GySgt (Ret) Spencer

All, Part 2 of Operation Blue Rhino 06-16. Thanks again to CWO Hershall for his video.

All Personnel, Op Blue Rhino 06-16, Part 1. Part 2 to follow shortly. As always, watch in High Definition. Special Thanks to CW2 Hershall for his video.

Creech, Yes I'm sure I still do have that. I've been so busy this summer, I'm a little behind.

Creech, Which one would that be? I don't remember it.

Men, Video from Water Insertion Training. This was back when we were using the messed up map and the sky colors were messed up. Short training video. Watch in High Definition.

Many notable celebrities and athletes were US Marines. One of those amazing athletes was the great "Ted Williams". I suspect many of you don't know about him. Here is some information about the All Star Great, Ted Williams. Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a left fielder for the Boston Red Sox from 1939–1942 and 1946–1960. Nicknamed "The Kid", "The Splendid Splinter", "Teddy Ballgame", "The Thumper" and "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived", Williams is regarded as one of the greatest hitters in baseball history. Williams was a seventeen-time All-Star, a two-time recipient of the American League (AL) Most Valuable Player Award, a six-time AL batting champion, and a two-time Triple Crown winner. He finished his playing career with a .344 batting average, 521 home runs, and a .482 on-base percentage, the highest of all time. His batting average is the highest of any MLB player with 302 or more home runs. He was selected for the Major League Baseball All-Time Team in 1997 and the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999. Captain Williams joined the US Marines at the height of his baseball career to fight the Japanese in World War Two. He was called up again and flew jets in the Korean War. The following Lithograph is how Williams wanted to be remembered, not for his awesome baseball accomplishments, but for just being one of those US Marines!

All Personnel, Part 2 of "CQB Practice Interrupted". (Probably my worse ever performance) Watch in High Definition. Please promote the videos and our YouTube channel by subscribing, hitting "Like" on videos and posting link in other sites. Thanks Men. PS For those who were not here, this mission was conducted after an Arma update, and the map we were using was messed up. Everything, including the sky was darker than it should have been.

All, Part 1 of a previous training exercise. Part 2 coming soon. (if I can get it done before I leave for Ohio this weekend). Watch in High definition as always.

Part history, part humor, all true! A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks a French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English. He then asked, "Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?" Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, "Maybe it's because the Brit's, Canadians, Aussie's and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.

All Personnel, The exciting conclusion to Op Blue Rhino 05-16, Part 2.

All Personnel, Be advised, this operation is too long to put in one video. Hence, this is part 1, of Op Blue Rhino 05-16.

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All, Part 3 of Operation Blue Rhino 03-16. I heavily edited this as it was a long mission and didn't want to create a Part 4. As always, watch in high definition.

Just before Marcus Luttrell said this, he said, "You really only need one company of Marines. Just give them the support they need and they can push ISIS out of Iraq." He then elaborated and stated the following.

All, This is Part 2 of Operation Blue Rhino 04-16. Watch for the exciting finish of 04-16 coming in Part 3, soon.

All Personnel, Operation Blue Rhino 04-16, Part 1. There will be a shorter Part 2, and Part 3 from Wednesday night's op. Please "Like" on Youtube and promote the unit when you can. Thanks very much.

PFC Mansfield I like the fact that Marines are Marines first, regardless of age, race, creed, color, sex, national origin or how long they served or what goals they achieve in life! Let me give you one example: a young man enlists in the Navy in WWI. When the war is over, he ships over and joins the Army. He next enlisted in the Marine Corps and served from 1920-1922. There was no Air Force back then, so I guess he felt he had put all the checks in the block! When he served out his time in the Corps, he went after an education: receiving various degrees in engineering, history and political science from UCLA and Montana State University. He entered politics and served for 11 years in the House of Representatives. Next, he tackled the Senate where he served for 24 years, as both the Democratic whip and later as the Senate majority leader. He was then appointed as the ambassador to Japan where he served for 11 years. This gentleman went from snuffy to national and international prominence. Before he died, he specified his wishes for his burial, including headstone, and when he passed away in 2001, he was rightly buried in Arlington National Cemetery. If you want to visit his grave, don't look for him near the Kennedy Eternal Flame where so many politicians are laid to rest. Look for a small, common marker shared by the majority of our heroes. Look for the marker that says, "Michael J. Mansfield, PFC, U.S. Marine Corps. Official Congressional Portrait of Michael J Mansfield

All Personnel, Sorry for delay. Will start on tonight's op this week. Time commitment: 6-7 hours editing and production 14 hrs (this week) for video upload to YouTube 2+ hrs for YouTube processing Operation Blue Rhino 03-16, Raid on Objective Lucas. Mission: destruction two Russian fighter/attack aircraft at airfield.

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All, In view of the fact that we are preparing to build a MOUNT training program, I thought I'd give you a little history of early MOUNT warfare as conducted by US Marines. Few people know about this little bit of US and Marine history. October Focus Harpers Ferry. The Opening Shots of the Civil War On the morning of October 17, 1859, panic gripped Washington D.C. as word reached the Capital that John Brown of Kansas and a group of armed abolitionists seized the Federal Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, and kidnapped several prominent citizens of the town. By noon, President James Buchanan had verified the facts of the situation and took action. Troops from the Maryland and Virginia Militia were summoned to Harpers Ferry but the President wanted Federal troops to handle this situation. Accordingly, the 3rd US. Army Artillery Regiment at Fort Monroe was alerted, however it soon became clear that army troops could not arrive on the scene for two days. Instead, Marines stationed at Marine Barracks Washington were pressed into service. By 3:20 pm, a detachment of 86 marines commanded by 1st Lt. Israel Greene, U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) boarded a train bound for Harpers Ferry. Greene was assisted by Major William Russell, USMC Paymaster of the Corps, who was sent to advise the young officer. Secretary of War John Floyd had other ideas regarding the overall commander of the operation. Lt. Col. Robert E. Lee, U.S. Army, was on leave in nearby Arlington, Virginia preparing to report to the 2nd U.S. Cavalry in Texas. Orders were sent by courier to Colonel Lee. The courier was Lt. James E.B. (JEB) Stuart who was waiting to meet with the Secretary of War. Stuart offered his services to Lee as aide de camp and the two headed for the War Department. As the Marines hit the rails to danger, the situation in Harpers Ferry rapidly deteriorated. The Jefferson County Militia exchanged gunfire with Brown’s band and two failed assaults on the engine house resulted in heavy casualties. The abolitionists killed Fontaine Beckham, the Mayor of Harpers Ferry, and the militia captured and killed William Thompson, one of Brown’s men. The Marine detachment arrived at the Sandy Hook station near Harpers Ferry by 9:30 pm. Later in the evening they were joined by Colonel Lee and Lt. Stuart. By dawn on October 18th 1859, Lee, Stuart, and Greene approached the arsenal and the compound was surrounded by Maryland and Virginia Militia. Believing this to be a state matter, Lee offered both the Maryland and Virginia Militia the honor of storming the engine house where a dozen of Brown's men and hostages were. Both commanders declined and Colonel Lee turned to Lt. Greene and his Marines. Lt. JEB Stuart was sent to make a surrender demand to John Brown. If it was rejected, he was to wave his hat as a signal. A force of 12 Marines with sledgehammers would be sent to make an entry into the engine house. Stuart made his demand and John Brown made counter demands over the yelling and screaming of the hostages. The young cavalry officer lost patience with the situation and waved his hat. Two large Marines with sledgehammers tried in vain to open the heavy doors to the engine house. Greene saw a large ladder lying near by and ordered 5 Marines on each side of the ladder to ram the door. The door opened on the second attempt and Lt. Greene and Major Russell leaped through the breach followed by Marines with bayonets. The inside of the engine house was covered in smoke. Lewis Washington, grand nephew of George Washington, assisted Greene in locating John Brown who was preparing to fire a rifle. Lt. Greene struck Brown on the back of his neck with his sword and then thrust it into Brown’s side. The abolitionist would have died on the spot if Greene had been wearing a regulation sword, however in his haste, Israel Greene had brought his light dress sword which was not as deadly. Two of Brown’s men, Jeremiah Anderson and Dauphin Thompson, fell beneath Marine bayonets. Marine Pvt. Luke Quinn made the ultimate sacrifice while Pvt. Mathew Ruppert received a gunshot wound to the face. The entire conflict took less than three minutes. Israel Greene and his Marines assisted Colonel Lee in searching for more of Brown’s men in the surrounding countryside. The Marine detachment was back in its barracks on the morning of October 20th. Lt. Colonel Robert E. Lee wrote a letter to Marine Commandant Harris praising the action of the Marines at Harpers Ferry. Painting showing US Marines immediately after retaking the arsenal at Harpers Ferry. Grave of Pvt Luke Quinn, USMC, the only Marine fatality of the arsenal assault at Harpers Ferry. Pvt Quinn was buried in a local cemetery. The grave is maintained by Marines from the local Marine Corps League Chapter. (Marines never forget their own!)

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All, Courtesy of SSgt Stone. Operation Blue Rhino 01-16 As always, watch in high definition and in Youtube, please click "Like". Thanks.

All, Video from Operation Blue Rhino, 02-16. The color stinks apparently due to 1.60 in my opinion, but the performance of MSOT 8410 was superb. As always, watch in high definition.