What will the role of the 75th Ranger Regiment be going forward?

[mclarke]

I am a soon to be college graduate looking to enlist with an Option 40 contract within the next year. In the news, there is a conclusion that we as a military will be exiting the Middle East in the immediate future. I am enlisting because, being young and motivated, my hope would be to graduate RASP and have the chance to deploy overseas to fight. I have heard two conflicting arguments. One being that the Regiment will not be deploying very often after Afghanistan is exited, and the other being that the Regiment will continue to be deployed to deal with the other various hot spot issues around the world. What will the role of the 75th Ranger Regiment be going forward?

I hope I phrased this correctly as I am looking for the best opportunity to serve on the front lines in the future.

Thanks for your considerations.

 

[Marauder06]

I think both statements could be true. If we pull everyone out of Afghanistan, which to me seems somewhat unlikely right now, there will naturally be fewer deployments for everyone, including the Rangers.

At the same time, I think the Rangers proved themselves time and again both before and during the GWOT, and they have earned the respect of SOCOM, JSOC, and senior military and civilian leadership. Additionally, given the number of high-ranking decision-makers who spent time in, or working with, Rangers, I don't think the Regiment needs to worry about getting sidelined in any future conflicts.

 

[Brill]

@Marauder06 , as always, I concur with your assessment. The MI BN adds an incredible capability.

 

[AWP]

At the end of the day, their future is whatever the country needs and that's out of the hands of most in the unit. "You pays your money and you takes your chances."

With that said, Marauder is spot on, they've proven themselves capable of a lot and possess capabilities that allow them to do a lot. Better capabilities equals more opportunities.

 

[Marauder06]

I remember when 9/11 happened and I was stuck in Korea when we invaded Afghanistan. I "knew" that war would be over before I had a chance to get in it.

Then, I was apoplectic when we were all "Bombs Over Baghdad" and I was watching from a treadmill during CASSS at Ft. Leavenworth. I "knew" I was going to be the only kid on my block without a combat patch.

Fast forward 7 deployments and 3 combat patches later, we're still at war in both countries. Plus Syria, Philippines, various places in Africa, and God knows where else.

The bottom line is, America is a warlike nation. We fight lots of people... like, all the time. My advice to my cadets was always "get into the most elite unit you can, as soon as you can, and stay there for as long as you can." I was never a Ranger, but that's a pretty elite unit. It's hard to go wrong with choosing the Regiment if you want to "do stuff" in the Army.

 

[Brill]

It's hard to go wrong with choosing the Regiment if you want to "do stuff" in the Army.

Imagine being a MI soldier in the Regiment: they do their MOS job AND Ranger shit! If I were 30 years younger, I’d go to RASP in a heartbeat but I’m settling for showing up as an fat old civvie but enabling nevertheless.

 

[GOTWA]

I have the utmost respect for anyone in regiment. The guys I interact with are a cut above; polite, professional, and understanding. Whenever America needs something killed, destroyed, or obliterated, they'll send batt.

War isn't going away anytime soon. We've been at it for 19 years now, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's just getting started. There's a lot of bad shit in the world and it's only a matter of time before a sovereign nation gets froggy.

And @lindy is just being humble. I don't think he's fat at all.

 

[Brian1/75]

I could see your regular line platoons getting fairly sidelined. There's other elements that might get some work in as things get less kinetic.