When the US needs to respond to armed conflict, they call
out the Marines. Established in 1775 by the First Continental Congress to serve
as an infantry unit aboard naval vessels, the Corps has become expert in
amphibious warfare and rapid response.
Last
month, as part of an executive outreach program, I was invited, along with 19
other executives, to spend a day with the US Marine Corps in Washington DC and
Quantico Virginia. I jumped at the chance, for many reasons, including the fact
that Seattle is on the short list to host the 2013 Marine Week activities.
The day
started at 0610 in the lobby of the Ritz Carlton, Pentagon City, where the
assembled executives, most of whom were from the East Coast, were introduced to
our Marine hosts. We were given a brief description of our day ahead and told
that in terms of protocol we would have the rank of one-star general.
Our
group boarded buses to the Pentagon, where we were given a walking tour of the
largest office building in the world. A scorched stone at the base of the
building memorializes the attack of 9/11. At the time of the attack the
Pentagon was undergoing renovation. The section struck by United Airlines
flight 77 was also the first section to be renovated, and was not yet fully
reoccupied. The renovation had included steel reinforcement, blast-resistant
windows and a sprinkler system, and this reinforcement allowed the building
around the crash site to remain intact, giving waorkers in the surrounding area
time to escape.
Following
a visit to the Pentagon press briefing room, we received breakfast and a
recently declassified and very informative operations and intelligence brief
from General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., the Vice-Commandant of the Marine Corps.
General Dunford explained the strategic importance of the Pacific, noting that
as the tempo in the Middle East slows, it’s critical to have Marines in the
Asia-Pacific region.
On to
Bolling Air Force Base, where we boarded a CH 46 Sea Knight helicopter for a
25-minute flight to the Marine Training facility at Quantico, Virginia. The Sea
Knight has flown in every marine action since 1964, and my ride was built in
1969. While the Marines are justifiably fond of the old bird, she’s being
phased out and replaced by the more modern tilt-rotor V-22 Osprey.
On the
ground at Quantico we chatted with the pilots before being led to the USMC
Martial Arts Center of Excellence where instructor-trainers demonstrated the
Corps’ martial arts combat system, developed over years of experience and
perfected in 2001 by then Marine Commandant James L. Jones. The instructors
demonstrated varying degrees of force and explained the idea behind determining
how much force can be used in response to the mission, up to and including
lethal force. The “one-star generals” were thankfully not asked to participate
in the exercise.
On to
the Weapons Training Battalion range, where we were given an introduction to,
and familiarization with, the basic weapons used by the Marine Corps, including
the M4 Carbine, M27 Machine Gun and M9 Pistol. After the weapons talk, which
was quite informative and very interesting, came the Meals Ready to Eat (MRE)
training (that’s right, you need training to eat an MRE properly). The MRE is
the modern equivalent of C-Rations, and the meal was actually pretty good,
although it was about 2:00 pm so we were all hungry. A chemical reaction,
started with a bit of water, superheats the meal pouch in a matter of minutes.
One can imagine sitting on a log in the rain after a week of having bad guys
shooting at you that the hot chicken and noodles must taste like heaven.
After
lunch our group was turned loose on the weapons range with assault weapons,
handguns, machine guns and sniper rifles, hundreds of rounds of live ammunition
and a team of very patient instructors while we aimed at targets “downrange”
and generally shot up the place.
From
the weapons range we travelled to the National Museum of the Marine Corps,
where we had a brief tour of the exhibits, including the actual Iwo Jima flag
seen in the iconic photo by Joe Rosenthal. The tour ended with a hosted
reception in the museum’s recreation of Tun Tavern, the Philadelphia birthplace
of the Marine Corps in 1775.
A quick
trip back to the hotel to change into business attire and then the group
attended a private reception at the Marine Barracks in Washington DC. After
what seemed like 10 minutes but was actually more than an hour, we stepped
outside to VIP seats on the parade ground for the Friday Evening Parade.
The
Evening Parades are conducted on Fridays between Memorial Day and Labor Day,
and feature “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, “The Commandant’s
Own” The United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, the Marine Corps Color
Guard, the Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon, Ceremonial Marchers, and Lance
Corporal Chesty XIII, the official mascot of Marine Barracks Washington. Chesty
is a bulldog, and although I outranked him, I didn’t get to be part of the
parade.
Anyone
visiting Washington DC in the summer should try to see this parade. Tickets are
free but require long range planning and reservations, which can be made
online.
One of
the USMC’s bloodiest battles is the budgetary battle they wage with Congress
every year. After accounting for inflation, the cost to equip an infantry
battalion in 2012 is 2.7 times the cost in 2000, but the Marine Corps budget is
a bare 8.2 percent of the FY2012 Department of Defense budget. Pacific Maritime
Magazine appreciates all of the country’s armed forces – those under the
Department of Defense as well as those under the Department of Homeland
Security, and now more than ever they need the support of the general public.
As mentioned in this space last month, our national defense is threatened by
automatic spending cuts, or sequester, of 50 percent. In this time of global
crisis, our national defense is more important than ever. Where the First
Congress saw a clear need for the Marine Corps, the 113th Congress will decide
its fate. Let your Senator know you support national defense, and expect
Congress to ensure the Marines will still be an effective force when we need
them.
Chris Philips, Managing
Editor
