Should Army and Marines (or components of) consolidate?

So much emotions in this thread. Simply put, we all bring something different to the table and combining forces plausible, however, members would react with emotion rather than cost-benefit.

I say leave well enough alone. I respect all of the branches. That includes the National Guard and the Reserves.

Absolutely Not !! To my knowledge the Marines have not lowered every standard in the book like the Army has so certain personnel could pass schools, attain rank, command units, pass boards,etc. The Army lowered standards to meet people rather than raise the people to meet standards. I was forced on several occasions to re-write an EER for individuals because the First Sergeant said " it will look too bad for him to be promoted" so rather than show the truth. I had to lower my standards and Lie and this happened several times in my career. I had an individual with orders in hand to go to a service school one time, but had to pull him because the First Sergeant and Commander wanted to send a less qualified and less deserving soldier. So, no I would never want to see the Marines have to lower their high standards. Yes, I served all 21 years in the US Army.

Bureaucracies are harder to kill than Marines unfortunately. For that matter, why not just consolidate all of them? Combine the Navy, Air Force, Army and Marines into one United States Military lump. I can assure you, one big bureaucracy wouldn't be better than several smaller ones.

The smarter thing would be to pull the Marines back into their traditional role of securing the Navy and quit trying to make them into occupying ground forces deep inland. If you're going to consolidate the Marines with someone, it should be the Navy.

When it ain't broke, don't try to fix it! I am Army, but love the Marine Corps because of their leaned and adopted CAN DO anything mind set. Each branch of service has their specialty areas, and are proud of what they do well. Politicians and bureaucrats should stay behind their desk and work on ways to make our borders secure, then trust the Marines and Army to do their given missions. Stay to hell out of screwing with the proud member of their own services.

CSM (R)

You want to see why they should not be together? Pick a island in the middle of nowhere and give both the Army and the Marines the order to get there with a sustainable fighting force to include heavy fighting vehicles. See who gets there first!

As a Soldier, and Son of a proud Devil Dog, I completely understand the allure the Marines have. I tried to join the Corps every year from 13-17 yrs old. Not because of any thing other than their culture and image. I love being a NCO and Soldier but nothing sounds better than saying I'm a Marine.

However, cultures aside their role and ours have merged dramatically over the years. In fact the military as a whole is a blurred line. I mean the Navy has an Air Force and so does the Army and Marine Corps. The Marines are essentially an Army thanks to GWOT, and the fact that most U.S. Commands are joint now the need for service integrity is obsolete. With ever present budget cuts, a merge of all branches is not only practical but also cost effective.

No, historically this has been a question asked many times, mainly since the end of WW1. There were many officers in the Army who were upset over the results of WW1, with General Pershing denying any one Army unit to be singled out for recognition there were a lot of pissed off soldiers when Marine units were given credit because they were smaller and stuck out more. There is absolutely no reason to eliminate 2 plus centuries of tradition and history, no one should want that to happen. The Army and Marine Corps are different in nature and everyone knows that, it is not about being better or worse it is about the size and maneuverability of the force that makes us different. Not to mention that only the Marine Corps can deployed without the President declaring war, a function that has served the United States well over the years.

Leave things like they are. Both Army and Marines are proud of their history. Both have different missions to carry out with the respect to the big picture. I am a Marine and proud of serving and adding to its history. We have the best armed forces in the world. I don't think we should mess things up.

No because each are trained for specific oriented missions. I was in the army but worked along side all branches in my field. The does a good job so my next comment isn't cutting anyone down. The Marines are more hardcore. They also train to work more amphibious missions which is an asset. An old wise saying could be considered at this point: If it ain't broke don't fix it.

OooooRah!