Task Force Moves to Threaten Marine Corps SOF

While everyone is involved in the fight, it is the infantry that brings the fight up close and personal to the enemy. The Close Combat Lethality Task Force, created by former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and continued by his successors was created to ensure that we continue to be at the forefront of both equipment and tactics in the realm of close combat. We want to be ready for not just the next big fight, but the next several fights. The task force initially fell under the office of the SecDef, but now with the SecDef moving it into the Army's hands, there are fears that the Marine Corps and non-Army special operations forces could be left out of the critical loop.Many experts have weighed in on both sides. Some say the collaboration will be stifled, others say it will not. With such weathered leaders taking these drastically opposing views, it's hard to tell exactly where the chips will fall. The Marine Corps certainly is justified in its fears regarding the fielding of new and more lethal equipment. There is a good reason for that fear. Jokes about the age of Marine equipment that they've had handed down to them from the Army are commonplace even among the lowest Marine private. Everyone knows Marines get the old, worn-out, shitty gear.Will the Army take over and cut the Marine Corps and other units out? Doubtful. The future battlespace seems to be moving towards a more integrated force. That integrated force, if successful would be one that can bring the most amount of violence to the enemy in the shortest amount of time. That means Army, Marine, and various SOF forces will likely be working a lot more with each other. How would cutting those other units out of the loop, help the Army? It wouldn't, especially when those units might be the ones coming to the rescue, or the ones getting rescued. Being on the same page helps everyone.This Close Combat Lethality Task Force move has a ton of unknowns. But despite all the jokes about how our services usually make the right decision after making all the wrong ones, we really think that this move will be a wash. Neither good nor bad, just a lateral move. But as with all things, only time will tell and we've eaten plenty of crow before. As of late, the transition has yet to take place, so there is plenty of time for us "professionals" to speculate on how this will all turn out.What are your thoughts?