Compass Points - New Thinking
Move in a new direction
Compass Points - New Thinking
Move in a new direction
June 22, 2024
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Does the Marine Corps have the strength of Ada Sagi? Ada Sagi is a 75-year-old school teacher who recently changed some of her most strongly held beliefs.
On October 7, 2023, Ada Sagi was kidnapped by Hamas terrorist and held captive for 53 days until her recent rescue by the IDF. Prior to October 7th, Ada Sagi was a peace activist and teacher. She taught Jewish children to speak Arabic so Palestinians and Israelis could be friends. After her traumatic experience, however, Ada Sagi has changed her mind, "I don't believe in peace, now. I don't believe, sorry, I understand Hamas don't want it."
Beginning with the Commandant's Planning Guidance in the summer of 2019, the leadership of the Marine Corps embraced three faulty assumptions.
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1. Precision munitions require the Marine Corps to become a defensive force.
2. The threat from China requires the Marine Corps to become a narrow, regional force.
3. The Marine Corps no longer needs to be a fully equipped and capable combined arms force.
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Not one of the faulty assumptions is accurate. Together, these false assumptions have led the Marine Corps in the wrong direction. It is time for new thinking.
The role of the Marine Corps in US national defense is codified in Title 10, but words from the 82nd Congress make it even more clear:
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The nation’s shock troops [Marine Corps] must be the most ready when the nation is generally least ready ... to provide a balanced force in readiness ... to suppress or contain certain international disturbances short of large-war.
-- 82nd Congress
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In a new article in Real Clear Defense, authors Charles Krulak, Anthony Zinni, Paul Van Riper, and Jerry McAbee argue it is time for new thinking. The Marine Corps needs to get rid of the faulty assumptions of the past and move in a new direction. The authors say, "To remain meaningful, the Marine Corps must be organized and equipped to meet the uncertainties of an increasingly dangerous world."
Just as a house cannot be built without blueprints, a new direction for the Marine Corps cannot be built without an over-arching operational concept. Vision 2035 is the start of that operational concept.
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This requires a Marine Corps that is built on four pillars. As articulated in Vision 2035, it is a Marine Corps that:
I. “is immediately ready to respond to crises and contingencies anywhere in the world.”
II. “is relevant, manned and equipped to support the Secretary of Defense’s requirements with scalable, flexible, adaptive, and lethal forces.”
III. “is capable of fighting and winning in any conflict.”
IV. “has the capacity to rapidly converge and build to a Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF).”
Each of these pillars requires operating forces that are rapidly deployable and sustainable, which is only possible by full throated U.S. Navy support, especially a robust fleet of operationally ready amphibious shipping and a strategically positioned, immediately deployable maritime prepositioning force.
-- Real Clear Defense
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Does the Marine Corps have the strength of Ada Sagi? If Ada Sagi can find the strength to change her thinking, the Marine Corps can also. Compass Points thanks the authors, Charles Krulak, Anthony Zinni, Paul Van Riper, and Jerry McAbee for their article in Real Clear Defense that calls for the Marine Corps to let go of the faulty assumptions of the past, embrace new thinking, and work with Congress to move in a new direction.
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BBC News - 06/19/2024
'I don't believe in peace now,' released Gaza hostage tells BBC
By Hafsa Khalil
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2eem7e7v30o
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Real Clear Defense - 06/22/2024
Marine Corps Global Response in the Age of Precision Munitions
By Charles Krulak, Anthony Zinni, Paul Van Riper, Jerry McAbee
General Charles (Chuck) Krulak, (USMC, ret.) was a career infantry officer. His assignments include Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command. His last assignment was the 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps
General Anthony (Tony) Zinni, (USMC, ret.) was a career infantry officer. His assignments include Deputy Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command. His last assignment was Commander, United States Central Command.
General Paul K. Van Riper, (USMC, ret.) was a career infantry officer. His assignments include President of the Marine Corps University. His last assignment was Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command.
Brigadier General Jerry McAbee, (USMC, ret.) was a career artillery officer. His assignments include Chief of Staff, Marine Corps Combat Development Command. His last assignment was Deputy Commander, United States Marine Corps Force, Central Command.
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USMC Vision 2035
A Better Way Forward for the U. S. Marine Corps
https://mega.nz/file/crxlUJoC#G-Wh2nlQllKnIXUuCvCdolmQEWg_fk4_Jv6KQuRe3us
Even to a Corporal , the Force Design 2030 didn’t look like a good idea. Clearheaded thinking should have stopped the disestablishment of our armor and artillery units and the weakening of our air support. Putting isolated and basically unsupported Marine units on supposedly uninhabited islands off of China’s coast was not great thinking as there are people living there that have cell phones. We would also be a one horse show without the capability to take care of other trouble spots, both for helping in emergency's and in combat situations. If I can see the shortcomings of Force Design 2030, I am amazed that it has gotten as far as it has.
Not to be impertinent, but might we add that there is a fifth and perhaps silent pillar, it is inherent in all Marines, but exemplified by the leadership of Generals Krulak, Zinni, Van Riper and McAbee, they don’t need this fight, (America doesn’t need a Marine Corps) but they have taken this fight on (along with several other General Officers and retired CMC’s) because America wants a Marine Corps, and America wants the best of the best of the best with no compromise. It would very understandable if they looked across their decades of service LEADING Marines, getting shot at, getting wounded, writing letters of condolences to the families of lost Marines, being so damn creative and changing the Corps for that better, that is is embarrassing to have to ask them back. But here they are, and that fifth silent pillar is imbued in all of us. It is this elusive element called Ethos and they can take our ships, our armor, artillery pieces, our engineers and swaths of the Wing, but they can’t take our Ethos. It’s why so many are lining behind them, ready to go. They just need to say which way and point. It is also why some in their “Managerial” roles at the top of government and sadly in the Marine Corps are so angry and frankly scared. They know the generals are right, they screwed up top to bottom and now see it going pear shaped and don’t have the intelligence, or Ethos to first apologize and second get on board and fix the mess they made; in any other time and place they would be forcefully retired. Well, guess what, no one here is going peaceably into that good night, not without a fight. So thank you four men, our generals, for kicking ass and taking names, we are right here with you. This is a Gung ho moment, all in.