Rangers Lead the Way!

“This post is for all of you that served in the US Army, especially the Rangers.

As of yesterday, the army chief of staff announced that ALL members of the US Army will wear the Black Beret, a symbol of the US Army Rangers.

General Shinseki made the announcement at the annual AUSA meeting in Washington D.C.

The Maroon berets of the 82nd and the Green berets of the Special Forces will remain, and I predict that the Rangers will drop the headgear for another as a result.”

“well, we're FINALLY getting chic, aren't we?

are the new autumn wool fashions in yet?

seriously, why are they doing this?”

“Oh boy,Hyperpacker's heart is going to be broken over this! I'm sure he'll fill ya'll in on exactly why ONLY the Rangers should wear a beret. What are the baseball stle caps too expensive?”

“that's what i was fishing for, joy. i think the army is trying to make ALL their folks feel *special*.

SPAM,

what's the word, man?”

“I always thought the berets looked kinda' fruity (no offense). They're just so darn impractical.

... BDU cap was always just fine by me.

Maybe it's just my aversion to anything that looks too british. If we're gonna dress like the brits, can we at least have their rations to? They get 2 oz. of Pussers' rum with their field rations!”

“Additional "Make 'em feel good" moves within the US Army are to eliminate duty on the weekends while in garrison, sharply curtail short notice deployments, and to make EVERY National holiday a 4 day weekend for the troops...

Anyone know how to maintain an organizations effectiveness while cutting funding, reducing personnel, and reducing the overall manhours worked, while spending the few budget dollars available for the purchase of neat new hats for the workers?”

“Personal Opinion: I proudly wore the Green Beret prior to retirement, but it was only a piece of headgear...the headgear does not make the man, and incidently, the beret is never worn in the field, so bdu caps will continue to be worn where the helmet is not mandated.”

“Oh please, WTF?!?

I've been in the Army for 15 years and haven't ever had my moral affected by my friggin headgear, except when trying to patrol in a K-Pot instead of a soft cap.

A beret is a symbol of an elite soldier (except in the AF), and lets be frank - there are some dirtbags in the Army that already are a disgrace to look at, give them a beret is like putting gold hubcaps on a '72 Pinto.

Where did you hear this? I haven't heard it at all.”

“Heard of the Early-Bird? It's a compilation of the news from all over released early A.M. by the pentagon...the story was reported in the Washington Post, 18 October 2000. I copied the story to disk but don't know how to post it here, Give me an e-mail address and I'll e-mail it to you.”

“CNN has it.

look here:

http://www.cnn.com/2000/US/10/18/army.blackberets.ap/index.html”

“Army chief of staff General Eric Shinseki thought that they looked cool so he wants everyone to wear one.”

“I guess it's true but not to my liking and I don't think it's set in stone yet. Hopefully someone will VETO this.Don't get me wrong I have been the proud honor of wearing a beret on a peace keeping mission but once the mission was over and I went back to my regular mission the beret went away.The Rangers do lead the way and this is a very disrespectful move.”

“I personally don't care what color beret our soldiers wear as long as it is NOT the blue beret of the UN.”

“i heeeared dat!”

“I followed The Friendly Ranger thru the Sawteeths for two days - man! can she lead the way!

I've often considered spending the summer as a forest ranger.
Backcountry, of course.”

“My Dad was a Ranger. He'll probably just shake his head. The uniform is something my father is very proud of. He won't say anything but he'll feel insulted, I'm certain.

On another note, my 19 year old nephew just left for bootcamp. He has been accepted to Warrant Officer School. He's going to be a chopper pilot. You military people can appreciate how uncommon that is.”

“im not sure about rangers and army stuff but I do think that the headgear they all wear is an important symbol to people everywhere.Years ago nurses recieved a cap after graduation and it was a proud thing to ware, now nurses everywhere have given up the privaledge to ware there cap to work.I for one do not think this is good.people need to have some things in there life to be proud of.”

“Was Monica Lewinsky wearing a black beret in some of the medias favorite pictures? Maybe Willie is behind the change, to honor her. Next the Air Force will all wear blue dresses.

http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1998/10/03/lewinsky.therapy/

Rangers are buff - I would never make fun of anyone that can do what they do.”

“I apologize in advance if my post gets real sour.

I was a Ranger for 2 years (2nd Batt,Ft lewis Wa). I will give you a brief synopsis of what you must go thru to get a black beret. This is for enlisted folks e-4 (paygrade) and below.
Basic Training 8 wks
AIT 9 wks
Airborne School 3 wks.
Ranger Indoctrination Program 3 wks. We began with 300+ candidates, About 100 of us graduated. Physically the school was hard. We ran 3-5 miles per day which in and of itself is not hard but do that on 4 hrs sleep and at a horse like gallop and you begin to understand. The mental strain you go through is what is tough. CONSTANT yelling,verbal and psycological abuse,push-ups 2am wake up calls to do push-ups and get yelled at more.Forced Road marches. All of his to cull out the weak. All of this for a simple wool hat. If it is not a big deal ask those who have earned it, ask those who tried and failed.

Rangers are the elite. only 2400 Men serve in Ranger companies today. It is a proud lineage going back to Rogers Rangers and Francis Marion in the revolution to Col's Darby and and Merrel.To the beaches at Anzio and Normany.To the jungles of Vietnam,to Grennada and Panama and the Gulf War. You want elite, in ALL of Vietnam there was ONE prisoner of war/ missing in action Ranger, one out of thousands, His name was Steven Champion out of Texas. No other unit in America can boast the success of my fellow Rangers. While the 1st battalion was serving in Somalia in '93 a detachment of Rangers was pinned down under heavy fire.When it was over 18 rangers were dead (some were dragged through the streets as trophies. you saw that on the news i am sure.) Do you know how many Somalii gunmen were killed in that gun battle? 514!

This is why the color of that beret matters. It is a disgrace to those who have earned it and an insult to those who have died defending our nation wearing it.”

“Hyperpacker I agree that a Ranger has a very proud tradition and is an elite force, but the black beret they have now is fairly recent in their tradition.

Don't get me wrong, I like the fact that it is the sole wear of the Rangers, and I do not feel that all of us soldiers need to wear one (see my above post), but the black beret was once the official headgear of Armor and Cavalry in the '60s and early '70s. There are thousands of pictures from these years in every regiment I've been in where every Tanker and Cavalryman wore them. I had a platoon Sergeant back in '85 that told us about when the headgear changed in the early '70s.

So in a way it isn't the color of the Beret, it's the soldier that wears it, and the traditions they uphold. I still feel that now the Rangers "Own" the black beret. It should stay theirs.

I also know that this is going to happen, I read it myself. SO the Rangers should do their best to find something to distinguish themselves from the thousands of other soldiers.

I am getting sick of the "feel good" Army. I am getting sick of dips like those others on the cowards thread that think they know what sacrifice is and heros are. Saying that Servicemen are not deserving of the title hero, unless you also include people killed on the highway? Oh please.

In 5 years I will retire. I am tired and I am sad.”

“This is the Ranger Creed for anyone who may care.

R Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger,fully knowing he hazards of my chosen profession. I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige honor and high espirit de corps of my Ranger Regiment.

A Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land sea or air.I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further faster and fight harder than any other soldier.

N Never shall I fail my comrades. I wil always keep myself mentally alert,physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be. One hundred percent and then some.

G Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers,neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow.

E Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I willnever leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarass my country.

R Readily will I display the intestial fortitude to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor.

RANGERS LEAD THE WAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“I had to weigh in on this subject.I feel that only rangers and the other smaller units that wear berets should have the privlidge.When I was a young fellow in the army,training for my 11B MOS,a detachment of rangers came over to Fort Polk to recruit us.I didn't apply,however,I sure wish I had gone on to jump school.Sunshine-good luck to your nephew.He should be attending his school here in Alabama at Fort Rucker.Baso4,damn right you are!”

“Just a question for you military guys. Have you ever been forced to serve under the UN? If not, would you? I personally believe that it is un-constituional, but wasn't there a guy who refused and he got court martialed?”

“Never have but if that's what I was ordered to do then I would!It's really not much different than a stay I had in The Sinai, a peace keeping mission with several other countries:Figi,Paraguay,Columbia, Brits and Italions.”

“Spam, I'm assuming on your Sinai mission you had a US commander. What if your mission under the UN were under a commander from Absurdistan? Would you still follow the order?”

“Baso4, American soldiers don't question crap like that. They follow orders and watch out for each other. That is one reason they are so effective.”

“Baso4 , there have been a few soldiers who refused UN leadership. They were all courtmartialed.”

“Okay, thanks, I was just curious.”

“I really hope someone steps in and smashes this idea. This topic is also running on the Army disscusion board at www.military.com , jump over and voice you opinion there also.”

“I talked to my Dad tonight. They didn't have black berets back then. They were supposed to get some stuff to put on their uniforms with a big ceremony after their training on the Fourth of July that year. In June they went to Korea instead. He said that the only thing they got to do to stand out was blouse their pants in their boots like the paratroopers. That upset the paratroopers. This BS has been going on since the dawn of military.

I got to hear all kinds of cool war stories. Makes for good campfire/scary stories. I'll share at the next hike I attend. :o)”

“Baso4, as a matter of fact the Contingent Command was the Brits but we took orders from my Batallion Commander.”

“here you go...

TAN BERETS, DUDE! ”

“My dad was an Airborn Ranger in Nam and he's really pisseda bout the berets. I've also heard that if you ask the soldiers what they want, 90% say they don't want the berets because they offer no protection to their face from the sun.”

“One of the most disgusting things about his beret issue is that in order to provide the black berets quickly enough, a lot of them will be made in the Peoples Republic of China (Red China). You know, the guys who bought/stole our nuclear secrets.”

“Rangers are just Marine Corps wanna be's.”

“My Understanding (and certainly Spam can agree or deny) is that the switch to Black Berets for the regular army is part of a recruitment ploy.

That is: through focus groups and market research it was determined (by a Madison Ave type advertising firm) that kids would more readily join an army they perceived to be "cool", or "tough" etc. The sorts of feelings evoked by . . .the black beret of the Rangers.

The conclusion therefore reached is that if the whole army wore the black beret, the image would translate and recruiting would improve.

What a boat load of crap. The only result will be to suck all of the meaning out of the beret that they were trying to capture in the first place.

The army should wear raspberry berets. The brass that approved the change should wear upside down funnels like the tinman in the Wizard of Oz, and the Rangers should continue to wear black.

Beige . . . yah . . .that's pretty f-ing intimidating.”

“hows aboutta beret with a nice floral print?”

“The ex-rangers finaly made it to Washington to plead their case. Congress wants to hold hearings. I hope they stop this.

Hey bacpac, if they wanted to be marines, they would have needed a sailor boyfriend first. Gues we all can't get through that part of the screening test.”

“Let me hasten to add two things:

1. Is not my intent to disparge our men and women in uniform, or those who are trying to recruit. There should be a better way to capitalize on the image of the black beret with out diluting it.

2. New Cadence for the Rangers:

I wanna be an airborn Ranger
I wanna live a live of danger
I Don't wanna wear a beige beret
I think it makes me look gay.

N.B. Let me hasten to add that the last line of cadence was not intended to inflict emotional damage on our homosexual friends. Don't ask don't tell.


NO animals were harmed in the composition of this message (well, maybe a gerbil or two).”

“Bullsh!t !!!!

Make the rest of the army wear sh!t brown not Rangers. I actually heard a person on NPR call this a fashion issue, morons!

DM berets are not worn in the field, they are for dress only. They are not meant to be sun visors.

Lee I gotta agree with your comments about this being a feel good deal.There is no practical reason for this. My beret is and always will be black, RANGERS LEAD THE WAY!!!”

“Sgt Rock, Marines are issued helmets and flack jackets not berets.”

“the article stated that the rangers were not switching colors to be different...

...does anybody buy that?

BTW, since when did bacpac become a bitchy sniveling troll that cannot let anybody else have their own opinion or hiking style?”

“I suport my millitary 100%”

“Hey bacpac, so are we. By the way, last time I saw, the Marines only get that stuff after we do. They have to get someone to show them how it works.”

“this could get good!”

“The Marine Corps has always operated with hand me down equipment. The Marine Corps in the only branch of the Armed forces that returns the unspent portion of their budget to the Treasury each year.”

“During the Vietnam War the moral in the Marine Corps was very low. On several occasions Marines were tasked with removing the Viet Cong from stategic positions in the highlands. Once removed the positions were turned over to the Army. In a few days or weeks the Viet Cong would counter attack and the Army would evacuate. The Marines were once again tasked with removing the Viet Cong. The Marines aquired a lot of Army equipment in these scenarios. So did the Viet Cong.

These battles are well documented and historical facts.

The Marines always get the nastiest assignments. They got them in WWII, we got them in Vietnam, and they got them in Desert Storm.

If you want Parades and Medals (and berets) join the Army. If you want to fight join the Marines.”

“I wanna kill. Brains and guts in my teeth, Kill.”

“The only good use for a Marine is beach erosion.

Bacpac here are some facts...

D-Day invasion 2nd Ranger Battalion spearheads invasion,not Marines.

Invasion of Anzio Italy WWII Raners not Marines.

Merrils Marauders in Burma in WWII Rangers not Marines

Francis "swamp fox " Marion in the Revolution, Ranger not Marine.

Gulf War, 1st Ranger Batt was in combat hours ahead of the marines.

Somalia, Marines...no show in Mogadishu,Rangers,Delta Force Task Force 106 on the frontline,18 dead americans over 500 dead somaliis.

Vietnam, 5 man Ranger hunter/killer teams terrified and
devasted NVA units. Only one Ranger MIA in over 10 years of combat.


Panama, Rangers parachute in to seize airfield. No marines till area was secure.


Plus numerous "off the record" missions while Marines were back home shinning their swords.

To become a marine you simply enlist,over 90% make it to graduation from boot camp. To become a Ranger you enlist, then basic/advanced school, Airborne school,Ranger Indoctrination Program, 30% make it.”

“In my bootcamp platoon we lost 50% of the original group.”