Every Marine a Phaserman: Enabling the Strategic Corporal

Abstract

This vignette is a sequel to the scenario presented in General Charles C. Krulak's 1999 article, "Strategic Corporal: Leadership in the Three Block War." Updated to 2025, Operation ABSOLUTE AGILITY 2 represents a possible future. Central to the Marine Corps' concept of future war, as he has been for over 231 years, is the individual Marine- arguably the most important "weapon system" on the battlefield. The expectations placed on the individual Marine, defined for this paper as the infantry Marine, will continue to increase as will the individual Marine's influence on the tactical, operational, and strategic situation. This idea animated General Krulak's concept of the "Strategic Corporal" but the Marine Corps has yet to provide the individual Marine the tools to fully enable him to meet the demands of future war. In the case of Operation ABSOLUTE AGILITY 2, the tools available to the Marine squad enable the mindset that will engender success in the variety of conflicts they will likely face. Central among these tools is a directed energy personal weapon with both lethal and nonlethal capabilities, the idea of which has long captivated the imaginations of the general population and warfighters alike. A hand-held and universally effective directed energy weapon with a range at least comparable to traditional small arms that can be easily transitioned between a non-lethal and lethal capability is the "Holy Grail" for those who work in the development of non-lethal weapons, according to Colonel David Karcher, former director of the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. Yet while directed energy weapons have the potential to fully enable the strategic corporal, two hurdles must be overcome before these weapons can be fully realized: public acceptance and institutional acceptance.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2007
Accession Number
ADA505405

Entities

People

  • James R. Fullwood Jr.

Organizations

  • Marine Corps University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Active Denial System
  • Department Of Defense
  • Directed Energy Weapons
  • Electromagnetic Radiation
  • Electromagnetic Spectra
  • Employment
  • Incapacitating Agents
  • Internal Combustion Engines
  • Lessons Learned
  • Marine Corps
  • National Security
  • Nonlethal Weapons
  • Security
  • United States
  • Warfare
  • Weapon Systems
  • Weapons Effects

Readers

  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Military Science and Technology Research and Modernization.

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy