The whole first name thing has gotten blown a little out of proportion, I think. I've got that I am apparently the only member of this board who, while enlisted, was not addressed by his first name by superior officers.Originally Posted by selil
The point is that it was the only thing that seemed out of place to me. In my experience, I don't see many Marines being addressed by their first name in that particular context - even within reconnaissance and ANGLICO.
To answer selil's question; yes, they were the division reconnaissance battalion, vice the MEF force reconnaissance company. I disagree that they were used inappropriately - they were used nontraditionally, but they performed an economy of force mission that, with some additional training, the battalion was well suited to.
Some good reading on that subject would be "Ground Reconnaissance in OIF: A Perspective from Within 1st MarDiv", by LtCol Stephen A. Ferrando and Maj Todd S. Eckloff; and "A Reconnaissance Platoon's Perspective" by 1stLt Nathanial C. Fick; both from Marine Corps Gazette, Jul 2003. The first article covers how Operation DESERT STORM showed the limited utility of traditional R&S teams in a mobile environment, and resulting change in mission for 1st Reconnaissance Battalion.
The best part of that was the battalion commander's reaction to the Marines wearing their watch caps in the chow hall - "Cocky MFers."
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