Klarinet Archive - Posting 000281.txt from 2007/09

From: "Vincent Horrillo" <clarinetman@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Military Bands
Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2007 15:36:11 -0400

Okay, I get the gist of what you all think about the Marines. I still
have not made a decision, and I probably won't for at least a few
months. But, what can you all say about the Navy bands?

On 9/29/07, Kevin Fay <kevin.fay.home@-----.net> wrote:
> Bill Foss posted:
>
> <<<NO, that is NOT true for Marine Corps line bands. I repeat what I
> emailed earlier, if you are a Marine, you are a Rifleman FIRST !>>>
>
> Victor, this is true. It is also a point of considerable pride for the
> Corps. I suggest you chat with some seasoned Marines - other than the
> recruiters, who will lie, lie, lie, lie, lie and lie to make their numbers -
> to get a flavor of the institution.
>
> In your recruiting office there is a piece of paper hanging on the wall
> somewhere - likely where you can't see it - showing how each person there is
> assigned in a rifle platoon. *All* Marines are riflemen. Each and every
> one. As Bill noted, The President's Own are *not* Marines; they are
> musicians who dress like Marines.
>
> Bill goes on:
>
> <<<I am personally acquainted with about 50 folks who are either current
> Marine Corps line bandsmen or just out of the Corps (in the last 12 months
> or so) in ranks of E4 through E8. EVERY ONE of them has served at least one
> tour in a combat zone carrying a rifle.
>
> This includes the E7's and E8's with max enlisted efficiency reports.>>>
>
> Victor, there is one thing you should focus on here that brings the issue
> into clarity. If they send you to boot camp, the Corps is going to spend
> thousands of dollars teaching you how to kill people with your rifle, its
> accoutrements and (last but not least) your bare hands. Why would they give
> you this training if there's no expectation that you'll use it?
>
> You might believe you are "special" because you play well enough that you
> are more valuable to the Corps wielding a clarinet than an M4. You're not.
> Entertaining troops and the public is *not* a higher mission to the Marines
> than fulfilling their core mission: The Marine Corps is a branch of the
> Navy that exists to kill people. That's what they do, and from top to
> bottom they do it extremely well.
>
> This is not a rant against the Corps; it is an institution that I hold in
> highest respect. (Indeed, I was an officer candidate in it until my failing
> eyesight and three bouts of heatstroke washed me out.) But it does not
> exist to provide you with a guaranteed gig while all of the other riflemen
> do additional tours while the country is at war.
>
> Bottom line - if you don't want to wield a rifle for a living, do *not* join
> the Marines.
>
> kjf
>
>
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