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Marines Complain About Food

PirateMk1 said:
I was a civilian over in yonder sand box. Without my crew and my happy ass delivering fuel to the FOBs and every other bag farm, those Humvees helos and other assorted heavy artillery would have been big ass bricks and worth just as much. Trust me the military needed all the logistical help they could muster. Which ment me and mine. By the way I am NOT former military.
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Yes, but the military could have done it themselves before President Clinton made his cuts. The military had a huge logistical support system in place, replaced by Halliburton and others under Clinton.
 
Lord of Planar said:
Yes, but the military could have done it themselves before President Clinton made his cuts. The military had a huge logistical support system in place, replaced by Halliburton and others under Clinton.
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I don't think you quite understand why contractors were needed. Its not that the Army or Marines couldn't move the stuff they could, at least marginally. Kellogg Brown and Root whom I worked for before they were folded into Halliburton simply provided more logistics capacity then the military had and expanded the number of troopers that could be supported and well, WITHOUT a full mobilization effort. It also allowed the military to concentrate on recruiting for the combat arms of the military. Was the system perfect? No, not by any means. The government can screw anything up and they screwed the pooch with the contractor situation to a small degree. That said contractors add a level of performance and flexibility in ADDITION and complimentary to military logistics. Here's another thing the routine deployment for soldiers is between 6 months to 12 months or at least it was when I was abroad. Most contractors spent over 2 years there some I know have spent the duration of the conflict. That's a big plus in familiarity and situational awareness and continuity.
 
Pirate, I agree with you to the point of delivering to some safe place outside the warzone. We used to have all the logistical support we needed from that point on.
 
Lord of Planar said:
Pirate, I agree with you to the point of delivering to some safe place outside the warzone. We used to have all the logistical support we needed from that point on.
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Well, I have to say since I was said contractor in aforementioned conflict, in active combat zones, you could definitely and rightly say I am biased on the issue. The military still has very massive logistics capability. That is THE PRIME reason NO one can beat us in a conventional shooting war our military has so much logistics capacity. But that massive capacity has limits.

Query, what is it about contractors in war zones that concerns you?
 
MarineTpartier said:
There is a constant push-pull (hatred?) in our military, especially in the Army and Marine Corps, between the guys whipping it on outside the wire and the guys inside the wire sitting on these huge Forward Operating Bases (FOBs). It is the one thing we Marines and soldiers can agree on. We hate Fobbits. In the case of this story, you're hearing from a "Fobbit" (Urban Dictionary: fobbit) as we call them. The disparity amongst experiences by servicemembers is astounding. Probably more so in these wars than any other in US history.

Below I will lay out the differences for you:

Ground Pounders
Lodging: At most a two man tent or fighting hole
Sleeping arrangements: In a sleeping bag on dirt or rolled sleeping pad
Food: MRE's and sometimes tray rations
Schedule: Dependent upon the enemy. Usually a 4 hour perimeter watch, a 6-8 hour patrol, and a 4 hour assignment to Quick Reaction Force in case the patrol that is out gets into contact.
Off time: Does not apply. Usually spent cleaning weapons/the patrol base or improving security measures around the base. Normally they will get 1 hour a week to call home on a satellite phone.

Fobbits
Lodging: Usually a converted 2 man packing container with A/C and heater complete with wifi and cable
Sleeping arrangements: Mattress with sheets and a blanket. Possibly a cot.
Food: Even with the reduction of meals, 3 meals a day in a buffet style setting. Think Golden Corral
Schedule: Usually 8-12 hour shifts including 1 hour of physical training and 2, 1 hour meal periods.
Off time: You name it. Internet cafe, coffee shops, game rooms, fast food, bazaar's, movie theaters, video game centers, outdoor pools, huge fitness centers (think Gold's Gym), R/C car tracks, barber shops/hair stylists, masseuses, etc, etc



I totally understand the role that "Fobbits" play. They support guys like me that are outside the wire fighting the good fight. I'm not discounting their jobs. I'm discounting the fact that they live the way they live and then have the audacity to complain about it when something changes. This is not a generalization. Many, many times on my short stays aboard one of these massive wastes of money, I have heard the phrases such as "Aww man they're out of ice cream" "I can't believe we're having parmesan chicken again" "They're showing Avengers again?" "Internet's been down for like 4 hours!". Next time you want to thank a servicemember for his service, remember not all service is created equal. The best example I can give is the difference a cop in Beverly Hills has and a cop in Compton has. Yeah, they're both cops. No, their service is not equal.

The drawdown diet: Marines steamed by loss of hot meal at Afghanistan base - World News
Each one has an A/C and heater, bed, wifi, cable, electricity, etc
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Each one has worms, mud, and comes with 3 hours of hard labor to make. Oh joy!
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Daily grilling aboard FOB Leatherneck
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Cornbeefed hash Tray Rations.
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Corned beef hash does not look good, but could be worse. Think "5 Fingers of Death" here. LOL.
 
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