On 6/2/15 8:18 PM, Oren wrote:
"Never accuse a Soldier of being a Marine"

Blame LBJ for the confusion. HST said he hated Marines because they were
so cocky. He wanted to get rid of them all. LBJ was his protege. As soon
as JFK was out of the way, he ordered the Marines to dress like the Army.

Marines had worn sage-green herringbone-twill dungarees since 1942. LBJ
switched them to the OG-107. Seven buttons to close the shirt? The
dungaree shirt had only 3 and wasn't tucked in. The dungarees had no
pocket flaps. The OG-107 had button-down flaps on the shirt and pants.
Four more things to worry about at inspection.

The dungarees were wash-and-wear because that weave resisted wrinkling.
The OG-107 wrinkled like crazy, especially when the coin washers and
dryers at Pendleton were set to stay hot until they shut off.

I wasn't going to spend half my pay on laundry bills to fall out in a
starched Army suit each morning when it would look like hell anyway
after an hour of exercise. I'd appear in a rumpled suit, just as it
came from the dryer. I must have stood out a mile away, but I was never
criticized. I guess the captain disliked the Army suit, too. He wore
dungarees.

The dungarees were loose and comfortable. The OG-107 fit tight. Tight
pants are good for two things: riding horses and showing girls one's
anatomy in high school. There were no horses or girls in my platoon.

Twill gives, but tight sateen cotton restricts movement, especially when
it's sweaty. In winter, tight cotton is cold. Below E5, we weren't
allowed to wear long johns. I was on my second winter at Pendleton, out
in the wind, when I got fed up.

I started buying my pants 4" too big. They flapped in the breeze, but
they were warm, and I could move as easily as Fred Astaire. After two
weeks, my platoon's fashion expert made up his mind: "They look tough!"
The next day, he was dressed likewise. In another week, the whole
platoon stood with our britches flapping in the breeze, like zouaves.

The next evening, our names were called one by one with surprise orders
to be on the next plane to Vietnam. I was thrilled to learn I'd be
issued baggy pants and shirts that didn't have to be tucked in.