Compass Points contributor, Coriolanus, has written a very potent comment on Compass Points post: FD 2030 - Looking at the Updates. In many ways, Coriolanus echos the early concerns of former Secretary of the Navy, Jim Webb, in his article in the National Interest, The Future of the U.S. Marine Corps. See link below.
Col Cancian’s comments correctly capture the minor adjustments that HQMC is considering. None of them resolve the fundamental flaws that that have characterized these ideas since 2019. But, the changes the CMC champions were piled onto previous mistakes.
The Corps needs 24 infantry Bn’s. Those Bn’s have been repeatedly cut to “buy” new billets at the expense of infantrymen. The Infantry Bn should have 4 maneuver companies along with a robust Weapons Company and H&S company. The Rifle Squad should grow to 15 from 12 to accommodate the technology to include RPV’s at the squad level.
The Corps made a huge mistake when it disbanded Marine Barracks and Sea going detachments both at a time when Terrorism makes ships and facilities more vulnerable than ever. The addition of CBRIRT was was wise and should be maintained. Administration remains the second largest MOS in the Marine Corps. That is unconscionable. The HQ’s are too numerous and too densely manned. The Corps is dispensing with MPS shipping. Beyond unwise.
The contention that Large Amphibs were too vulnerable and then ask for them to be retained was a delusional negotiating tactic that was made worse with the small ferry boat concept. Tanks remain off the table, the artillery cuts were ludicrous and are still unjustifiable as are the cuts to air frames. The exclusive focus on one strategy in one theater is a Maginot Line mindset if there ever was one. War games are valuable but flawed. They are not the definitive way to “validate” anything.
In short, the wrong path embarked on in 2019 remains the wrong path. The sad truth is that the wrong things were done the wrong way, for the wrong reasons. No “tweaks” can rectify that. —Coriolanus
National Interest (nationalinterest.org) May 8, 2020
The Future of the U.S. Marine Corps
By Jim Webb
. . . With such drastic “divestments” as those now proposed, will there be enough infantry Marines in the pipeline to replace and sustain the casualty flow and weapons replacements from battalions that are committed, not simply on the first day or the first week but over a much longer period, perhaps under conditions where our aviation assets and other mechanical systems are shot down, or crash, or wear out from such environmental erosions as heat, ice, sand, clay dust, monsoon rains, or the simple wear-and-tear of constant operations?
Technology can increase effectiveness on a battlefield but it cannot replace people or equipment. This is why these recent proposals should be examined with the utmost scrutiny. And it is for these reasons that our country needs a Marine Corps that has every conventional capability inside its proven tradition of “good to go” readiness . . . .
Former Senator and Secretary of the Navy Jim Webb served as a Marine infantry officer in Vietnam, where he was wounded twice and awarded the Navy Cross for “extraordinary heroism.” He currently serves as the inaugural Distinguished Fellow at Notre Dame’s International Security Center.