Behind the Cover

Behind the Cover: Surprise weigh-ins coming this summer

By James Sanborn on March 14, 2011 Behind the Cover, Fitness

Chubby Marines and lax commanders beware. The commandant of the Marine Corps has you in his sights. This week’s Marine Corps Times cover story is about the commandant’s plan to crack down on lax enforcement of body composition standards with surprise weigh ins to be conducted by the Marine Corps Investigator General this summer. Any Marine outside of standards should be in the Marine Corps’ Body Composition Program or Military Appearance Program the commandant has said, but it doesn’t look like that is always the case. While touring the fleet with Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Carlton Kent, he’s…

Behind the Cover: For grunts only?

By James Sanborn on March 7, 2011 Behind the Cover, Infantry

“Every Marine a rifleman.” It’s a philosophy every recruit is indoctrinated with from Day One. No matter his MOS, every Marine is trained to be capable of picking up a rifle and heading to the front. But, in today’s operating environment, many Marines never hear the crack of an enemy rifle. That’s why some grunts want a device to distinguish them from other Marines. The best way to do that, some oh-three-hundreds say, is to reserve crossed rifles for infantrymen. Others, however, say that threatens to erode camaraderie and rob the Corps of that which sets it apart from all…

Behind the Cover: The push for sniper changes

By Dan Lamothe on February 28, 2011 Afghanistan, Behind the Cover, Infantry, Manpower

Few jobs in the military have as much mystique as Marine scout sniper. Army Ranger? Sure. Navy SEAL? Fair enough. The scout sniper has his own special reputation, though, and its one that’s earned the hard way. Nevertheless, there is room for improvement, say many Marines who know the community. Scout snipers have no primary military occupational specialty, have limited career options and cannot compete for big bonuses unless they leave their conventional infantry battalions for the bright lights of a job in the reconnaissance field or Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command. And it’s hurting the scout sniper community…

Behind the cover: Go MARSOC and stay

By Andrew deGrandpre on February 21, 2011 Behind the Cover, MARSOC, The CMC

In an exclusive this week, senior writer Gina Cavallaro details the newly approved plan to create three military occupational specialties for operators, specialists and officers assigned to Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command. Plus, Cavallaro and San Diego bureau chief Gidget Fuentes team up to explain why the commandant shot down MARSOC’s effort to rename its units and personnel after the legendary Marine Raiders of World War II. Both stories came to light after Marine Corps Times obtained a detailed presentation provided to Gen. Jim Amos and his most senior general officers late last month in New Orleans. Amos, a…

Behind the Cover: The search for the next Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps

By Dan Lamothe on February 6, 2011 Behind the Cover, Leadership, The CMC, The Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps

Four years ago last month, Commandant Gen. James Conway announced that he had selected Sgt. Maj. Carlton Kent to serve as his sergeant major of the Marine Corps. It’s a demanding position that requires those who hold it to be equally comfortable while offering blunt advice to a four-star general, inspiring junior Marines and articulating the Marine Corps’ needs on Capitol Hill. Following Conway’s retirement in October, the time is coming for Kent to move on, too. The sergeant major is expected to retire this spring after completing a four-year term as the Corps’ top enlisted Marine. He has held the position…

Behind the Cover: BAH and the single NCO

By Andrew deGrandpre on January 26, 2011 Behind the Cover

Pssssssssst. Have you heard rumors the Corps is planning to cancel housing allowance for sergeants and below, and order all those Marines to move back into the barracks? Last week, a Marine Corps Times reader leaked us a copy of the unsigned MARADMIN detailing how the plan would work. We went to HQMC, which released this statement: The MARADMIN was a working draft. It was drafted as part of a pre-decisional informational package for the Marine Corps to understand and evaluate the possibility of modifying current policy regarding BAH (“own right”) for sergeants and below. After careful consideration, the Marine…

Behind the Cover: Dead man to Ironman

By James Sanborn on January 17, 2011 Battle Rattle, Behind the Cover

This week’s Marine Corps Times cover is an inspirational story about a Marine who competed in the 2010 Ironman World Championship after beating cancer not once, but twice. Staff Sgt. Clay Treska was diagnosed with stage-one testicular cancer in 2009, but beat the disease back with chemotherapy. The treatment that saved his life, however, also ravaged his body. He began packing on the pounds and edged in on 300 before deciding he was going to get back on track by training for an Ironman triathlon. After months of hard work, Treska who had no experience as an endurance athlete, was…

Behind the Cover: Corps Loses Big

By James Sanborn on January 10, 2011 Behind the Cover

Last week Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced drastic cuts across the military, totaling $78 billion over the next five years. Among those cuts were three hard hits to the Marine Corps. A 20,000 Marine drawdown will being in 2015. Development of the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle was canceled. Production of the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter was delayed by at least two years and risks being nixed all together. This week’s Marine Corps Times delves deep into the cuts. With the EFV scuttled the Marine Corps is without a next-generation ship to shore vehicle. With the F-35B delayed, an aging fleet of…

Behind the Cover: Military Paybook 2011

By Dan Lamothe on January 3, 2011 Behind the Cover

Happy New Year, friends. While posting on Battle Rattle slowed to a crawl through the holidays, we’re at full staff today and ready for business. Let’s kick things off with a look at this week’s Marine Corps Times cover package: Paybook 2011. Featuring a 24-page pullout section, it includes a by-rank breakdown for military compensation and details on a broad array of military incentives for active-duty personnel, reservists and retirees. To check it out now, subscribe here.

Behind the Cover: Surprise changes to the GI Bill

By Dan Lamothe on December 21, 2010 Behind the Cover

Marines often say that one of the biggest reasons they read Marine Corps Times is for the stories on pay and benefits. If so, consider this week’s issue meat-and-potatoes coverage at its finest. Congressional editor Rick Maze delivers a cover story this week outlining 13 changes to the Post-9/11 GI Bill. They include perks like extending an existing $1,000 book bonus already available to student veterans to spouses and active-duty service members. The bill passed through Congress last week in a surprise. It’s considered a compromise among veterans groups, schools and the Veterans Affairs Department to gripes that existed with the GI…

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