Battle-ready with nowhere to go

[unhappycamper]

Members of the 22nd MEU aboard the USS Kearsarge in the Persian Gulf are fighting boredom rather than insurgents in Iraq.


Battle-ready with nowhere to go
By Scott Schonauer, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Friday, October 19, 2007


ABOARD USS KEARSARGE

They have been known for years as the military’s “911 force.”

If Marines are needed anywhere in the Middle East or Africa, members of 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit are the first to go. They could be asked to raid a terrorist target, respond to a natural disaster or swoop in to help protect a U.S. Embassy.

But until those orders come, the Marines train and wait aboard this amphibious assault ship in the Persian Gulf. While they have to be ready for anything, there is always a chance they may finish their six-month deployment without doing anything major.

That possibility can be excruciatingly frustrating for this new generation of battle-hardened Marines, many of whom got their first taste of combat in Iraq just days after completing boot camp. It’s an adjustment some of the unit’s younger Marines are struggling to overcome, and company commanders acknowledge morale is down at times.

“You can tell there’s a lot of frustration,” Cpl. Billy Tyree III said. “I’d rather be going to Iraq … with this we could go anywhere, but we’re not going anywhere, at least, not yet.”

A Marine Expeditionary Unit, more commonly called a MEU (pronounced ME-you), typically consists of about 2,000 Marines and serves as a quick-reaction reserve force. It includes infantry and a helicopter squadron.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=49602



uhc comment: Any bets that these guys are part of the Iran plan?

[peace13]

1. Troop boredom is not new

and should not be used as an excuse to rush military force. In Desert Storm my brother used to write of the boredom and how all just wished to bring it on and get it over with. I don't know about the 'new generation' of soldier. We lost a patience long ago. Peace, Kim

[Jackeen]

2. They should be careful what they wish for.

It may come true...

As the article says, the Marines are the nation's 911 force. (OK, maybe 82nd AB might have something to say about that.) If there is something which requires America's attention, it's not going to wait for Marines to disengage themselves from Iraq to deal with it. This doesn't need to be Iran. It could be another Liberia. This just makes sense.