Fleet Marine Life #134 – Knowledge
Whenever I would ask questions, like I’m told to do if I don’t know anything, I would often get bitched at. I would be cast aside and labeled a retard. Looking back at it, I’ve often wondered why my higher ups often avoided questions. I’ve come to believe that they just wanted to avoid answering any questions for fear of showing their lack of knowledge.
I would always get fed some bullshit like, “You should know this already,” and, “Did you go to THIS GUY? No? Then get the fuck out of my face!”
However, if they do give you an answer, and they don’t know the answer, they will lie. Google everything they say. Question everything your higher ups say. If anything sounds weird, write it down on your notepad and google it later. Knowing nothing is better than false knowledge.
How do our higher ups manage to pick up rank and know so little about their MOS? They’re the ones that kiss ass and work very close to their higher ups. They’re the ones that are usually put in the office jobs doing a lot of non-MOS related work. And then when they’re the ones who get promoted, they’re the ones that talk the talk about how they worked here and there, but in reality, they didn’t do shit.
That’s all these shitty higher ups can do. Talk about how great they are, and it’s all lies! I had a fat Sergeant tell me about how he’s a PT stud but he just so happens to have a broken leg and a beer belly. I don’t understand how one can be that delusional as to believe their own lies. And people do believe them.
Since they refuse outright to put themselves in a situation that is naturally uncomfortable due to lack of experience or ignorance, this is the Marine they become throughout their career. The “easy way out” Marine. In the end, they think the USMC is easy and stay in as ignorant SNCOS.
Getting bitched at for seeking knowledge since 1775.
So, I have never been late, I have never been in trouble, I have never talked back to an NCO or SNCO, and I am respectful. How in the FUCK have I gotten about 3.9/ 3.9 for my PROs and CONs.
I don’t want to be that ‘one’ but I am the only female in the shop and I bust my fucking ass. and somehow I have ended up with lower pros and cons than everyone else. including someone who has been NJPd and Late multiple times. what the fuck.
E, sorry I didn’t discover this site sooner. Hopefully, you’re out and doing well by now, or found someone worthy of your work ethic.
3.9 is appalling. I once flunked out of an MOS school – 2871: electronics-something-or-other. My scores for flunking were 4.0/4.6, the latter because I was a good person who didn’t get in trouble, even if I couldn’t read a circuit board. You definitely should not get 3.9. If you’re time machine is working, go back and request mast for discrimination. You’ll likely end up in an admin shop, which will suck, but what’s a time traveler to do?
If you’re the only female in the shop, then you likely work at least as hard as the better marines because you feel the pressure to prove yourself. Good leadership will love that you’re awesome, but fuck-wads will only want to promote those who stroke their egos and other things.
My wife was the only female mechanic on the KC135 in her AF Reserve unit. She was always bumped off deployments at the last minute, her promotion to E4 was intentionally delayed, and shit bag NCOs would answer her questions with some version of the comic above. One weekend she blew off all breaks to find the answer that her NCO said she should know already for a malfunctioning engine part. She found it in a very obscure Pub. It was later revealed the NCO had no idea about the part, the Pub, or anything else. He was just a paper-shuffling E6 who hadn’t turned a wrench in years.
Her final straw with the unit was 2 months before her enlistment was up. She asked if she could be activated for a year (which would include re-enlisting). They said she simply couldn’t be activated, so, to test them, she said we were getting divorced. They activated her starting the following week. The Monday after, they asked why she didn’t stay in the barracks over the weekend to which she said she went home to be with her kids [and, obviously, husband], so they said she could only be activated Monday-Friday if she went home on liberty.
These pieces of shit were willing to do extra paperwork to withhold 8-10 days pay from a troop since she wasn’t going to be around on liberty days. One month before she had to re-up, 2 kids out of boot camp showed up; they were activated for a year and put on the list to deploy the next month. She was bumped from the list to make room for them.
Needless to say, she got out. As she did, they were telling her, ‘you’ll be back, if you get out at all.’
I have experienced both ends of the spectrum on this. I had exactly the type of SNCO you mention above who knows nothing and seeks to get rid of you. But I also had a gunny who knew his shit. In fact, he encouraged questions and would take the time to answer them in front of the whole platoon. He even took the time to teach us how to use the north star for plotting directions of fire (confusing). Of course, for every one SNCO like that gunny, I saw 1000 that knew nothing and would filibuster their way out of answering.
I knew a few SNCO’s that were like that gunny. I sometimes feel bad for them because they legitimately try and care, but their own peers undermine their intentions.
To all the SNCO’s with good intentions, let’s drink to celebrate that dim light of humanity. And to the majority of SNCO’s, here’s some motor oil.