question about green beret

[jones21]

ok i have a stupid question i've been trying to figure out. Is green beret a SF unit like ranger,delta or is it all SF units..... are they all called green berets if in SF

[mercian billman]

Rangers don't wear green berets they wear black berets along with the rest of the Army.

The government doesn't acknowledge the existence of Delta Force https://forums.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[jones21]

ok so who are the green berets?

[mercian billman]

Only Special Forces wear green berets.

[Si GeeNa]

Well from where i come from. We have alot of Green Berets...

The standard head-dress in Singapore is Green Beret for the Infantrymen. Black is for Armour. Red is for Airborne. Blue is for Support units. Brown is for Guardsmen.

[KukriKhan]

So, jones21 has a uniform question.

Short answer: In the US, green beret's are only 19-series MOS Special Operations guys. The rest (rangers, airborne, etc) are different.

Long answer: US special ops was created in 1961 (alongside the Peace Corps) by President Kennedy. He awarded them (by Executive Order) the wear of a green beret to signify their peaceful (while military), yet constructive, role in accelerating development in the undeveloped world, as it was known at the time (think: southeast Asia, Africa). The idea being that, like US politics, everything that matters is local. And a beret, unlike a helmet, signifies a softer, more gentle approach.

The basic concept was that a Spec Ops A team, consisting of a Medic, a Communications guy, an Infantryman, an Artilleryman, a Mortarman, and an Engineer, all experts in their fields and able to operate independently, could enter a hamlet, and upgrade it to something to be proud of - American-style.

These Green Berets got sent into SE Asia behind US advisors (Army guys who told the then-South Vietnamese how they ought to conduct their operations against the northern incursionists/communists).

Things changed, and Green Berets had to switch from 'village-building' to combat operations, to defend those little hamlets they'd built.

Fast Forward.

Delta Force was created by President Carter in 1980, originally to deal with the Iran-Hostage affair. The idea being that Marines (the US's traditional overseas strike team) and the Green Berets, had become too overweight, too unmanageable, too moribound, to act on behalf of the POTUS. He wanted/needed a 200-man outfit that could simply arrive in Tehran and take' those guys imprisoned in the US embassy.

That mission failed in the desert, due to technical insertion problems (the pictures of which became an embarrassment politically - and (IMO) insured Reagan's election). But, in good Army traditional practice, Delta Force became an actual unit. The creme de la creme de la creme, as it were..

Meanwhile, the Rangers, having performed admirably in WWII, were reduced to LRRP's (Long-Range, Roving Patrols) in VN. They wanted recognition of their long-suffering role in the US's conflicts. Somebody in their Chain-of-Command suggested Black berets, ala the Green Berets, to distinguish them.

And Airborne wanted something special too (besides their trousers tucked inside boots trademark). At first, it was the Riggers (the guys who actually packed the pararchutes) who wore red ('scuse me: 'maroon' berets). Eventually, all Airborne guys wore them.

So by 1982, we had: Green Berets (for the Special Ops guys), Black Berets (for Rangers), and Maroon Berets (for some Airborne, not all). Delta Force was still kind of secret, so they wore no distinctive headgear.

Then the Persian Gulf I happened. And someone somewhere decided (for the millienth time) that the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force should work together. Air Force Security Police wore black berets. Navy & MC wore none. Army had 3 different colors. Just prior to this (PG-I) SOCOM (Spec Ops Command) was created, unifying Green Berets, Rangers, SEALS, Airborne, AF R&R (rescue and recovery) teams, and Delta Force, under a single General Officer (that rotates between Army, Navy & AF).

In the late 90's the Army Chief of Staff (head guy) decided that ALL Army people would wear the black beret, for reasons still debated widely in the Army. The Rangers protested, and were changed to Tan berets.

To sum up (and try to answer the original question), a Special Ops guy (it's still an all-male club, no matter what service) can be any service, but they're highly-qualified fellas, who've passed some quite rigorous training and testing. A Green Beret, a Ranger, a SEAL, a Marine, a Delta Forcer, an Airborne guy, an AF R&R guy,.... ALL are 'special' forces; guys, who by training and experience, can basically operate on their own in a variety of environments. But they all come to that job from different traditions and backgrounds.

Wow. I think that's the longest post I've ever made anywhere. https://forums.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-jester.gif

[jones21]

ok thxs for that kukri......now question #2 https://forums.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/bigthumb.gif


can some help me with some way to look up ancestors that is low cost or maybe free https://forums.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/idea.gif i dont have good access to a credit card and i wanna find ancestors and such