Educators get a taste of recruit life
Tuesday morning starts off early. (at least for a reporter)
Educators from across Wisconin, Illinois and Missouri board two Marine Corps buses at 7:15 am and head to the MCRD where they get see a glimpse of what life is like for a recruit.
First, drill instructor, Staff Sgt. Zunino explains the importance of following commands.
The teachers meet their actual drill instructor at Yellow Footprints.
Later, another drill instructor explains the script recruits must read when they call home. This is the first and only time a recruit's parents will hear the voice of their sons until they graduate from boot camp and become an actual Marine. In the 13 weeks that follow the recruits will be able to write letters but will not be able to make phone calls. (The rules are the same for female recruits who are processed at Parris Island.)
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Hi Cara, I am enjoying your view of the inductee process and have a question.
ReplyDeleteI am concerned that the Department of Defense is conducting the bulk of our foreign policy in places where we are at war and wonder if the young men you are observing receive any training that will enable them to deal with the diplomatic responsibilities they must assume when taking the field in places like Afghanistan.
Specifically, I am thinking about situations where our soldiers secure a territory and then seek to develop a relationship with the local peoples (tribe).
If there are several competing tribes in a secured territory, how do our soldiers decide which tribe to favor with aid including infrastructure improvements, food, education, and medical assistance; if one tribe worked to support the insurgency before the arrival of our forces, how will our soldiers deal with those people and do they consider that the Taliban may terrorize to garner support.
Understanding and respecting local customs can make the difference when winning hearts and minds. How do our young soldiers learn the taboos of a foreign culture, how do they learn what is acceptable?
Our soldiers are the face of America in those countries where we are supposedly working to establish freedom, and if the fastest way to lasting peace is through interaction with a local people that shows we care about the future, are we working toward that end or are we just fighting?-Tony
Hey Tony,
ReplyDeleteI just got your comment. I'm back home now, so I can't have a drill instructor address that issue specifically. What I can tell you is what I learned from the various drill instructors and enlisted Marines I spoke with regarding the war.
Staff Sgt. Michael Zunino emphasized that while all Marines are considered infantry before all else and taught how to "kill," an equally big emphasis is put on teaching Marines to be kind and respectful to local Iraqis and Afghans - the idea is you can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar. It's an old adage but one that works and has even saved lives, he said.
To use an exampled he mentioned and incident that occurred during one of this two tours in Iraq. He found out that an insurgent whose car bomb his platoon had disabled earlier that week outside a US military post had purposely not targeted the Marines because even though they were Americans "they were respectful."
"I tell my guys you should always help that little old lady across the street, because you never know who's watching," he said.
As for how the Marines help to train soldiers to determine which tribes are the good and which are bad, maybe I can call a public affairs guy and ask. I do know that all Marines set to be deployed to combat zones must undergo field training exercises that mimic the sorts of situations they will run into once they have arrived overseas. Such training includes putting Marines in a mock village replete with actors, and various real and perceived threats. The Marines are observed by drill instructors and studied to see how well they interact with locals.