Sergeant Daniel Knapp; denied reup because of tattoo
The Marine Corps Times reports that Sergeant Daniel Knapp was denied the opportunity to reenlist in the Marine Corps because of a tattoo on his forearm.
Knapp posted a 280 and 300 on his Physical Fitness Test and Combat Fitness Test, respectively. He did a second deployment to Afghanistan in 2013, conducting helicopter raids in the Sangin and Now Zad districts of Helmand province. And during his six years in uniform, Knapp earned two meritorious masts, two certificates of commendation, four expert rifle badges and certification as a black belt Marine Corps Martial Arts Instructor.
“Everything was going great,” he said. “I always intended on staying in. I picked up meritorious corporal on my first deployment to Afghanistan and sergeant right after that. I was almost going on three years as a sergeant. All the battalion staff thought I was pretty competitive. They were pretty amazed how they shot me down for re-enlistment. Nobody could believe it.”
If I’m reading the article correctly, it does look like Knapp got his tattoo after the Corps’ regs changed in 2010, though.
Personally, I don’t see the big deal about having a tattoo. I survived my two decades of service without getting one, but, you know, it’s a personal choice. If a soldier or Marine like the article describes SGT Knapp to be gets one, it really shouldn’t impact their career. Knapp sounds like an effective life-taker and trigger puller, but you know, that’s not what our armed forces are focused on these days. It’s how they look on the parade field, I guess.
Category: Marine Corps
I can’t justify ANY tattoos, for a soldier must be available for whatever mission he’s called upon to perform, even if it’s something he never expected, such as an ordinary, low-ranking, enlisted infantryman being detailed to a clandestine, hazardous, cross-border operation, deep in enemy territory, where tattoos visible during a bath or emergency medical care would jeopardize everyone on that special detail.
Further, tattoos can interfere with prospects for many civilian jobs, and for those who aspire to performing in show business, it can severely limit the number of roles available.
The issue is probably the fact that he got them in violation of the regulation, something not taken lightly in the USMC. If individuals can decide a certain reg doesn’t apply to them, chaos takes over. And since you can’t “selectively enforce” regs without inviting an IG complaint, strict adherence is expected. Complain, respond when asked, as Army troops did the their SMA, but follow the reg until it is changed.
The reg in question was shoved down the Corps throat by that blue falcon piece of shit zoomy that was until recently posing as the CMC.
If that ball bearing BAM had an ounce of integrity he’d chew a bullet in remorse for all the damage he did the the Corps faith and trust in its leadership.
You can thank Gen Conway for the tattoo policy, not Amos. People did not like Conway very much, but it seems that as soon as Amos took over, every bad thing Conway did was blamed on the winger.
Oh well. I can’t argue because I really didn’t start paying attention *until* that zoomie showed up as CMC.
Sorry, but times have changed and left you behind on this one. A Tatoo in no way, shape or form has any effect on a Soldier (or Marines) ability to do their job.
Soceities views on Tatoos have changed dramatically since your time in Service.
Tattoo’s have been part of the warrior culture since…well since there has been a warrior culture. When I started in the Marine Corps back in the late 80’s there were more Marines that had them than didn’t. The tattoo policy is a new thing in the overall history of the Marine Corps. I don’t think the current tattoo policy makes the Marine Corps more effective. Apparently the Army has changed their thinking on this. Why hasn’t the Marine Corps?
I’d say more soldiers have one than don’t as well, at least in my experience.
Since tattoos have now become a trend (90 year ladies are even getting tattoos) the military has to change the regulations of military. IMO, anything popular in the civilian world, must be banned in the military.
@ RB 325TH, Et Alii:
There is a need for personnel who, at a moment’s notice, can casually blend in undetected with local indigenous populations, and tattoos make that impossible.
If anything, because of constantly changing missions and environments, the need for such versatile capability is even greater now than it was when I was just an ordinary soldier in the United States Army.
You may think of yourself as intending to be a basic infantryman, or some other MOS, but you never know if, when, or where you’ll be suddenly posted to a clandestine special detail, where the slightest idiosyncrasy that you take for granted, might jeopardize your life and everyone with you.
It’s not just tattoos that could expose your identity and sabotage your mission, but tattoos are a good example.
Yes, you’re a soldier, but soldiers go where they’re ordered, and do whatever is required, adapting to unusual circumstances in varied terrain.
For instance, think of the extremely dangerous espionage mission assigned to Caleb and Joshua.
The chances of anyone other than operators doing those kinds of missions are slim to none. Blending in with the indigenous populations is hard as fuck in Iraq or Afghanistan as it is because of skin color and everything else. Tattoos aren’t going to make a damn difference.
I think you’re placing too much emphasis on the need for that specific of a mission. Even the snake eaters are inked up. I agree that everyone is at the mercy of the mission, but that mission hasn’t become more common since the Viet Nam days when you served (I looked at your profile). What is becoming more common is finding the next generation of Marines that carry the standard of being successful on the battlefield. When one is identified as a candidate and he is eliminated by a tattoo then the policy is defective not the Marine.
I shouldn’t have to remind anyone that our Armed Forces do operate in other countries besides Iraq and Afghanistan, even in populations whose physical appearance matches our own, but where American tattoos would be a dead giveaway that we were not one of them.
As for the “secret squirrel” stuff, the mission may sometimes require someone other than the usual operatives, or maybe under the supervision of trained operatives, depending on the special needs of that objective, and/or what that individual’s specific capabilities are.
Think outside the box.
Apply the Boy Scout motto, “Be Prepared”.
“Snake eaters” may be inked up, but not the snake eaters who have to operate clandestinely in Russia.
L/Cpl Schmuckatelli isn’t going to get pulled out of India Co. 3/8 and sent clandestinely to Russia. I’d challenge you to name one instant in modern military history where a Marine compromised a mission because of a tattoo. Joshua and Caleb? Really???
Yes, Joshua and Caleb, the first documented successful scouts in Israel.
I know exactly who Joshua and Caleb are, but your use of them as an example of why a Marine is being allowed to reenlist because he got a tattoo outside of the current absurd policy on tattoos for Marines is insane. It is like saying the Iraqi Republican Guard at the Battle of 73 Easting should’ve relied on 1st generation linear chariot tactics used by the Hyksos in the 13th dynasty of Egypt…Oh wait…they did. It worked out for them as well as our current social experiment is with our military.
also the bible records 0 of HOW they went about scouting. just that they went and came back. they might have never interacted with the local population at all.
OK any one here ever been tapped for a secret squirrel mission at a moments notice?
The members of our military are not spies. I need to stress that again they are not spies.
There are enough three letter agencies to more than cover that aspect of international policy.
The uniform is the protection that service members have from being treated as spies.
It sounds like the Marines are losing a good Man due to a stupid policy. But I gurss they are no longer looking for a few good men.
I was going to reply to this yesterday, but then I got a phone call from, well I am not at liberty to say who, and they needed me to go, well, I am not at liberty to say so that I could…well, you know the drill…I almost didn’t make it back. Good thing I took along my minigun and decoder ring…
It was probably touch and go after you took a bath and they saw your gnarly Death before Dishonor tat.
That’s some serious secret squirrel shit you got going there.
“… suddenly posted to a clandestine special detail… blah blah…”
Not gonna happen.
That’s the same crap I used to hear all the time back in the 1980s. You had a Tattoo and you were out of the Regiment.
Now? Go look at photos from the recent Best Ranger Comp in Fort Benning. Most of those guys are wearing full sleeves anymore.
AND- the Army just 86’d its stupid tattoo policy. A regular joe isn’t gonna be snatched up and tossed into spook-land. It just doesn’t happen that way.
Can you spell BS?
You watch too many movies.
Nobody’s going to pick some greenhorn’s name out of a hat and send him on a clandestine mission.
Anyone who’s going to go “blend in” has been carefully screened and fully trained to operate in certain areas, i.e. a person specialized in Latin American operations is not going to be all of a sudden sent to the Caucuses to see what the Russian guys on the ground there are doing.
Bullshit. You been reading too many secret squirrel spaceshuttle bellygunner stories.
I totally second that Grimmy. There is no way that they send Joe Schmoe on a TS mission.. and if they did, the pool to choose from is huge.
Lay off the Jason Bourne movies.
No shit. Super Secret Squirrel Ops by Snake Eaters in Russia? WTF? Was that before or after Clint Eastwood stole that mind reading jet?
“low-ranking, enlisted infantryman being detailed to a clandestine, hazardous, cross-border operation, deep in enemy territory, where tattoos visible during a bath or emergency medical care would jeopardize everyone…”
Either one of the better trolls I’ve ever encountered, or someone wants to relive entirely imagined days of secret squirrelery.
What enemy territory would he be going into? A Chicago gay bath house to take out the Manchurian candidate?
Prety sure what would blow my secret mission in Russia is my inability to speak Russian, and my complete lack of understanding RUssian culture, and customs. As such I don’t think I’ll be getting tapped for that imaginary mission. P.S. dumbass we are too pussy to give proxies U.S. made weapons to kill russians let alone to go do it ourselves.
Ah, but there was a time when that was done.
As for the future – – – ?
We can only speculate.
No, I was no “secret squirrel”, but I do know some things.
All I’m trying to point out, albeit obviously unsuccessfully, is to forget about the here and now, and consider what’s coming down the road, and how we should anticipate what the other fellow is going to do.
When given those circumstances, tattoos on ANYBODY are a limiting factor.
I agree. Why brand oneself with an identifying marker at all? The days of “I’m getting a tat so they can ID my body” are long over thanks to DNA.
Cite one example of a conventional unit being tasked to go behind lines, (let alone into a country we are not engaged with) without language skills? Or hell even without the lingustic issue. It is exceptionally rare for US forces to operate out of uniform in the first place (since you give up geneva by doing so). You are on a whole different planet in your mind dude, do you even war bro?
Saving Private Ryan.
LOL
good one.
Rangers are a SOCCOM asset I still Win! Seriously though this guy is nuts.
Indeed.
Russian like to boil meat. I think I would rather die than boil a steak.
And for all the potato eating they do, none of them have ever baked a potato. That’s my theory of why we won the cold war.
I am a fan of Levis, Coke and Marlboros winning the day. Russian hockey players were exposed to them when they played here, brought back stories of how great they were, and pretty soon Regan was calling for the Wall to be torn down. And Camaros too…cant forget Camaros…
It was McDonnalds what done it.
The Ruskies would line up for hours for a taste of American nirvana. Then, when they heard we considered it “junk food”, they were crushed.
Style over substance… back to a peacetime mentality (while still in a war).
Looks like Arabic on his arm.. anyone have a clue what it says?
If the Arabic tattoo is insulting to Moslems or Arabs, maybe that’s what kept him from being able to reenlist.
After all, the United States Marine Corps must consider the possibilities entailed in future assignments, not just the current ones.
Not only that, but to complicate things even more, our government keeps switching sides!
Oh yeah. How dare we insult our enemy. That’s just too rude for war fighters.
IF I was to really speak my mind, it’d go something like “God damn all sniveling **nts and their Plaster Saint idiocy. Closet lovers of the enemy, all of them.”
But, I’ve learned my lessons these days so I’ll keep my opinion to myself.
Yeah we wouldn’t want them to read any rude and offensive Arabic writing before he frags their ass. Good grief John Robert Malarkey… can you hear yourself?
Now I want to get a tattoo that says (in arabic) “Go fuck yourself, Haji”
Looks like Arabic on his arm.. anyone have a clue what it says?
Translated:
“If you are close enough to read this, you will be dead soon”.
I believe it says “if you can read this say hello to Allah for me”
I don’t know, but I’m glad you mentioned it because I went back and looked and saw that he had a device for valor on one of his decorations. So, a troop who has proven himself in combat is being given the boot over his ink?!? Hey, the Army has relaxed its tatoo regs, we’ll take him.
Yeah, the Army took ME, after the Marines turned ME down!
And, don’t forget about good ol’ AUDIE MURPHY!!!
John-there was an episode of “Northern Exposure” years ago where the retired astronaut character was talking about his time in boot camp and how everyone else hated it, but that he loved it because it was a “new beginning” for him. I think that has been true of military service throughout our nation’s history-letting young men have a new start-but probably more so in the past than today, and I think that our nation was better for it then and that many young men could do with a new beginning at some point in their lives.
I loved that show!
Why did the Corps turn you down?
@ OLD MANCHU, Et Alii: I thought everybody on this web site already knew all about that, for I’ve certainly told the story enough times in this discussion forum. And, most of my life has gone by before I finally was able to tell anyone about this. Now that I’ve gotten started, I can’t shut up! You could just click on my name. The reason you see it in color is because it’s an automatic link to my own personal web site, “OUR ETERNAL STRUGGLE”. My parents couldn’t control me, and because of it, my father was in danger of being dismissed from the United States Army in the final years before he would retire. So, in my sophomore year of high school, the juvenile court involuntarily committed me to the state mental hospital, where I was incarcerated with violent psycho-sociopathic criminals, given repeated electric shock treatments, doped with experimental psychotropic drugs, assaulted by other patients, and abused by staff. I was locked up in a living Hell from the time I was fifteen years old until I was released at the age of nineteen. Have you ever seen the movie, “SLING BLADE”, starring Billy Bob Thornton? That’s what I looked like when I was released, with no skills and no education, i.e., none of the daily survival skills that any other nineteen year old would take for granted. I worked at common labor jobs, when I could find work, and hitch-hiked around the country, often cold, wet, hungry, and in some dangerous situations. In Portland, Oregon, when I was twenty-one years old, I chose to be baptized into The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints. The young men in the church literally physically took me by the hand and taught me how to walk like a normal human being, and to speak in a normal tone of voice. They also encouraged me to take the General Educational Development High School Equivalency test, which I successfully passed, and I gained some useful experience working on the Sundance Mountain-Trappers Peak forest fire near Bonners Ferry, Idaho. At that time, 1967,… Read more »
Quite interesting.
I tell people that the US Army saved my life and my soul many years ago.
Since 2005 the VA saved my life three times and they saved my soul once.
Smartest thing I ever did, save for my kids…
Wow John! I’m still absorbing all that. Thanks for updating me even though you have told the information before. Glad you came out on the good end of all that. Rest well.
You were not a Marine, and were rejected as a Marine. Why do you try so hard to prove yourself. The army took you. Just shut up and be happy with that. It sounds as if you want the world to believe every one but the army messed up. As a Marine I have seen guys the Marines messed up on. They should have never made it through. They were soon kicked out. Had I been in the barracks with a crazy kid, me and the guys would have quickly(and did) singled a crazy kid out and circled wagons. So please leave the Marines alone without being there.
Thats a great story! I do have one question. You wrote to LBJ and he, personally, read your letter and waived you on? Did you save his return letter? That would be an heirloom
@ JON P, Et Alii:
I doubt LBJ ever saw my letter.
The response came from a Navy commander in charge of manpower resources, or some such thing.
No, I lost those letters, and a lot more stuff, many years ago, because I’m always moving around so much, even to this very day.
Who the hell even spoke to their BCT CO?
I did.
At the very beginning of our Basic Combat Training, he and some others (the First Sergeant? Platoon Leader? I don’t remember) came into our barracks after dark, inquiring if anyone had ever been in prison?
So, I approached him and informed him of my experience.
As I previously stated, he was amused, but allowed me to continue with my training.
68W58: Thae Army gives out ARCOMS to people like Moerck, so they don’t want an honest to cripes fire breathing warrior running amok in their PC little world. In fact, SP8 Moerck would probably wet her diaper and tremble in fear at the site of him.
“…Moerck would probably wet her diaper and tremble in fear at the site of him.”
Yeah, I’m still not seeing the downside.
SGT Knapp,
Thank you for your service. Good luck finding an employer that won’t turn a good man down because of a tattoo.
Blessed be,
Semper Idem.
If he did get the tattoo after the regulation change, he has no argument. As an NCO, he should know better. Read the Marine Corps Times for his BS arguments.
Agreed. You can be shit hot at your job, but that doesn’t excuse you from the rules. If he disagreed with the regs he should have tried to get them changed instead of openly defying them.
Bingo. If he got that tat BEFORE the regs on tats changed, I’d be screaming on top of someone’s desk about this. If he got the tat AFTER the regs changed…sorry, sugar. You stepped on your own anatomy. Live with it.
I need to add a disclaimer here. I like ink, and I think the military has their priorities out of order when they fire good warriors because of it. Even though there are regulations concerning ink, I still think the brass needs to use some brain cells and COMMON SENSE when it comes to enforcing those regs.
Unlike our executive branch, the USMC doesn’t selectively enforce regs.
Which is why I posted the first comment, because I knew that. The sad part about it is — the sergeant knew it, too.
It’s probably like driving in front of a train. You can stop; the train can’t. If you get hit by the train, it’s your fault. The sergeant knew the regulation, and he got the tat anyway. Now he’s going to find out that, not only can’t the train stop, it won’t even try.
The Marine Corps tattoo policy has become a friggin’ nightmare, as evidenced by them booting this Marine, who by all indications is a stellar performer.
I have never been able to understand the mindset of our leadership when they put their laser like focus on something that in no way, shape or form is an indicator of combat effectiveness.
Keep the goddamn things off of your hands, face and neck and don’t get ink that is racist, sexist or in bad taste. There. Solved it. Full disclosure, I have no ink.
And that. Master Guns, is why you were not a Colonel or General and part of the palace guard. You think like a Soldier of the Sea, and not a politician more concern with appearance than ability to win wars. This is the same Corps that now has more General grade officers on active duty than when we had 550,000 Marines during World War 2.
USMC 1stSgt (Ret.)
Thanks for the compliment 1stSgt. Pretty sure you dealt with more than your fair share of bullshit of this nature during your time in the Corps. Time that should be spent doing important shit. Like training Marines.
Amen.
This is pertinent here: http://www.jqpublicblog.com/msgts-epic-post-should-be-the-new-snco-charge/
Outstanding!!!
Spot on!
Very good!
Ho. Lee. Shit.
Dude nails it. Sadly, this is not limited to just the Air Force, nor has it been limited to just one time.
Most Excellent.
Believe it or not, a couple of folks on another forum I’m on (Air Force related) are insisting he should be Article 15’d and reduced in rank because he dared to publicly challenge the status quo. Some crap about AFI 1-1 relating to social media. They apparently believe that his comments are damaging to morale and discipline.
Those who speak the truth are often pilloried for same…this guy gets it.
Walk him into the Army Recruiter. Army regs for tattoos and female hairstyles have been relaxed or modified recently.
———————–
Under the Army’s new tattoo policy, soldiers will be able to have ink on their arms and legs as long as it isn’t visible in the Army Service Uniform.
This means sleeves are once again authorized as long as they don’t extend past the wrist, Sergeant Major of the Army Dan Dailey told Army Times.
“As long as it’s not visible in the Army uniform … that’s the spirit of what we went after,” he said.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno announced the upcoming policy change Wednesday afternoon at the Association of the United States Army conference in Huntsville, Alabama.
The more lenient tattoo rules are based on input from soldiers, Odierno said.
http://www.armytimes.com/story/military/careers/army/2015/04/01/army-tattoo-policy-changes-sma-dan-dailey/70791276/
The tattoo’s only and excuse. The problem is that he looks bad in red high heeled pumps. Get with the program!
Touche’!
Honestly, I have BA hard time haing sympathy for him. Whether you agree with the rules or not, if you intentionally defy them and are called to task for it later I don’t want to see you complaining about it. The military has a bunch of dumb rules but you follow them because it’s what you signed up to do. If you can’t follow one like this, then how can they expect you to follow others? Yeah, it’s a dumb rule but we all knew the consequences. Now they are looking for folks to send home and he gave them all they needed. Not so stellar, really.
I agree with you up to a point Ed. There are regs in place and they must be followed. Lord knows I counseled my share of young Marines about how they may have pissed their chances of reenlistment away over a goddamn tattoo.
My point is, the Marine Corps has MUCH more pressing problems that need addressing rather than playing fuck fuck over some ink.
I think the Army has gotten it right with their new policy. The Marine Corps should follow suit and quickly.
Agreed. Completely. Much like the “one-trick pony” comment I heard recently referring to members of the 9999 community that have 5-10 deployments but no bachelors or master degrees. Just because the wars are winding down doesn’t mean winning them is no longer our business.
Then there are other ways to deal with this issue. Art. 15 is one, and as long as the tat wasn’t racial, sexist, or otherwise offensive, I think it should have been left there and not a bar to reenlist.
Kinda like killing flies with a sledgehammer.
So the dictums from the pampered, perfumed and powdered politically correct multi-starred Princes of the Pentagon are now ejecting hard-nosed Warrior Grunts in favor of sparkly rear echelon gazelles over some ink. Me? I COULDNT CARE LESS if the Warrior(s) with me outside the wire or in a foxhole have inked skin, just don’t send me out there with someone who will only shit, curl up, and bawl when the SHTF, I’ve served with some fine Fellow Warriors that have their fair share of ink.
Reminds me of DI school in San Diego in 94. we had a large class, with lots of folks that were great at running 3 miles in green silkies, but not so good at the obstacle course, the rope, or humping the hills at Pendleton. You know, real assessments of combat physical fitness. It was amazing how many were hump drops.
And then the BLT, then MEU CO, and now General grade officer (still active duty)that used to do the MCCRES humps with a pack that had a block of Styrofoam in it. Must have weighed about 5 lbs, wet. Like EVERYONE in the Battalion didn’t know the boss was limpdicking it.
But those are unimportant. Tattoos. That’s the enemy of combat preparedness. Yeah, that’s the ticket.
I hear you, that General sounds like a fine specimen of what I refer to as a “gazelle”, ditto with those who could look cute and run but flunked lunch on the obstacle course.
Sgt Daniel Knapp is an excellent example of what I refer to as a WARRIOR, a kick-ass-take-no-prisoners hard-nosed badass who isn’t afraid of any fight or challenge, and he has the decorations to prove it! It’s sickening, but just like after DS/DS, the former are doing their damndest to jettison the latter because it lessens the odds of gazelles fainting from inhaling the testosterone fumes that emanate from Warriors.
Yes, the general is a fine specimen. Of warrior? Not so much. It was fun watching his pack jiggle while he humped. Just like a new set of implants.
That General you speak of is a “gazelle”, Sgt Knapp is a Warrior.
I agree with your sentiment, but would echo every single Marine I know that have worked for said General by calling him a worthless piece of shit instead of a gazelle.
In my outfit we called that a NerfRuck, they are real easy to spot during a PLF
Yup. They literally bounce like a lady that has just had implants.
Hence the erection when I’m sitting in the FLA watching.
I thought the Marine Corps motto was,
“Always Faithful” not,
“Vanity, vanity, all is vanity”
Oh, it still is Semper Fidelis Slick, but is the Corps keeping faith with the rank and file who have willingly gone on multiple war time deployments?
If we are booting out Marines like Sergeant Knapp when he could have and should have gotten a waiver, then the answer is no.
Loyalty is supposed to go up and down the chain of command. Is the Corps really going to break faith with this warrior over a fucking tattoo? Sad state of affairs in my book.
You know that the services are looking for any way they can to cut the budget. NCO that gets a tat after the regs are put out fits the bill nicely – you also know the services love nothing more than an NCO they can make an example of to put the fear of God into the junior enlisted :).
If it’s true that he got the tats after the reg was published, well, look at the tats. They are all over his forearm. He’s a walking billboard for tattoo parlors. He made his statement, in ink, after the USMC made theirs. What’s to debate?
2/17 Air Cav, my problem is, there is a waiver system in place. You want to enforce regs, fine enforce them. But don’t hold a friggin’ waiver out there and then deny the Sergeant reenlistment. He had been approved for a waiver up to the Division level. That is a two star. And some pogue decided to over ride that decision. It makes no sense to me.
I didn’t realize that they were discretionary waivers for those who got tats AFTER the reg was published, if that is what he did. If he got them before the reg was published, then I agree that they done him wrong.
Two stars don’t outrank 3 chins on a woman.
Who cares about Warriors that can kill wherever and whenever needed, we need a force of Pretty Boys who care about the gays and are politically correct. Because wars are all about flowers and puppies.
Perhaps the Sergeant should go to the CG and confess that he’s a tranny? They’ll break necks and trip over furniture to let him reenlist.
It seems that that is where we are these days.
The military services are for testing social policies not for fighting.
It really is a shame, but purposefully violating a reg, any reg, should be grounds for dismissal or bar reenlistment. Don’t like a rule? Work to get it changed. In the meanwhile, follow the rule.
It’s not as if the evidence is invisible. Maybe he was in a coma when the rule changed and he slipped into the ink shop next to the hospital before he became aware of the rule change? Short of that, he simply has nothing to whine about.
Still, it’s shame. (Assuming that his willingness to violate this reg isn’t indicative of his willingness to violate others.)
I was in a coma when I got my tattoo…
It was the ugliest thing I could have imagined…
And the coma was self induced with a bottle of tequila…
I didn’t get stupid every time I drank tequila, but every time I got stupid, I was drinking tequila…
Needless to say the two of us have parted ways, eternally…
My granddad said that you could tell how many times a man has been blind-drunk by how many tattoos they had. 😉
I have a similar story.
Luckily i was able to fall into the loving arms of george dickle 90 proof to help me through.
That’s like saying anyone who gets NJP should be barred from reenlisting.
Hasn’t worked out so far, don’t see how that shit’s gonna help now.
And zero defect/zero tolerance mentalities is what will end up getting a lot of good people killed down the road. Not a question of if, but when.
Unfortunately the Air Force is all about zero defect/zero tolerance these days. Moreso, I think, than the other services. As a USAF veteran, it makes me sad to see it.
I can’t say what this Sergeant is like, but I’ve know several people both civilian and military who were shit hot at their jobs, got the awards and promotions, and eventually thought they were too good at what they did to be disciplined. Typically they stepped on their dicks because they made a point of flaunting the rules and the boss eventually got tired of it and had to shit can them to make sure no one else made the same mistake. He may be a fantastic warrior, but if he can’t follow the most trivial of rules eventually he won’t follow the important ones. That’s just my opinion of course.
The United States Marine Corps is renowned for maintaining its high standards, even above and beyond the other military services.
Are they still the only branch of the Armed Forces that will not permit anyone to enlist who has ever smoked even one (01) marijuana cigarette?
That used to be the case, and I remember when they featured it in television commercials.
If that had been the case, I would still be a wretched pot head : )
Got me a CG MCRD San Diego autograph on enlistment for my waiver (pot) back in 1984, or I’d have been a civilian too.
I admitted this in 1984, you know nothing of Marines.
Name the commercial, dates, times, content etc.
@ SGT M, Et Alii:
One of the problems with aging is losing track of time, as all those years and all those memories get condensed within your mind, and mixed up.
How old are you?
Maybe those commercials aired before you were born.
They certainly aired before the current war started.
I remember the commercials not only stated that no recruit could be accepted who smoked marijuana even once, they also emphasized that no recruit would be accepted who didn’t graduate from high school.
Those television, radio, and printed advertisements were directed towards high school students.
That’s about all I remember at the moment.
But, I’m certain there’s others in this forum who remember that.
Are you currently serving in the United States Marine Corps?
Then some of your fellow Marines, particularly the older generation, might remember those commercials.
Hi, John,
I was on active duty from ’73 to ’94, graduated from high school in ’72, and I don’t remember any of those comercials.
I doubt that the recruiting command would have ever put anything in ads about no enlistments accepted if you’d done drugs or hadn’t completed high school. The goal of a marketing campaign like that is to get bodies in front of the recruiters, not to (in effect) “pre-screen” people.
Actually, I think they were trying to get kids to quit dropping out of school, and to stay away from drugs.
1972 was when I came back from Viet Nam, so the ad campaign was many years after that.
Maybe it was during President Reagan’s administration, as part of Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say NO!” campaign?
I don’t know.
As I said, age has made all these years and all these memories become run together and become thoroughly scrambled.
I remember all the old 70s commercials for the Marines,,, not one of them mentioned drugs.
Up until 1982 there were no piss tests. The only way you would be turned down would be if you had a criminal record ( of anything, not just drugs) or you admitted to more than experimental use to your recruiter. Believe me the recruiters certainly coached the hell out of guys going in on their response. I admitted to “experimental” use only. Due to my recruiter’s coaching I left out the part about the experiment lasting from 1975-1980.
Reading the original article, it’s hard to say: he says he got the arm ink to commemorate his 2011 tour in A-stan and says the tattoos never interfered with fighting or on patrol etc, so it sounds like he got them in 2011 before he departed. Same article says the 2010 changes limited visible tattoos to smaller than the size of the wearer’s hand (his are) and the number of tattoos an officer can have visible in a PT suit (inapplicable to an NCO.) The tattoo can’t cover more than 25% of the body part it’s on… his don’t appear to from the picture. He says the reg is hard to understand – looking at his picture and what the Marine Times published, he’s right. Can someone check the actual reg? The Marine Times article seems to indicate he should be good to re-up.
Not a big tattoo guy myself but if you want one, who cares?
Completely agree.
Yep. I don’t have any tattoos, either. As the old saying goes; “scars are tattoos with better stories” and I have plenty of those.
Sounds like the Bean Counting Bureaucrats in Army Human Resources Command are giving hints and tips to the USMC on how to kick people out.
This is another case of bean counters at echelons above reality making any and every excuse they can to kick out troops at the lowest level. Why? Because if they don’t FIND other people to kick out, THEIR job is at risk…
HRC is kicking a lot of decent personnel out, worst is when they are tagging troops at 17ish years so they get separated prior to “Sanctuary” and don’t even get “early retirement” (under TERA) because of the bean counting scumbags at HRC.
Again, it makes me curious how many personnel at HRC, Navy BUPERs, The Pentagon, etc., are being separated for any and every excuse and what’s the percentage/ratio in comparison to Division and Below personnel.
I know a troop who was put out (of active duty) with 16 years in 1993. 17 years later, after his second Iraq deployment with the guard, he reached sanctuary and was allowed to serve out his 20 and retire.
Sometimes there is justice in the world (plus in the interim he had been promoted to E-7, so he got a better pension).
Hack never got a tattoo, his Mother would kill him. I don’t see the point of spending hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars to let someone know what branch of the military that I am in, what my favorite automobile is, or who is my favorite musician. They have t-shirts for that. Maybe the Marine Corps is wrong with this tattoo policy, but currently, it is a regulation. So what if he gets a waiver for his tattoo, and the next Marine doesn’t? Is that a double standard? No two circumstances are exactly the same, and that second Marine may have too much baggage for the Marine Corps to give him a pass, but you know that he will go running to Marine Times or his congressman and ask about his waiver. No easy answers here.
Okay, I’ll settle this discussion.
Rule #1 – Tattoos should be put where they can be seen by anyone wearing 1 or more stars.
Rule #2 – See Rule #1.
I knew plenty of sailors, including a REAL CPO and a mustang LCDR, who had tattoos they got in the PI. They just didn’t show unless those guys were wearing short sleeves, and if anyone questioned them, those unfortunate enough to do so got The Look.
So, what does the tattoo say? Why didn’t he get it on his left shoulder blade? And can I pinch his biceps?
Damn! Rule #1 should be ‘CANNOT be seen’.
I think the internet hates me.
I love David Murphy’s FB post right at the top.
“Muslim” isn’t a language dumbass and There Muslims across vast swathes of the world speaking and writing dozens if not hundreds of different languages. Retards like this make rank and vote and we wonder why we can’t win a fucking war anymore.
Slow golf clap
Thanks Top glad you like it.
Classic blue falcon corps.
His crime was a page 11 and giving a Fuck.
The tattoo in Question is not the Arabic one.
It is the 0311 one. 0311 is the Marine designation for Rifleman.
He was under the impression that as long as the tattoo was not offensive and it could be covered by his hand it was allowed.
The Marines are losing a real Grunt and a credit to the Corp. I am bothered by one thing. The Marine didn’t just get a small tatoo of their mascot or USMC on his arm. He got a giant tatoo on his forearm that everyone could see. I don’t have a problem with the tatoo itself but he must have known that it was against regs to do this. A marine that has such a blatant disregard for authority and the Regs would seem to me to drive a stake through the basic creed of the Marines. I think that in itself and not the tatoo is what is getting him booted.
Why did he get the tattoo when he knew it was against regs?
Here’s an old Devil Dog’s guess. At the time he got the tat reenlisting wasn’t even on his mind.
I’ve seen more than one or two salty Lcpls with about two years in go through a fuck up period where they got an NJP or 2 and pg 11s. At the time they didnt give a shit. I would talk to them and they were dead set on getting out, going to school or working for their Uncle’s construction company.
Then the Salty fuck would nature and get his head out of his ass, pick up Cpl and get a wife and kid.
He would think really hard about his chioces and try to re-up. Shot down every time.
As others have stated; he thought his tattoos were within the reg, as he understood it. Obviously, the pammpered prince didn’t agree.
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Desk jockeys don’t go to tattoo parlors.
Desk jockeys will never hit the trails carrying weapons in any environment, and they know it.
Desk jockeys can’t justify having tatts that say ‘I’m a hardass’ when they are really office bunnies.
The tatts are an ‘in-your-face’ statement that those deployed did something ‘special’ when the office bunnies didn’t.
The military doesn’t like tattoos now. The upper echelons see these tribal warrior symbols (even if it’s ‘Mom’ on a heart) as a threat to their useless egos. They have lots of ribbons, but no tatts. You could strip those idiots bare and not find even a tiny one.
Used to be, the upper end of the military didn’t care as long as they couldn’t see the more tasteless examples, but now, it upsets the desk jockeys/office bunnies to see the lower levels (real warriors who deployed) with anything at all, because it makes them feel ‘small’.
They’re just looking for an excuse to fire people, whether or not those people deserve it.
So while you are all griping and gritching about this, my view is that this is where the good sergeant should do what people did after they came back from Vietnam and no one wanted to hire them: pull back, regroup and strike again.
Make something out of himself that will have the Marine Corps wishing they hadn’t let him go.
Meantime, I will make sure my ‘warrior’ people get tattoos as their stories progress.
Personally, I see a future Sergeant Major of the Army standing there in USMC uniform. If the USMC refuses to allow him to reenlist because of their policy regarding tattoos I am sure he would make a stellar Army NCO. While I agree that if he got inked after the policy came out well then he rolled the dice, took his chances and lost, live and learn.
“You may think of yourself as intending to be a basic infantryman, or some other MOS, but you never know if, when, or where you’ll be suddenly posted to a clandestine special detail, where the slightest idiosyncrasy that you take for granted, might jeopardize your life and everyone with you.”
That’s so much bullshit. I’m former Marine infantry (91-97) and I can tell you it does not work that way. They do not stroll the ranks and pull out Secret Squirrels for special ops like you saw in Captain America.
An awful lot of folks believe it happens that way, though, and for those people who believe it, you’re never going to convince them otherwise. Our phonies here spin that lie consistently. I’ve had people swear to me that it happened to a family member of theirs, or someone they knew, and you can talk until you’re blue in the face, and get nowhere. I have come to believe that for some people, it’s like believing in aliens, Bigfoot, or the Loch Ness monster. They WANT to believe in it, and nothing will convince them otherwise.
128 responses in a few hours?
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I would be interested in knowing the combat record of the Marine Officer who signed the rejection. The modern USMC – Where common sense was an uncommon virtue.
You, me, and many others!!
Back in late 85 or early 86, we had a couple of guys from our Comm unit that were suppose to go overseas to some Navy bases as some type of security. They were told not to cut their hair. One of the guys was down the PX and an officer was starting to chew him out about his long hair. Ski, who always had an attitude anyway, being a career LCpl, told him about this “special duty” that he was suppose to go on and he couldn’t cut his hair. I don’t think they ever went. It wasn’t exactly secret squirrel stuff, but it was a little odd and he was a borderline POS.