Washinton Times: "End Clinton Era Military Gun Ban"

[Bugei]

Clinton Era? I don't think so....

I was Infantry from 1974 (when Ford was President for a while) and 1978 (when Carter was President). If you lived in the barracks, as many did, especially enlisted men, the policy was simple: any weapons you owned had to be locked in the company arms room. You could check them out to go shooting if you wanted.

It was against policy to keep your personally-owned weapons (we didn't call them POWs) off base.

The result was that there were no personally-owned weapons in the company arms room. Apparently, either people didn't own them....or they kept them off base in violation of policy.

Don't think we can blame Clinton for this one.

[The Director]

I don't think we're talking about personally owned weapons. Carrying those is absurd. Doesn't the Corps issue marines their own weapon (that whole...this is my rifle, there are many others like it deal)? Where is this weapon kept when not in use? In the armory?

Someone needs to be packing heat on base and not the two MPs ten miles away at the gate, either.

[Mayhem]

Umm Ya we are talking about personally owned weapons.

If you live in the barracks they have to be kept in the armory.
If you live in base housing they need to be kept in the home under lock and key.

All personal weapons brought on base wither kept there or not, or just brought on base to target shoot or hunt, Needs to be registered with the Provost Martial. it needs to be transported unloaded in locked container.

If you are married and authorized to live off post. You could keep your personal weapons in the home.

However if you are single you can technically live off post but you still have to maintain a residence in the barracks and it is against some base policies to keep weapons off post if you live in the barracks.

However some post commanders get so anal, that as Bugei stated you can have a Post Policy that forbids you to keep personal arms off base or in your residence and requires you to keep them in the armory. I think just such a policy got challenged and the policy was dropped.

I don't see what is absurd about off duty personnel being capable of being trained and certified to CCW or LOC their personal side arms on base or even off.

Most military personnel are Issued a weapon usually a m16. That weapon is kept in the armory unless you are training or on duty in a capacity that requires a weapon (ie guard duty at the division ammo point). In most cases when a soldier has a weapon he/or she either has no ammo or has blanks unless at an actual shooting range. The issued weapon gets checked back into the armory before the soldier goes off duty. You get issued a weapons card that list which weapon is yours however soldiers specially 11B infantry soldiers can switch weapons more often then they do their underwear. The only guys that keep the same weapon are the Company/platoon sniper, the 11c (mortar maggots) the 11bc2 (platoon Anti armor specialist). 11H/11he9 (company or battalion level TOW gunners) they usually only have the m16/m4.

Now the post has several MP/SP's that are armed depending on the base thats 1 or 2 at every gate and usually 3 or 4 on patrol. You have personell who are on various guard details that may or may not be armed then you have usually a platoon or company on Reactionary stand by but this usually the same guys on devision/post guard duty. These soldiers on guard duty are rarely armed and more often then not if armed have no ammo. They are rarely allowed to carry locked and loaded. at best if fully armed they have one loaded magazine usually in their magazine pouch and an empty in their firearm.

Keep in mind I have not served in over 10 years. and I only did an 8 year.

[Untamed1972]

The only time I have seen armed Marines on guard duty other then the MPs (and more recently civilian federal LEO's) was in the the few weeks after 9/11. Other then that....there are plenty of places on that base where someone could go nuts and it would take several to many, many minutes for an armed officer to respond and end an attack.

There are Marines on foot patrol about like SOI and places like that, but they are never armed with more than a neon green vest and radio. I always figured that was more of a training thing then it was an actual security thing.

[Bugei]

I think it was Mad Ogre who suggested that they just issue you a handgun and a knife upon graduation from Basic training and charge you to carry it. Me, I'd go farther. Unless you're convicted of a felony, you should carry the knife and handgun forever. Partly because of your duty to protect society, here and abroad, but also as a badge of your status as a veteran.

Civilians should carry, and with the weapon of their choice. But if you see a guy with, say, a Kabar and a parkerized 1911, you know that guy is a veteran.

Or so things would go in Bugei-World.