aren't a Marine yet and they don't want you to arrive trying to look like one.

In formation you only speak while at the position of attention. Never speak, to include answer any question while at "Parade Rest" or "At Ease". If asked a question, come to the position of attention before opening your "pie hole". When spoken to or speaking only look straight ahead. Do not look up, down, left or right. If the person is 6" taller than you, speak into their neck. If they are to your left or right continue to look straight ahead. Eye contact is not a goal and you will likely have this reinforced to you the hard way.

Do a practice PFT once every two weeks until you go. Ideally you should be able to max everything other than the run when you get there. If you can't no biggee, you will be part of the other 80%.

If you aren't familiar with shooting go to a rifle range and ask someone to teach you to shoot. A .22 rifle is fine for learning. Being comfortable with a weapon will help your shooting when you spend 3 or so weeks learning the Marine Corps way to shoot. The Corps places a VERY high value on your rifle range score. It's as if not more important than your PFT score.


Keep a positive attitude and have a good time.

PS: Hope you like to eat breakfast early.

Proud former Capt. USMC, A6-E Intruders, VMA(AW)-224 and proud of you for coming aboard.

Semper -Fi.

 

[tvodrd]

:thumbsup" Dave! Been here almost as long and never knew! As to liking "early breakfast," a tolerance for some serious caffene will come in useful!

Larry

 

[TedTheLed]

what's the point of this: ?

" ..<snipped posted by DD> ..If asked a question, come to the position of attention before opening your "pie hole". When spoken to or speaking only look straight ahead. Do not look up, down, left or right. If the person is 6" taller than you, speak into their neck. If they are to your left or right continue to look straight ahead. Eye contact is not a goal and you will likely have this reinforced to you the hard way..."

It seems this relationship and method of speaking would merely interfere with the effective communication and function of a group, and alienate one from authority..
but perhaps that's what the war machine wants, not feelers and thinkers, but rather obedient robot-like killers...?

 

[Sigman]

Just curious, your title asks about Marines - however the poll merely asks for enlistment status.

There's PLENTY of prior & current military around here. I left 21 years of AF off the poll since it appears you're merely looking for Marines.

Before anyone even says it, I'll agree there's a world of difference between the different services in regards to basic training & ultimate missions...applicable to the respective tasks for sure!

Thanks for taking this challenge on and you're smart for researching as much as you can before you get there - but don't count on anything! I don't think I went to the bathroom for 3 days after I arrived at basic due to the system/culture shock!!

I looked at the entire process as a head game (in a positive way). I tried to comply as best I could & tried to "blend in" as much as possible. Seems those that "stood out" became targets for some reason...maybe the Training Instructors wanted to break those "targets" down. Lots of psychology involved in the process...LEARN TO FOLLOW ORDERS & PAY ATTENTION TO DETAIL!

 

[Danbo]

1977-81. Corporal E4. Aviation Ordnanceman. Spent most of it working on jet aircraft in Yuma, AZ.

As for boot camp preparations, you've already been given some good advice. My advice is, to prepare yourself mentally for anything they throw at you. The Drill Instructor's job is to see how much crap you can take, and keep on doing what you're supposed to be doing. I went in with the attitude that no way was I going to quit and nobody was going to force me to quit, and I made it through just fine. I was also the skinniest, tallest recruit ever(6' 6" and 150 lbs), and they gave me a lot of crap to deal with. If I can make it through boot camp, you can too. Just don't take the Drill Instructor's words personally, as they're likely to call you, your family and everybody you hold dear all kinds of names. Let it roll right off your shoulders, and do what you're told, and you'll be fine.

Oh, and all the working out you're doing is fine, but you really should realize that nothing prepares you for running 3 miles for time, except running 3 miles for time. That, and crunches and pullups from a dead hang. Those are the things they'll be testing you on. When I went in, I thought I was in decent shape from Karate, and I was. But, nothing prepares you for running, except running.

Good luck, and thanks for your service!

 

[dalekcommander]

Okay, I know I'm gonna catch hell for being the Army representative here in a "Marine" forum, but hey guys, cut me some slack. 504th PIR/82nd Airborne should earn me a few seconds.......

The thing to remember darkhanger18 is that the DI's are going to yell, scream, curse and chase you from sun-up to sun-down and in pretty short order you'll be thinking, "Oh man, what did I do?" But, the twist on it is that they don't have anything personal against you - they just want you to be the best damn Marine you can possibly be at the end of Boot Camp.

I had a Drill Sergeant that I would have sworn was trying to do his damndest to get me to quit. Everyday he focused on me and made it his personal duty to ride me non-stop. Then, at the end of Basic, HE gave me my first stripe. HE had put in for it himself a few weeks before graduation. He put me under all that pressure to see how I would deal with it and I guess I dealt with it just fine.

It's all a mind game to see what your breaking point is, to push you past it and to get you back on track once you've been pushed farther than ever before in your life. Now that you know that - you can see it for what it is and won't start gibbering when DI crawls all over you.

Don't worry so much about the physical aspect of it all. Your body will adapt to the general lack of sleep, bad food gulped down on the run and all the rest. You'll develop muscle memory and soon be doing things without ever thinking about them.

Just play the game.

Show some leadership too and don't be afraid to do it. See that guy at the end of the billet - can't make his rack tight enough? Go help him - show him how to do it the right way. Got another guy can't shoot? take a few minutes to show him what you learned about breath control, squeezing the trigger and scanning the range for the next target.

Good luck! I applaud your decision to step up and take the oath! Stay low, keep dry.

 

[DieselDave]

TedTheLed said: It seems this relationship and method of speaking would merely interfere with the effective communication and function of a group, and alienate one from authority..but perhaps that's what the war machine wants, not feelers and thinkers, but rather obedient robot-like killers...?

Ted,
I will not address the baiting aspect of your question other than to say that's a no-no.

The reason it's done that way is to instill discipline and bearing. It's only done that way while in formation or when formally addressing, key being formally, a superior Officer. It's not used in day-to-day operations. I wouldn't expect some people to understand and that's one of the reasons the military is so much better off being an all-volunteer force.

As far as being thinkers, I would put my former peers up against any group I have ever known and feel confident the same holds true with today's warriors. More than just being thinkers and feelers they are also doers. I've often said even to my non-military friends, "The best, most honorable, courageous and loyal group of people I have ever known I met during my time in the Corps." I expect most people that served feel the same way. Oh sure their were a few jerks and losers but they were definitely the exception to the rule and normally didn't stay around past their first tour if they made it that far.

 

[Gene]

Hi Dave,
When did you serve? How did you make Captain? Good for you but the reason I ask is that during Viet Nam we noncoms hated you officers because you were sometimes the smartest but weren't always the best Marines.

Please, don't judge me but I was just wondering. The hardest working Marines were the ones that always did the work and were noncoms. You officers NEVER did the work! They went to the officers club and partied and had everything to their liking.

Nothing wrong with that but as an ex-Marine, I can attest to it.

To the others, lets keep our focus. If you weren't in the Marines, you had it a little easier in boot camp. So what! My hat's off to you all that serve!!!

 

[tvodrd]

Semper fi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and a hats-off to most of the posters on this thread! Boot camp is a "rude awakening" to most, but you can prepare! (I wish I had "prepared" more! :green: )

Larry

 

[DieselDave]

I was in from 87-96 plus 3 months in 86.

Commissioned right out of college.

The non-coms still did nearly all the work during my time. I do believe there was a big improvement post Vietnam as far as relationships between the O's and E's. When I joined my gun squadron I was made the embark guy. Soon after I joined the squadron we were to have an IG inspection which is just a royal pain as you may remember. I was out there with my boys inventorying and moving boxes for 2 damn weeks. We never ask the troops to do anything we wouldn't do. Our CO had a rule that if your troops were at work you were at work. I would generally get to the office before my staff and still be there when they left or would come back later in the evening to get my work finished. That wasn't me being a nice guy, all the O's were expected to do the same thing. If you were in maintenance and you had a day and night crew then you would be there all day and then come back that night to check on progress. Yes, I went to the O club a lot, mostly while deployed. More time than not I would go straight from work after an 11-12 hour day. During a normal period I would get to work between 0515 and at the latest 0730. Typically I would get off between 1630 and 1900. When I had the "duty", 24 hours, I would stay at the squadron the entire time and maybe get 2 hours sleep. My asst., typically an E3-E5 would be there with me and would normally get about the same 2 hours sleep. The difference was he normally got the next day off while I had to go home, shave and shower and return for a full days work. Maybe my squadron was stricter than most on the O's but I certainly didn't feel I was putting the load on my staff. On the other hand, the 4 years I spent with a couple of Navy squadrons was far less demanding. They were training squadrons so it really isn't a fair comparison.

I'm dragging this way off topic. End of the side board for me.

 

[UncleFester]

what's the point of this: ?

" ..<snipped posted by DD> ..If asked a question, come to the position of attention before opening your "pie hole". When spoken to or speaking only look straight ahead. Do not look up, down, left or right. If the person is 6" taller than you, speak into their neck. If they are to your left or right continue to look straight ahead. Eye contact is not a goal and you will likely have this reinforced to you the hard way..."

It seems this relationship and method of speaking would merely interfere with the effective communication and function of a group, and alienate one from authority..
but perhaps that's what the war machine wants, not feelers and thinkers, but rather obedient robot-like killers...?

I don't normally meddle in such things but this is important.
The people in the military know what they're doing despite what you may have heard to the contrary. These techniques have evolved over centuries. They remain the same regardless of technologies used to conduct warfare. HUMAN discipline is human discipline and it doesn't chage.
Let these people do what they do best.
There is a bumper sticker: If you can read this, thank a teacher, if you can read this in English (read: not arabic or (older) German), thank a soldier.
Just something to think about...................