Get off my bus

[Hosakawa Tito]

Get off my bus!
So I awoke from a dream this morning. One just like this from a time so very long ago, almost 31 years ago today in fact...a man-child about to make acquaintance with his new mommy. Eye Balls...SNAP SIR!

[KukriKhan]

hehe. That guy (the DI) is my neighbor. His voice is unmistakeable.

[doc_bean]

hehe. That guy (the DI) is my neighbor. His voice is unmistakeable.

Does he practise the shouting at home ?

[KukriKhan]

Does he practise the shouting at home ?

I don't know about 'practice', but he certainly wasn't afraid to use it on the new puppy he got a month ago. :)

[Devastatin Dave]

All I remember was some Dude yelling (I knew better not to make eye contact) and running out with our luggage and having to stand on these little yellow painted circles on the concrete. I remember the "tap...tap...tap" as he paced up and down the lines. I remember this huge torso standing directly in front of me (still no eye contact!!!) and a big wad of chewing tobacco spit hitting my shoe and a very loud voice saying, "Those shoe's ain't in accordance of 35-26-03, we'll take care of that". This was all around 2 in the morning!!! Ah, such memories!!!

[lars573]

Get off my bus!
So I awoke from a dream this morning. One just like this from a time so very long ago, almost 31 years ago today in fact...a man-child about to make acquaintance with his new mommy. Eye Balls...SNAP SIR!

You know I'd never make it in the US marines. No way, no how. I REALLY don't respond well to the kind of behavoir those DI's use. It brings out all the wrong kind of reponses. Wise cracks, body langauge, zero respect.

[Lemur]

I dunno, it all looks kinda homey ... but then my dad was a Marine officer ...

[Banquo's Ghost]

Extraordinary.

I recall my arrival at Sandhurst. We were served tea.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Different strokes, I guess. My colour sergeant at RMAS was a delightful man from Tiverton in Devon. (The Devon and Dorset regiment, that Phillipvs will know so well). Didn't ever have to shout. He could strike terror into the heart and soul just with a look and occasionally, a soft word redolent with menace.

He did of course, greet us with the time-honoured saw directed at junior officers: "You will call me sir and I will call you sir. The difference being, you will mean it."

One of the finest men I ever knew. Taught me more about leading men than anyone else, notwithstanding any shoulder jewellery.

[Hosakawa Tito]

You know I'd never make it in the US marines. No way, no how. I REALLY don't respond well to the kind of behavoir those DI's use. It brings out all the wrong kind of reponses. Wise cracks, body langauge, zero respect.

Many a recruit has felt and thought the same as you, lars. However, training tactics that have evolved from Roman times to today's most elite armies in countries around the world follow the same basic tenet. Break down the individualistic thought processes and get them thinking, acting, performing as a team. Lemur's video shows a part of the breaking down process; one individual screws up and the entire platoon suffers. In fact, the most effective DI's make everyone but the screw up suffer, physically. Then the screw up suffers the psychological pain of knowing his mates suffer the consequences of his mistakes. A little peer pressure usually prods those that proclaim not to care.

[lars573]

Many a recruit has felt and thought the same as you, lars. However, training tactics that have evolved from Roman times to today's most elite armies in countries around the world follow the same basic tenet. Break down the individualistic thought processes and get them thinking, acting, performing as a team. Lemur's video shows a part of the breaking down process; one individual screws up and the entire platoon suffers. In fact, the most effective DI's make everyone but the screw up suffer, physically. Then the screw up suffers the psychological pain of knowing his mates suffer the consequences of his mistakes. A little peer pressure usually prods those that proclaim not to care.

Some can take more prodding than others. And not every nation trains like that. Canada follows a similar track as Britian. Only time you hear a raised voice is on the parade square.

[Husar]

I dunno, it all looks kinda homey ... but then my dad was a Marine officer ...

That funny hysteric dwarf is quite amusing.

I think I prefer the british system though, but in the end I don't care since I didn't have to serve, I think our system is somewhere closer to the american one, though I don't think we have guys acting like hysteric little kids.

[Hosakawa Tito]

Realize that this is only boot camp training (12 weeks), one doesn't go through this their entire enlistment, just long enough to weed out the ones who can't make it. The "hysterical dwarf" act is employed as part of the boot camp training regimen; "if there is no crisis, we create one". Why, one might ask? War is chaos with deadly consequences for those that are ill prepared for the stress. These type scenarios help condition the troop to think clearly and act correctly despite the noise,chaos, and fear they are feeling. You might come to hate the DI's guts, most did including yours truly. However, I respected them because they did every thing they demanded of us and more.
Many a recruit fresh off the bus stood in these prints and thought, "What the hell did I just get myself into."

Extraordinary.

I recall my arrival at Sandhurst. We were served tea.

What, no buttered muffin and jam? How uncivilized...
Took me a week to hold down my breakfast after the PT & run. I bet Lemur's Dad has some amusing stories to tell...

Some can take more prodding than others. And not every nation trains like that. Canada follows a similar track as Britian. Only time you hear a raised voice is on the parade square.

Not all branches of the US Forces trains like this, but the elite commando units sure do, and harder. I bet the special forces of England, Canada, France, and Germany do too.

[Tribesman]

Not all branches of the US Forces trains like this, but the elite commando units sure do, and harder. I bet the special forces of England, Canada, France, and Germany do too.

British special forces doing drill .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_iH...elated&search=

Banquos drill instructor .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMWK...elated&search=

[Banquo's Ghost]

Not all branches of the US Forces trains like this, but the elite commando units sure do, and harder. I bet the special forces of England, Canada, France, and Germany do too.

Yes, they do. Well, those of the United Kingdom, anyway.

The Parachute Regiment would be a good example of a similarly extreme training regime. Lots of bellowing and silliness for that lot. They even get to punch one another. Incidentally, it is also why they are considered a very poor choice for peacekeeping missions - too much aggression.

The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst is of course, an officer training academy. I doubt if they shout much at West Point either. Whilst they allow officers destined for the Parachute Regiment to attend RMAS, they are chained up during night hours. Those of us destined for more genteel duties such as overseeing the lobbing of explosive ordnance from quite a long way away needed to refine skills such as ordering char and guiding bombardiers to the right turf accountant.

The British Royal Marines of course are Navy, and they train their officers elsewhere - for which I often thank the Good Lord.

@Tribesy:

[Whacker]

Here's what REALLY goes on at boot camp:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysfRmYwvcpw

[Major Robert Dump]

These clips are from the documentary Ears, Open. Eyeballs, Click. Its unnarrated, and the editing and music are great. Filmed at Pendleton and San Diego.

Can be ordered here: http://www.canaanbrumley.com/

Got my copy in 2 days

[Crazed Rabbit]

I doubt if they shout much at West Point either.

A couple years ago, I went to a presentation about college at West Point and the video they showed had the new arrivals getting yelled at as they had to rush off a bus (though the yellers were not Marine DIs).

CR