another marine corps boot camp brutality case exposed: a DI hitting a recruit with his elbow in the gut make..

Question

a recruit a better fighting man? another case, during second phase out in the field, would it make for a better marine if a DI continuously throwing a recruits helmet over a fence and having the recruit continuously retrieve it? would having your rifle at the port arm position, and the DI hits your rifle and the rifle swells your face up make u a better infantryman? saying one of your friends in the platoon, he was sick and went to sickbay, and the DI saying that he died, one gone 35 more left, do this procedure boosts morale? he eventually told us the recruit wasnt dead, hours later. please someone, especially marine DI's answer these questions. enquiring minds wants to know

i was an eyewitness, i was there

Answer 1

Good. Hopefully it will make the recruit tougher and less of a pu$$y.

Answer 2

Evidently, there are extremes to both sides of this issue. I was in Marine Corps boot camp in 1968. It was true that DIs did occasionally beat recruits. It was always against regulations but unless there was an officer present (which was not often) DIs did not follow this rule.

From what I saw, the recruits getting beaten often did not learn from the first experience and were struck again and again. Those who could learn, did so without physical brutality. Also I question the motives of an abusive DI. An abusive DI is no different than an abusive parent or an abusive spouse. It really is not about the perceived offense or out of love, it is about poor self control, poor tolerance/patience, substance abuse and mental illness.

Marines do need to maintain their status as the best military force in the country. Physical demands, training and esprit di corps are, were and always will be what make the Marine Corps unique.

Answer 3

Why didn't you ask your DI? I mean, you were there. Maybe warm milk, some cookies, and fresh warm clothes right out the dryer would make a better fighting man. But then again I wouldn't know. I had this thing about joining the Marines when I was in high school. So I asked around, decided I didn't like what I learned about it, boot camp was something I really didn't wanna do, no matter how much money or college help. So guess what I did: didn't sign up. It's your choice all the way. And brutality is too big of a word.

Answer 4

I was not there but here is my view. I was in the military and went through boot camp before the "kinder gentler military and the don't ask don't tell military. I was an E-5 when Clinton changed these things and the recruits that came after those changes did not handle tough situations or taking orders as well. When I got to my first duty station the ability to get people to do what they were supposed to do was very good because of things like blanket parties and pink bellies by peers tend to get the message across. I think that some DI may go overboard but some intimidation is necessary.
BTW it is sad that they fight for the freedom of people like Ajax that sit here and put them down. I hope one day you will understand that the very freedom in the US that we enjoy and in fact much of the freedom throughout the world was given to you by men and women that are far more honorable and caring than you. BTW officers for the most part are collage grads so you saying they are unintelligent is totally wrong.

Answer 5

Sounds like you are whining to me. Have you been downrange yet?
I think you should look at the whole picture.
Your reaction to all these things is a positive things. You are going to face worse hardship beyond having to constantly retrieve a Kevlar over a fence. Building a wall to all that bull crap will make you better to cope for what's in store.
Your time now should be within your mind and how to process and get over all these things.
Maybe that marine should have been quicker so that his rifle wouldn't have hit his face.
Perhaps the DI telling you your battle buddy had died was him trying to tell you that while he's gone someone would have to take his place in the fight.
Look, this will all prepare you for the future.
Stay strong! Your strength instead of your whining might become infectious and save a marine one day.

Answer 6

Let's be real. Abuse is officially not tolerated but...
Just what the hell is a young Marine going to do when he gets to the war and the enemy isn't fighting fair? When the enemy is using children to carry IED's? When the terrorists are firing rifles from behind women? When the terrorists don't follow the rules of the Geneva Convention and Marines get court marshalled for it? Is this young Marine going to call for a "Training time out," or hold up a "Stress Card" or call the Inspector General to cry that it's not fair?????? NO! The DI's know that our Marines need to be mentally tough or they're dead.
Fairness is an illusion, reality is a killer if you are not prepared for it. This is not the boy scouts; everyone doesn't get a trophy just because they showed up to the game and tried real hard.
Grow the hell up. Talk to a Vietnam Vet, a Korean War Vet, or a WWII Vet while we still have them.
My Grandfather (US Army WWII Veteran) called your type of whiner a "panty waste."
Don't forget Marine bootcamp is a "one time" right of passage. If a Marine gets out and decides to join the Navy, Army, Air Force, or NG, that individual doesn't go to "Basic Training" again. But any other servicemember who joins the Marines goes to bootcamp.

Answer 7

DI hitting a recruit in the GUT and hiting your rifle so it hits you in the face is not allowed nowadays...but my question is was the recruit who was actually hit bothered by it or just you?

Repeatedly throwing a kevlar over the fence...character building exercise, doesn't hurt anyone and the recruit learns perservence

Telling you a fellow recruit has died when he hasn't...no it's not a morale booster....just a way to teach to to perform your duties under duress or when your mind wants to be on other things.

But Boot Camp wasn't designed to boost your morale....it's intention is to break you down as individuals and train you how to be a marine as a TEAM....remember the log drills? Designed to teach you to pull your own weight so that the whole squad can lift the log.....Boot camp isn't designed to stroke your ego....

You'll have a tough military career if all you do is complain everytime things aren't hunky-dory.

Answer 8

As a former active duty Marine and with a (re) birth at Parris Island I would like to say one thing. USMC boot camp is designed to train potential Marines to fight and survive in war.

During a deployment, an individual will come across many forms of stress related to their situation. By being able to deal with the stress factors an individual increases their chances for survival and their ability to digest both mentally and emotionally what is happening in their lives.

It is a DI's role to prepare for them for this. It is their job to stress them and casue emotional and mental stress. I believe this include physical stress also. By preparing that young Marine to deal with the physical side and to maintain composure and to keep their head about them is only a positive thing. Does getting hit in the gut with an elbow really cause that much damage? But if that recruit learns to keep his composure, that could save his life when he gets hurt in the field.

Answer 9

DI's have been to where your heading and don't want whiners backing the team up. Just thank God your not in Navy SEAL bootcamp on Coronado. You would already have been kicked out. Imagine you going through the POW training. You don't know anything. What a pup.

Answer 10

Prior to the 70s, it was a common sight to see DIs strike and/or beat the crap out of a recruit. Apparently a lot has changed since then.

Answer 11

who cares its the marines not the air force i got my *** kick every day when i was in boot camp the marines are the hardest and the best we don't need p*ssies in our corps and they really don't hit you that hard just enough to wake you up and the recruits can always go to the senior DI and report it if they feel they were abused