Photo By Sgt. Sarah Anderson | Gen. James F. Amos, Commandant of the Marine Corps, addresses Marines at the base...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII - The rumors are true. Members of Congress are debating a bill which will force all the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces wear the same utility uniform.
During his visit, Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James F. Amos announced that he will fight for the Marine Corps to keep the Marine pattern uniform.
“We are on it like a hobo on a ham sandwich,” Amos said. “I love the hell out of this uniform and I don’t have any intention of changing it.”
The reason for the debate is due to the excessive expenses the military branches have exhausted researching and developing their utility uniforms in the last 10 years, according to Amos.
The uniform topic arose when Amos and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Micheal P. Barrett visited Marine Corps Base Hawaii Monday, but was not the sole purpose of their appearance.
The purpose of the stay was for the most senior Marine Corps leaders to personally update Hawaii Marines on the war in Afghanistan, what is happening in Washington, D.C., and to address issues circulating within the Marine Corps.
During their trip, Amos and Barrett held two sessions at the base theater, which was packed with Marines from across the base.
Amos addressed pressing issues within the organization like sexual assault, hazing and corruption.
“We have an issue Marines; we have to fix this,” Amos said. “This is the real deal, I don’t understand for one minute how a Marine can turn their back and allow another Marine to get sexually assaulted by another Marine. It’s wrong and shameful. That’s not who we are and it’s not what we do.”
Barrett leveled with the Marines, expressing his commitment to the welfare of each Marine.
“This next part actually breaks our heart. We are hyper alert, hyper aware and we are concerned about these poor life choices that a few of our Marines are making,” Barrett said. “We need every single one of you in the fight, we need every single one of you ready and we don’t have time for all this.”
Amos updated the Marines of the drawdown in Afghanistan and the imprint the Corps has made in the region.
“Success has happened, what we hoped would happen in Afghanistan,” Amos said. “All these places that we fought so hard in, we aren’t there anymore, the Afghan National Army is, and by the way, they are hugely successful.”
The Marine Corps has taken an advise and assist role in the Middle East, training Afghan forces to take over the fight on terrorism. The advisory role is also bringing Marines home. Amos also said this time next year, the number of Marines on the ground will be significantly reduced. Readiness was a focus of the address, due to the unrest in the Middle East.
“I’m absolutely convinced of it, there’s no shortage of war,” Amos said. “My message to you today is to be ready. Don’t look at Afghanistan as an opportunity to drop your pack, because that is not what we do. We are America’s insurance policy. We’ve got to be ready.
“I’m not going to say we are going to be ready in a month, I’m just going to send you, and you are going to go because that’s what we do for our country,” Amos added. “That is the difference between the United States Marine Corps and all the other services, that’s just who we are.”
Amos and Barrett traveled to Iwakuni and Okinawa, Japan, this week to speak to the Marines in Asia, then will continue their journey back to Washington, D.C.
| Date Taken: | 07.19.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 07.19.2013 17:08 |
| Story ID: | 110512 |
| Location: | KANEOHE, HAWAII, US |
| Web Views: | 841 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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