Why don't officers wear marksmanship badges?

Because they earned them.

I feel the focus of this issue takes us down the wrong road- first an explanation of what is being discussed, with fact other than presumptive opinion. THERE IS NO regulation that says it can not be done- THERE IS a LONG TIME TRADITION (for what ever reason) that it is not worn by officers but can be at a commander's discretion. We can do this very easily by examining another well know tradition that is done- but is in fact UNAUTHORISED : In the modern United States Army, the Stetson was revived as an unauthorized, unofficial headgear for the sake of esprit de corps in the Cavalry. Because they are not authorized by AR 670-1, the regulation for wear and appearance of the uniform, wear and use of the Stetson and the similar spurs is regulated by the unit commander. I doubt if anyone is complaining about the wear of the Stetson even though it is definitely defined as UNAUTHORISED wear. I'm pretty sure that the Army would have had a very distinct REGULATION if they felt that wearing an AWARDED badge was UNAUTHORIZED. There are already regulation that show differenced between officer and enlisted wear- and unfortunately this is not one of them-- We should be more concerned with the current regulation that we have that are often forgotten or morphed to allow definite unauthorized things to take place. An officer's capability is not judged by the left side of his uniform, rightfully so. If he/she wears a badge of honor and is not breaking an regulation- than so be it. I often said that the day a captain pins on an oak leaf, how they are expected, all of a sudden to be smarter (the rank he pinned on didn't make him smarter). For anyone that feels this is just WRONG- I would turn your attention to PATRICK HENRY BRADY (retired General0 and recipient of the MEDAL OF HONOR, who proudly wore his qualifications badge on his uniform- Opinions are fine- but let us not confuse Traditions and Regulations, many a TRADITION have been overturned in the years.

I don't think this is where the focus should be-- There is no Regulation that says it can not be worn, and there is a long standing 'tradition" that officers do not wear it, but it is commander's discretion. Why are we even debating something that is not a clear violation of regulation- Let's compare it to a similar issue-- In the modern United States Army, the Stetson was revived as an unauthorized, unofficial headgear for the sake of esprit de corps in the Cavalry. Because they are not authorized by AR 670-1, the regulation for wear and appearance of the uniform, wear and use of the Stetson and the similar spurs is regulated by the unit commander. Here is a case where a popular and expected item is deemed UNAUTHORIZED- and never thought of as being something you can not wear. It is a something that is done to provide PRIDE and esprit d'corps- If it was important enough to be debating- the Army would have had an applicable Regulation LONG AGO. Let's get back to understanding the regulations we already have in place and stop worrying about someone that has pride in what they've done. If anyone cares that much about it, please direct your responses to :
PATRICK HENRY BRADY- now retired General and Recipient of the Medal of Honor- who proudly wore his Weapons Qualification badge-

If they were required to wear them it might diminish the respect for an officer that can't do better than barely qualify with an M-4. I believe it would be the first thing the lower ranks would look at when they encountered an officer. Most officers quickly accumulate enough foofarol to decorate their uniforms without certain devices just because they are officers. That is true today more than ever.

If you have earned a reward, a decide not to advertise it, it is personal perogitive. There is only an issue if someone wears awards or rank they have not earned. Compelling individuals to brag is bizzare, distasteful, and in all a dishonorable action.

Interesting discussion. I never noticed whether or not officers wore weapons qualification badges. I didn't, but most of the time I didn't wear any ribbons or badges except jump wings. Having qualified with a variety of weapons I thought that wearing the badges (for me) was just gussying up the look. So when in class A or dress I wore the ribbons and other insignia, but not the weapons badges. For me it was just personal preference.

I always wore mine, including my excellence in competition badge. Part of leadership is demonstrating that you can do what you ask your soldiers to do. Yes the radio is your primary weapon, but you need to be competent with your personal weapon.

I was enlisted for the first 3 years of my over 30 year Army career. I came home from a 3 year enlistment as a SGT E-5. I served in Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom the year before I turned 60. I always wore my marksmanship badges on dress uniforms. An officer should be proud of his or her marksmanship skills. Not wearing the badge(s) actually sends the wrong signals to NCOs and Jr. Enlisted soldiers. The sad truth is that many officers don't wear the badges because their individual weapons skills are weak. I practiced on my own time and bought my own ammunition. I found ways to borrow or rent M14 type weapons and M16 type weapon(s) and variants when I could not sign a weapon out of an arms room for extra practice. So for all of my fellow officers who didn't want to wear the badges it is my opinion you were not or are now not leading by example.
As for the Army Officers who claim their primary weapon is a radio I say this: Try that argument on a USMC officer of any rank and then tell me their response. Your primary job is to lead soldiers of all ranks in combat and if you do not have above adequate skill with the organizational issued weapons be they long guns or semiautomatic hand guns you are truly not leading by example. I am a graduate of the resident CGSC Course at Fort Leavenworth and have a masters degree. I worked in both the law enforcement and heavy rail transpiration career fields for 30 years while serving in both the AC and USAR. To end with a redundant statement may not be considered high quality professional writing but I will do it anyway...wear your marksmanship badge and lead by example , if your shooting skills are embarrassing then go out and and retrain yourself on your own time and your own dime.

Officers who qualify can wear Marksmanship badges. I wear my rifle sharpshooter and a pistol expert badge when I wear my Dress Blues. I was a Marine Captain when I got my Medical Discharge in 1977 while on active duty.

The two reasons I've been given are that officers are in charge of trigger pullers AND NOT pulling triggers & also that officers are experts in everything. Given my experience with all ranks, the first reason is more feasible.