I hated the helmet liner, cold weather, and wore a gray knit cap under my steel pot instead. What a ration of **** I got for wearing that cap. Wore it all winter, though. Just another nail in the coffin of my military career.
Posted on 08/02/2004 3:57:17 PM PDT by Cannoneer No. 4
With the growth of professional infantry over the last three decades, there has been, not unexpectedly, a growth in companies that supply equipment for the troops. That is, gear that is demonstrably superior to what the troops were being issued by the government. This is not an entirely new phenomenon. American professional soldiers had long purchased superior gear from commercial firms. But after World War II, with a large peace time army and marine corps, better pay for the career soldiers, and a growing industry supplying new products for hunters, campers and police, it was only natural that many of the mail order catalogs for these firms should show up in the mailboxes of infantry NCOs and officers.
When the army became all-volunteer in the early 1970s, the new recruits, over the next decade, began to assume the same professional attitudes as the career NCOs and officers that led them. It became common for the troops to buy the same commercial gear (better sleeping bags, rifle cleaning gear, cold weather gear, Etc.) as the career NCOs had long done. But the commercial companies began producing more and more stuff that was suitable for professional infantrymen. Part of this was due to the growing popularity of paramilitary SWAT teams in police departments. But part of it had to do with the growth of paint ball combat as a sport. There was also an explosive growth in camping and hiking, as well as continued popularity of hunting. All these leisure time activities required equipment that was also useful for infantry. The commercial firms noted this, and began designing and manufacturing gear especially for the military market. Some foreign firms got into the act. Companies in Israel and South Africa produced superior military gear, and sold it to an international market.
A lot of the equipment troops were willing to buy with their own money was pretty mundane. Load bearing equipment (for carrying extra ammo, grenades, flashlights and whatnot) was popular, as were better backpacks, underwear and socks. Better boots were also popular. The army and marine unit commanders did not go along with all this “non-standard” stuff, and having their favorite gear “banned” was another of those uncertainties an infantryman had to worry about when he got a new commanding officer. The army organizations that designed and authorized the “official” gear also noted the competition, and the reaction of the troops. Eventually, the military bureaucrats decided to, for the most part, cooperate with the commercial firms rather than constantly be at war with the troops they were supposed to be serving. One reason for the change in attitude was the arrival of the Internet in the mid 1990s. This began putting all the troops in constant touch with each other, and forming a block of public opinion that bureaucrats did not want to tangle with.
As a result of all this, combat troops today have better gear than ever before. But it’s no accident, and a lot of people unwittingly played a part in making it happen.
Without them, there would be no Blackhawk since Blackhawk copies all their designs from Eagle.
ping
Reference bump
I want one of those and one of those and.......
I want one of those and one of those and.......
The Kerry campaign seems to be attempting to use this as evidence Bush is shortchanging the military, which is nonsense of course;
It has been going on long before this administration, and the primary cause is the convoluted, complex, and impossibly long military procurement cycle, which really has been a problem for the entire history of this country.
God I used to hate that....
Hadf a link to CamelBack's own site, but I seem to have lost it somewhere.
I remember taking just about the entire issue of TA-50 and throwing it in a wall locker to be used only at inspections. Most of the equipment I actually took to the field was privately purchased.
I remember asking for Kool-Aid.
ping
I hated the helmet liner, cold weather, and wore a gray knit cap under my steel pot instead. What a ration of **** I got for wearing that cap. Wore it all winter, though. Just another nail in the coffin of my military career.
And I wanted Vermouth and those little onions for a decent Gibson....
I never could develop a taste for martinis.
I did like Nuc Mam, Ba Me Ba, Suntory …
Just about all my privately owned stuff was cold weather gear to wear under issue stuff.
btt
This is five-aplha. (sip) Give me one round on AP Five. (Sip). Thank you. We'll call if we need more... (sip)
Nuc Mam? You are one sick puppy!
They still use that BS thing!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.