Marine Littoral Regiment? Naw bro! More like a repeat of Marine Defense Battalions of WW2!

 

You think Marine Littoral Regiments are something new?  Naw bro!  They're a blast from the past.  It's just a rebranded Marine Defense Battalion with modern toys.  Check this out via Wikipedia...

Marine Defense Battalions were United States Marine Corps battalions charged with coastal and air defense of advanced naval bases during World War II. They maintained large anti-ship guns, anti-aircraft guns, searchlights, and small arms to repel landing forces.

Sounds pretty damn familiar to what we're seeing with the Marine Littoral Regiments don't it?

But wait!

These Marine Defense Battalions were obviously successful right?  I mean they had to be since we're trying out a new version right?  Well...uh...no.

Defense of Wake Island

Main article: Battle of Wake Island

In January 1941, the United States Navy constructed a military base on Wake Island. On 19 August, the first permanent military garrison, understrength elements of the 1st Marine Defense Battalion,[2] totaling 450 officers and men,[3] were stationed on the island, under Major James P.S. Devereux. The defense battalion was supplemented by Marine Corps fighter squadron VMF-211, consisting of 12 F4F-3 Wildcat fighters, commanded by Major Paul A. Putnam. Also present on the island were 68 U.S. Navy personnel and about 1,221 civilian workers for the Morrison-Knudsen Civil Engineering Company. Forty-five Chamorro men were employed by Pan American Airways at the company's facilities in Wake Island, one of the stops on the Pan Am Clipper trans-Pacific air service initiated in 1935.

Early on the morning of 11 December, the garrison, with the support of the four remaining Wildcats, repelled the first Japanese landing attempt by the South Seas Force, which included the light cruisers Yubari, Tenryū, and Tatsuta; the destroyers Yayoi, Mutsuki, Kisaragi, Hayate, Oite, and Asanagi; Patrol Boat No. 32 and Patrol Boat No. 33 (two Momi-class destroyers converted to patrol boats), and two troop transport ships containing 450 Special Naval Landing Force troops.

The U.S. Marines fired at the invasion fleet with their six 5-inch (127 mm) coast-defense guns. Major Devereux ordered the gunners to hold their fire until the enemy moved within range of the coastal defenses. "Battery L", on Peale islet, succeeded in sinking Hayate at a distance of 4,000 yd (3,700 m) with at least two direct hits to her magazines, causing her to explode and sink within two minutes, in full view of the defenders on shore. Yubari's superstructure was hit 11 times. The four Wildcats also succeeded in sinking the destroyer Kisaragi by dropping a bomb on her stern where the depth charges were stored. Both Japanese destroyers were lost with nearly all hands (there was only one survivor, from Hayate), with Hayate becoming the first Japanese surface warship to be sunk in the war. The Japanese force withdrew without landing. This was the first Japanese setback of the war against the Americans. After the initial raid was fought off the siege continued and frequent Japanese air attacks on the Wake garrison continued, without resupply for the Americans.

The second Japanese invasion force came on 23 December, composed mostly of the ships from the first attempt with the major reinforcements of the carriers Hiryū and Sōryū, plus 1,500 Japanese marines. The landings began at 02:35; after a preliminary bombardment, PB 32 and PB 33 were beached and burnt in their attempts to land the invasion force. After a full night and morning of fighting, the Wake garrison surrendered to the Japanese by mid-afternoon.

The U.S. Marines lost 49 killed and two MIA during the entire 15-day siege, while three U.S. Navy personnel and at least 70 U.S. civilians were killed, including 10 Chamorros, and 12 civilians wounded. Japanese losses were recorded at around 820 killed, with around 333 more wounded, in addition to the two destroyers that were lost in the first invasion attempt with nearly all hands (168 from Hayate and 157 from Kisaragi, 325 in total for the two Mutsuki-class destroyers) on the first assault. At least 28 land-based and carrier aircraft were also either shot down or damaged. The Japanese captured all men remaining on the island, the majority of whom were civilian contractors.[4] A special military decoration, the Wake Island Device, affixed to either the Navy Expeditionary Medal or the Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal, was created to honor those who had fought in the defense of the island.

Check out Wikipedia and dig into it on your own.

We're putting our Marines within weapons engagement zone of the enemy?  Having them LIVE THERE and trying to buy into the fantasy that they won't be found, fixed and destroyed?

That we believe the Chinese won't tag and track every LAW that hits the water?  That they haven't penetrated "allies" in the area with spies?

Berger wants US TO BELIEVE that this fantasy is real?  That we won't see a repeat of history?

This new Marine Corps (I prefer Marine Littoral Force...how about Marine Stand-In-Force) is being setup to die ugly.

The king has no clothes and no one is willing to say so.