posted on January 27, 2001 09:20:12 PM
As some of you may know it has been proposed that all U.S. Army personnel start wearing the Black Beret. This piece of head gear up to this time has been reserved for the Special Forces of the United States Armed Forces, with the exception of the USAF who wore dark Blue = Security Specialist(Cops). The others had to be earned by training the Green was Special Forces, Maroon was Airborne , Black was Rangers. It has been proposed and approved that as a (feel good) morale measure that all Army personnel should start wearing the black beret. It has long been a standing that these are head gear that are to be earned not freely given.
There is an ex-ranger that is marching on Washington D.C. to deliver a petition to have this act revoked and to reserve the Black Beret for those that earn it.
If you view these men and women that have put forth the extra effort to earn the right to wear these head pieces the same as I do I ask you to sign the petition.
Thank you. (The Honored brother of one that wore the Green and Maroon.)
posted on January 28, 2001 06:36:56 AM
I signed, gladly! My husband "earned" his red beret. And we have many friends who have "earned" their black berets. To earn a black beret a soldier must go thru very difficult training. It is a true test to a mans body, mind, and soul! Wearing a beret in the Army is an honor...not a privilege!! HOOAH!
posted on January 28, 2001 09:40:42 AM
Hi Pat
Well, I agree and went to sign the petition but my access was blocked. I will have to email them. It said I was "individually blocked". Maybe it's my ZoneAlarm or maybe I was a subversive in another life (just kidding).
posted on January 28, 2001 09:46:14 AMnobs I don't know if I was blocked - I didn't get a message like that. But, I couldn't get it to go through on two tries last night. It finally went through this a.m. Persnickity thing.
posted on January 28, 2001 09:52:27 AM
I see nothing wrong with all personal wearing a beret, whatever color.
The armed forces is a team concept in which no unit exists, works, or succeeds independantly. There are far more individuals in the armed forces who might qualify for special forces than are accepted, but are rejected for budget and unit manpower requirements, not because the ones who made it are better or more deserving. If these special units were such a great asset, everyone in the armed forces would be trained to special unit qualifications. It is like saying an electrician is more important than a plumber. The electrician is more important when you need lights, but the plumber is more important when you need water. In reality both are equally important.
I have a nephew by marriage who is Airborne, and another nephew is a jet fighter maintenance chief. In my book, they can both wear the same color beret, and both have earned it. I think our country is safe and free due equally to the talents of both.
The "non beret" and support units are just as important and have "earned" the right to wear a beret as much as any other - provided they have performed their charges in the manner needed.
I any event, beware the trappings of glory, as all glory is fleeting.
posted on January 28, 2001 10:13:08 AM
Well, I disagree.
I was once a member of the 8th Special Forces Group and wore a green beret. So did our cooks, motor pool mechanics and HQ personnel. Most had done nothing to earn the "right" to wear the beret except be assigned to the unit. Many were not even airborne qualified. I believe that was the case in other beret wearing units also.
When I entered the service, the maroon beret for airborne units was not in use. I think that practice was begun sometime in the early 70's. I'm not too sure about the Ranger beret, but I believe that it too was not always a part of their uniform. If memory serves, other units began wearing berets as a direct result of the high-profile publicity that the green beret garnered for the Army Special Forces. There was considerable grumbling among SF personnel over that change.
The real indicators of elite status among Airborne units, Special Forces Teams, and Ranger Units are, respectively, the Wings, the Group Flash, and the Ranger Tab. Those insignia, coupled with the assigned unit patch (and combat service patch, if applicable) serve to accurately identify an elite soldier to those that matter. The opinions of feather merchants are irrelevant.
If the wearing of a black beret makes a soldier feel good about serving his/her country and enhances morale, I'm for it. It's just a hat. Real distinction lies elsewhere.
posted on January 28, 2001 10:56:49 AM Reamond, thank you for your perspective. The military has long relied upon a reward system to encourage and acknowledge the outstanding performance of a serviceperson's duty. As a civilian, it seems a small thing to be asked to support the wishes of current recipients of the black beret. There are numerous service awards beyond the black beret which commend a job well done for others.
Mybiddness, thanks for hanging in there
Everyone else, thank you for taking a moment to let these people know you care...
Edited to add: Xardon, I have none of the inside information as to what constitutes *real* status among service personnel. In this instance, regarding the black berets only, there *is* an effort amongst those who currently wear it to maintain the standards under which it is bestowed. I support them.
[ edited by plsmith on Jan 28, 2001 11:01 AM ]
posted on January 28, 2001 11:23:00 AM
Help me out hereXardon because what you say usually makes sense to me.
If the wearing of a black beret makes a soldier feel good about serving his/her country and enhances morale, I'm for it. It's just a hat. Real distinction lies elsewhere.
why wouldn't wearing the uniform itself make a soldier feel good about serving his country? and allow the beret, the pins, the patch to indicate the distinction, pride and honor of individual units.?
In my opinion, if wearing the uniform itself doesn't address the basic issue, what the heck is the meaning attached to a hat.
I'm with those who say, let them all wear 5 stars!!..........Oh heck, let them all wear dress blues, that is gonna make them look better than any other outfit.
cariad
posted on January 28, 2001 12:39:59 PM
I do have mixed feelings on this. There was considerable resentment among those who wore the green beret when other units adopted the same headgear, albeit in a different hue. I think I may still resent the fact that the Rangers co-opted the idea in the first place. It's been awhile since I've been in the service and I'm sure that by now the black beret has come to be identified with the Rangers. Those who wear it have good reason to be proud. The beret, however, is just one part of their symbolism. The Ranger shoulder tab embodies their real tradition. Rangers know who they are. I suspect they still look to the shoulder to identify one of their own. The green beret, in fact, was a relatively new thing in 1970. It's uniqueness was a great source of pride to the Special Forces. I may indeed be feeling some small satisfaction in knowing that they now have reason to better understand that resentment.
Uniform traditions are important to the military but they've always been subject to change. We no longer have Dragoons and Zouaves and their distinctive uniforms. Ike jackets and brown boots have also become outdated. The everyday Army uniform is now quite different from the one I wore 30 years ago.
The most tradition bound military branch is, in my opinion, the Marines. Aside from some small insignia, it is difficult for a civilian to distinguish an elite unit Marine from an ordinary grunt. The distinction, however, is very apparent to other Marines. I think that shows some class.
The US Army of today bears little resemblance to the Army I recall. It is smaller and much more specialized, for one thing. My own group and sub-unit was disbanded in the mid-70's. I can't pretend to understand the challenges faced by modern military commanders. If the wearing of a black beret suits a contemporay need, I am not opposed to it. The beret no longer means what it once did. Armies all over the world have adopted it. I personally think it will enhance the overall image of the Army, both at home and overseas. The Rangers have only to look at their own history, and their reasons for wearing the beret, to understand my point of view.
posted on January 28, 2001 01:19:24 PM Xardon, I appreciate your point of view. It's human nature, though, to resist change and in the military especially great significance is given to the various emblems/insignia/medals/berets/etc. which are awarded to its members. That, to me, is why the redefining of the black beret has become an issue for some of those who wear it. What makes possessing it special is that they had to earn it through a series of tests/experiences I don't claim to know anything about. I do understand the universal desire to hold onto what one holds dear, though -- even if (and that's a biggish "if" in this instance) it might serve the greater good to "move on". One thing is certain: whether or not the military allocates black berets to all, there will always be a desire among servicepersons to distinguish themselves; ergo, there will always be something -- be it a beret or a pair of wings -- for them to aspire to.
Here's a bit of history about military berets:
History of the Beret in the U.S. Army
By Chuck Vinch Washington bureau chief, Stars & Stripes
WASHINGTON — Military forces have worn distinctive uniform items for centuries to create a psychological advantage and boost their esprit de corps, but the military use of berets is a relatively recent phenomenon, said Walter Bradford, an Army historian who has studied the issue.
Scottish Highland troops wore a “bonnet” in the 17th and 18th centuries, while the headgear most people now know as the beret was worn in the Basque region of France and Spain in the same period, Bradford said.
But widespread use of the beret among Western armies didn’t begin until the 20th century, when French tank crews in World War I wore both the small Basque version and a larger, floppier variety.
Headgear history
In the 1920s, British tank crews began searching for an alternative to their stiff khaki service-dress cap, which just wasn’t practical for duty inside the relatively new armored vehicles.
“The cap had to be worn backwards to use the gunner’s sights, with the chin strap down to keep it on the head,” Bradford said. “The light wool serge fabric soon became home for grease stains as it was clutched and adjusted by soiled fingers.”
In 1924, the tankers came up with a black wool beret whose size fell in between the two French versions and was bound with black leather featuring an adjustable ribbon that ran around to tie in the back.
When the British tankers added their traditional “Fear Naught” emblem above the left eye, they had a snappy piece of headgear that quickly became famous for its distinctiveness and grew to be the symbol of armored formations around the world, Bradford said.
The military popularity of berets soared during the World War II era when various British units donned the headgear in several colors, including a khaki brown variety adopted by Special Air Services troops and a maroon variety worn by Britain’s first airborne force, the Parachute Regiment, that became affectionately known as the “cherry berry.”
Legend has it that the color was picked by novelist Daphne du Maurier, wife of Maj. Gen. Frederick Browning, one of Britain’s highly decorated World War II heroes, Bradford said.
Berets debut in U.S. military
The first use of the modern beret in the U.S. military was in 1943, when a battalion of the 509th Parachute Infantry was given maroon berets by their British counterparts for their service in the war.
In 1951, the Marine Corps experimented with green and blue berets, but dismissed them because they looked too “foreign” and “feminine,” Bradford said.
The first widespread use of the headgear by U.S. forces came shortly after, when a new Army organization that was specially trained for insurgency and counterguerrilla warfare began wearing a green variety in 1953. It took another eight years for the Army’s Special Forces — the “Green Berets” — to win presidential approval from John F. Kennedy to make their headgear official.
In the 1970s, Army policy allowed local commanders to encourage morale-enhancing uniform distinctions, and the use of berets boomed. Armor personnel at Fort Knox, Ky., wore the traditional British black beret, while U.S. armored cavalry regiments in Germany wore the black beret with a red and white oval.
Troops of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C., started wearing the maroon beret in 1973, while at Fort Campbell, Ky., the trend exploded, with post personnel wearing red, military police donning light green, and the 101st Airborne Division taking light blue as their color. In Alaska, the 172nd Infantry Brigade began using an olive green beret.
In 1975, the Airborne Rangers got approval from the Department of the Army to use the black beret as their official headgear.
Over the next few years, the whole thing got out of hand, and in 1979 senior Army officials put on the brakes, Bradford said. The leadership allowed the Rangers to keep their black berets and in 1980, agreed to allow airborne troops to continue wearing the maroon version. But all others varieties were declared off-limits.
Present-day beret
These days, the United States is on the low end of the spectrum among NATO allies in terms of the variety of berets worn by their military forces.
Turkey, Greece and Luxembourg also authorize only three colors for various segments of their forces, but most countries have four or five. Belgium has seven and the United Kingdom tops the list with nine.
On Oct. 17, Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki announced that the black beret would become standard Army headgear next year. Shinseki said he wants to use the sense of pride that the beret has long represented to the Rangers to foster an attitude of excellence among the entire Army as it moves forward with its sweeping transformation effort to a lighter, more deployable, more agile force.
His decision has set off a firestorm in both the active-duty and veteran Ranger community as well as in the Army’s other two special operations camps, the Special Forces and the airborne.
On Oct. 20, Sgt. Maj. of the Army Jack Tilley said Airborne Rangers might receive headgear of a different color when the entire Army dons the Rangers’ traditional black beret next June.
posted on January 28, 2001 01:53:17 PM
Thanks for the info, plsmith.
I was unsure of the exact dates. I was in the Army from 1970 - 76, if I count my time in ROTC. My active duty came before ROTC, BTW. I only knew these things were occurring during that time period. My opinion probably does have more to do with remembered resentment than it does with present day reality. I think I still feel, however, that the only "real" berets are green.
posted on January 28, 2001 02:14:24 PM Xardon, for you:
The Ballad of The Green Berets Circa 1963 Words and Music by Barry Sadler and Robin Moore
Fight-ing sold - iers from the sky,____
Fear-less men____ who jump and die.___
Men who mean____ just what they say, ___
The brave men___ of the Green Ber-et.____
Sil-ver wings____ up-on their chests,____
These are men,____ A-mer-i-ca's best,____
One hun-dred men____ we'll test to - day,___
But on-ly three____ win The Green Ber-et.____
Trained to live____ off na-ture's land,___
Trained to com - bat, hand to hand.____
Men who fight____ by night and day,___
Cou-rage take___ from The Green Ber-et.___
Sil-ver wings____ up-on their chests,____
These are men,____ A-mer-i-ca's best,____
One hun-dred men____ we'll test to - day,___
But on-ly three____ win The Green Ber-et.____
Back at home____ a young wife waits,______
Her Green Ber-et____ has met his fate.____
He has died____ for those op - pressed,__
Leav-ing her____ this last re-quest.___
Put sil-ver wings____ on my son's chest,___
Make him one____ of A-mer-i-ca's best,___
He'll be a man____ they'll test one day,___
Have him win______ The Green Ber - et.___
