Mechanized Infantry Perceptions 2010

[Seerov]

I left the army in Dec 2003. I remember before Iraq many people were certain (especially in the light infantry community) that vehicles could not work in cities and other difficult terrain. Mechanized infantry was truly morally inferior to light infantry. Even during basic training light infantry 11b drill SGTs would advance anti-mech stereotypes and proclaim the superiority of light infantry. APCs and tanks were "coffins." It wasn’t even the same Army in "mech world." Finding out you were 11m was like finding out you were born into a lower caste.

Of course, sometimes there is a hint of truth in stereotypes. It was possible to find more out-of-shape soldiers in mechanized units, than in light infantry units. Some of these people were just more skilled with their Bradley job than with infantry skills.

At that time (while in the Army), I somewhat looked down on these people. But now I think I may have been wrong, in that maybe, that was just what they were good at? I had no interest in being a Bradley gunner or driver and made it perfectly clear(I only served in dismount squads). So I was basically the same thing. Maybe some people should be allowed to spend their career just being a Bradley crew member(driver, gunner, BC, platoon sgt)? Maybe some people should never have to do the jobs on a Bradley (they would spend their whole career in light infantry units)? The best platoon SGT I had in the Army was one of these guys. He would fall out of the company run, but knew everything about the Bradley and his platoon sgts duties.

Anyway, I’m wondering if this divide (between mech and light infantry) is still as deep today (2010) as it was in 2003 when I left the army? Since 2002 or 2003, the Army started force integrating these groups. So now infantry soldiers have to serve in both. Has this decreased the cultural biases towards mech? What about striker units? Are striker units "in between" mech and light on the "true infantry morality metric?" With the large scale use of humvees, isn't it all just blurring (the line between mech and light infantry) anyway? Is the fitness level of the average soldier negatively correlated with vehicle size? lol

Most important, how have the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan changed solider perceptions of mech infantry, and amour in general? Are there still soldiers/leaders who insist that APCs and tanks are useless in cities?

Are mech infantry soliders still just "tankers" to the light infantry world, or are they real infantrymen now?