when you think about it sleep deprivation, physical stress and constant indoctrination are classic cult "brainwashing" tools. hmm United States Marine Cult hehe.

when you think about it sleep deprivation, physical stress and constant indoctrination are classic cult "brainwashing" tools. hmm United States Marine Cult hehe.

That's what I have heard.

As a former Drill Instructor, I would say NO! Yes, you are given what we called "The Wake up", But not really brain washing. Remember, Drill Instructors have a very short time to take young men from every walk of life, turn them into a platoon that functions as one, and make them Basic Marines.I wish the people who point fingers at the Corps could see how parents and friends respond on graduation day! Brain washing...NO WAY!  Turning boys into men that America can depend on YES! I served in Vietnam with the infantry on 3 tours. Did Sea Duty, Embassy Duty and Drill Instructor Duty. I'm proud of all that I did, But will never forget the pride of being a D.I. and shaking the hands of recruits parents and hearing them say Thanks for all you have done for my son . I know mny female conterparts on the Island feel the exact same way.

RE: you get 8 hours of sleep, it's the law, etc...

 

That is a half-truth at best.  On the training cards you have a block of time set aside for sleep.  However, you may have guard/firewatch duty (2 hours) a few times a week.  Then there is the "free time".  When I went through in 1988 (San Diego), the DIs insisted on the first two hours after light-outs everyone stay in the rack.  After those two hours, the squadbay came to life each night as almost everyone was woken up by the firewatch (by request) to get to work on their own stuff.  Stuff like ironing cammies, sewing up holes, shining boots, studying or tutoring for "prac" tests, writing letters, having time for a "sit down" in the head (aka "shit call"), or practicing COD.  We had distances marked out in tape on the tile, and the guide and squad leaders would work on their COD - step distance, pivots, obliques, etc...It was the only personal time we had during boot camp.  You could easily burn through two or three hours each night doing this stuff.

 

Perhaps a lot has changed since '88, but I *really* doubt every recruit gets a solid 8 hours of sleep every night in boot camp.  That's damn soft of them if they do.

 

Of course ironing and polishing are no longer required are they?  That frees up a lot of time right there I guess.

 

As for brainwashing - you betcha.  And that's not a bad thing.  I don't say that with any negative connotations.  I actually wrote about it at the time - I would love to see a psychologist's review of USMC boot camp.  I think its a pretty sharp setup for really tearing down civilians and building Marines.  You come out ready to rip the bad guys' heads off and kick some ass.  It changes guys, and for the better.  Recruiters see it, DIs see it, and the families especially see it. 

 

Whatever you want to call it, I hope it never changes.

 

 

 

I think that many people think that marines are brainwashed somewhere along the line is that they keep saying things like "First to Fight", "The Army always runs away", "The Navy are slugs" etc.  This must be taught or ingrained somewhere along the line.

 

snakehays

"I think that many people think that marines are brainwashed somewhere along the line is that they keep saying things like "First to Fight", "The Army always runs away", "The Navy are slugs" etc.  This must be taught or ingrained somewhere along the line."

 

 

Well, now, those things are just historical truths, not brain washing.  You can't fault a man for telling it like it is, can you?   :)   Just kidding.

 

Consider that the military is a business about life and death struggles - there is a lot on the line, so there is a lot of pride as well.  You don't need to be brainwashed to feel proud of being a part of a 230+ years legacy.  There are always blowhards - just look at the sad little civilian men that get emotionally entangled with sports teams and even college ball teams.  Some of the trash talk there is just pathetic - about a game - compared to what servicemembers say about each other and their respective professional abilities.