Opinion | Marine reservists deserve more respect

Yeah all reservists do….
It’s much easier to have Uncle Sam take care of all your needs 24/7 than to be independently responsible and still fit in service to country.

As an AD guy for my entire career, who worked with both NG folks and USAR during deployments, and also did a pre-deployment train-up for an NG unit, I can safely say there was a DEFINITE bias against them. I can also say that, for the most part, that bias was well-earned.

The level of tactical and technical competence, across the board, rank for rank, unit for unit, was just not there. Sure, certain individuals stood out, and were as good, if not better, than most of the AD troops. And yes, absolutely, those "weekend warriors" brought OTHER skills with them from their "day jobs" - which is not insignificant. But when it comes time to kick down the door, I need a guy who has practiced kicking down the door hundreds of times. Not a guy who has done it a few times and also knows how to rebuild the door after it has been kicked down.

The NG and USAR units I saw, for the most part, had the basics down. But they were not polished. They were not smooth. And they did not operate as a cohesive unit.

There was a point where I, as an MI NCO, was training NG infantrymen on MOUT for their pre-deployment prep. Yes, I was prior infantry - a decade prior. And it wasn't a case of just validating them. I legit had to back them up and explain their tactical errors, blind spots, and even things like how to pie a corner.

Don't get me wrong, these units showed up down range and without their help, all us AD folks would have burnt out even quicker. I am DAMNED thankful they were mobilized and helped out. And when they showed up, they DID get the job done. But from what I saw it took them longer to get the job done, and/or they were generally given the "easier" jobs / sectors. Which was still a hell of a lot of help - and I'm thankful for it.