Marines Pose with SS Flag

Utah Bob · 02-10-2012, 11:29

Quote:

SAN DIEGO — The U.S. Marine Corps once again did damage control after a photograph surfaced of a sniper team in Afghanistan posing in front of a flag with a logo resembling that of the notorious Nazi SS — a special unit that murdered millions of Jews, gypsies and others.

The Corps said in a statement that using the symbol was not acceptable, but the Marines in the photograph taken in September 2010 will not be disciplined because investigators determined it was a naive mistake.

And we're off.

mojaveman · 02-10-2012, 11:46

I wonder if those jarheads even know what Schutzstaffel means. They should have used better judgement. In todays world everything must be politically correct.

Richard · 02-10-2012, 12:01

Everybody knows what the Nordic-stylized Siegrunen and the SS stood for - and anybody remember the issues with neo-Nazi types in the military not all that long ago (hint: it was a BIG problem in the 82nd where avowed racists killed two black guys) - and now an American military unit displaying a banner which is the antithesis of what America stands for along with the American flag...

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
- Albert Einstein

I'd like to ask my dead uncle (who fought his way across Europe as an Infantry Platoon Sergeant in the 120th Infantry Regiment of the 30th Infantry Division) and my dead father-in-law (who did the same as a Platoon Leader in the 55th Armored Infantry Battalion of the 11th Armored Division) what they think of these guys and their 'cool' banner.

And so it goes...

Richard

FMF DOC · 02-10-2012, 12:02

Was embedded with the Marines for 13yrs and I have seen that symbol used 100 + times from Unit T-Shirts, Tatoos, Flags, ect. And I never saw or heard of a Sr. NCO or Officer complain about it. Just saying

Penn · 02-10-2012, 12:05

This will seriously impact Marine recruitment efforts in the Jewish community.

Utah Bob · 02-10-2012, 12:46

This is the best part.

Quote:

investigators determined it was a naive mistake.

I guess you can be amazingly f***** up and stupid as long as you're naive.

PSM · 02-10-2012, 13:36

Maybe it's a Department of the Navy thing. This is on their Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado:

longrange1947 · 02-10-2012, 13:43

A sniper buddy of mine and former Marine sniper instructor, warned the clowns in 1982 that it was a very bad idea. It disappeared for a while and came back. They knew damn well what it meant and were playing the asshole game.

Yep, Marines protecting themselves on an investigation. They knew.

cant hardly · 02-10-2012, 15:12

.

plato · 02-10-2012, 15:18

When one puts a .50 cal round through someone's head at great distance, one must do it in an inoffensive manner.

cant hardly · 02-10-2012, 15:25

.

longrange1947 · 02-10-2012, 15:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by cant hardly

..........................

On a separate note— why is there even a marine corp? Do we need to field two land war forces? Can't they be put back to protecting ships from pirates or whatever they are supposed to do?

Just as a side note, the Navy has asked to build a Naval Infantry Corps to protect the ships. Interesting how they keep getting more money and we get less.

kawaishi · 02-10-2012, 15:56

I'm sad to say that it's possible that most enlisted Marines couldn't tell you what the SS was or why its disgusting to use that logo. When I was in I saw that SS a few times and was told, "Oh, it means Scout/Sniper!" If I wasn't a history buff from a young age I would have been none the wiser. Never saw another nazi or race related logo or issue around the same guys and there were minority Marines who seemed oblivious to it as well.

I bet that most students in my university couldn't identify the SS symbol and Marines don't get any history education besides what the Corps deems necessary. If you consider what most Marines believe about their own history it's not to hard to figure out that they don't read many history textbooks.

As longrange pointed out, this has been around their community for a long time and I place the responsibility square on the brass.

Utah Bob · 02-10-2012, 16:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by kawaishi

As longrange pointed out, this has been around their community for a long time and I place the responsibility square on the brass.

Agree. A flag that damn big had to be seen by senior NCOs and officers at some point and they sure as hell should have known what it was.

Tweeder11 · 02-10-2012, 16:40

http://news.yahoo.com/us-defense-chi...211906333.html

Sec Def told USMC "to re-investigate and take appropriate action against the Marine snipers who posed with a logo resembling a notorious Nazi symbol"

Head's are going to roll.

"The rapid-fire announcements came on the heels of demands from a leading Jewish organization and others for President Barack Obama to order an investigation into the incident and to hold the troops accountable"

Now I personally can see how SOME might not know what the SS stood for, but they damn sure will now. Not knowing has NEVER been an excuse.

Respectfully,
Tweeder