Posted on Dec 11, 2019
SSG Squad Leader
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Seriously I wanna know. Mainly from you senior leadership and your mentality when it comes to this specific headgear, or even as to why it's frowned upon in the field when it's clearly authorized to be worn in the field.

Also if you are just going to bash me or make smart ass remarks because I'm asking this question, then don't even leave a comment. Thanks
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LTC Charles "Pappy" Patchin
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It is supposed to be a hat for the field. It is not shaped.
EVERYBODY GET UNIFORM. (said no 1SG/CSM, ever)
My guess is too much time on their hands and a cap, which in it's own creation represents "conduct to the prejudice of good order and discipline" just makes all the stripes apoplectic.
And, of course, soldiers make the best of it by using the boonie cap as a form of "up yours".
I'm waiting for someone to invent the camouflage reflective belt.
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SPC Scott Currens
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I often wondered that myself. Especially after they gave the Black Beret to everyone that enlisted and made it through Basic Training, and instead of teaching them how to properly wear, shape and care for it. When I was in you earned the right to wear the beret, regardless of color of the beret you earned it. Funny thing to back then most that earned the beret were also allowed to wear the boonie hat in the field. Oddly enough the soldiers that earned the beret knew how to wear and care for it and also wore the boonie appropriately.
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MSG Loren Tomblin
MSG Loren Tomblin
5 y
When I was in the Infantry in Viet Nam and expected to have a combat engagement we wore helmets. When they assigned me to the field to gather intelligence with mercs I wore my boonie hat. Very practical at the time.
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LTC Patrick Mulloney
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Yes, that is true. I was a commander my whole 30 year career. I realized early on that soldiers are their own worst enemy. Just about everything you try to do for them or give them they always end up constantly breaking it or changing it against rules and regs. Ex. We were deployed and stationed in an area where beer was served, each soldier was given three beer tokens a day for that day only. At Monday morning formation I told my soldiers I was allowing them to partake but that they would lose this privilege once it was abused. By Thursday an E-4 was found drunk. Turns out others had given him their unused tokens for that day.
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SSG David Kaelin
SSG David Kaelin
>1 y
So, you punished everyone?
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SGT Gregory Yelland
SGT Gregory Yelland
5 y
Well done LTC; You kept your word - proving your trustworthiness to your troops, and you encouraged proper teamwork (protecting each other from any individual's "lapse of good judgement"
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SGT Water Treatment Specialist
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We was allowed to wear them down range. ( just got back) I agree with a few of the comments already.
SM’s do not wear them correctly. It gets frustrating correcting the same SM’s multiple times. Yes it is just easier not to allow it.
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SPC Richard Rauenhorst
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I now wear one every time I plan on being outside for more than 5 min. In my 70's I know need to protect my skin. especially the top of my head and ears. I wish I had been issued one for Vietnam and for Fort Hood Texas. I never even saw one.
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CPT Special Forces Officer
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I have always suspected that it is the difficulty associated with making everything look uniform. I too have found this to be counterproductive from a healthcare perspective. Skin cancer is no joke and many people whose principal ancestors were from Northern Europe, have discovered real challenges in regions subjected to high intensity UV radiation.
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SMSgt Lawrence McCarter
SMSgt Lawrence McCarter
>1 y
True, and I found also in My Air Force career within Security Police when We switched to berets I thought it was an impractical, didn't shade You eyes as a hat with a visor did and you were tan where the beret didn't cover and pale where it did.
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PO3 Wayne Ballard
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In the Army? It's demonized in the coast guard too, the uniform manual clearly states that you can wear it when you expect to be out in the sun for a while (heavily paraphrased,) but every E5 and up has a different interpretation that doesn't allow you to wear it at the time they see you wearing it. It's insane how hard people will fight against something as silly as some fabric that goes on your head, but that's the military for you. :/
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SPC Lyle Montgomery
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I agree with you completly. We had bush hats, as we called them in Nam. We wore our steel pots when we were in the bush but had bush hats for when sleeping at night to keep the damn mosquitos out of our hair and on standdown. Some guys wore them under our helmet liners and steel pots. They were easy to wash and wring out in any stream and we went through many. They kept the hot sun off of our necks. I probably should have worn that type of hat in the years since, then I might not be dealing with minor carsonoma now. The upper eschelon think that they have all the answers but they don't.
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CPT Tommy Curtis
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We only wore them on certain missions, and in my opinion they are are a field only headgear.
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1px xxx
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You see...the army loves to do really dumb things and that has become part of our culture. I’m shocked we aren’t still wearing fro point hats. Take the beret for example...good for NOTHING. It’s literally one of the few hats you can wear that provided no shade AND makes you hotter. The bookie hat SHOULD be the default and the PC an alternate.
1px xxx
Suspended Profile
>1 y
*tri point

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