The Marine Corps is rolling out a new rifle — and a whole lot of other gear

This issue has been discussed by a few tactical operators on a few gun blogs - whether it is the rifle or the 5.56mm cartridge that needs replacing. In my view, it is the cartridge. When we went to Vietnam, it was not a long-range war and in combat units M14 7.62mm NATO rifles were swapped out for 5.56mm M16A1's (for the Marines, this happened in 1967-68). Although the round lacked range and penetration, a soldier/Marine could carry a LOT of ammo. And M60 7.62mm MGs were available for that if necessary. After that war, when training emphasis switched back to the European/Middle East theater, I thought the requirements of a long-range war might cause the Army/Marine Corps to switch back to the M14, but no, we've stayed with the 5.56mm cartridge for 50 years, even though Iraq and Afghanistan were definitely long-range wars that necessitated limited recall of M14 rifle variants. Again, I think the cartridge needs to be replaced. I believe that a swap for a larger, 500 yard cartridge is necessary to face the kind of wars that may be on the horizon. But we should probably keep the 5.56mm weapons in grease for another limited jungle war, just in case. As an example, AR-10 rifles in 7.62mm NATO are available today - they would require a minimum of retraining for today's soldier or Marine, and they are capble of being fitted with all the optical wonder sights and lights available today. Since less rounds could be carried, troops would just have to be trained to take aimed shots instead of "spray and pray."

The Marines have always made the most of the least. Imagine how well they might perform if all were equipped with the best.

Great rifle!