everybody hates twitter

"Of course, there are exceptions to the new rule. Marines can apply for a waiver if access to a certain social network (the posting lists Twitter, Facebook or MySpace as examples) is considered mission critical"

mission critical? For real? I do not see how this is so.

Funny how we actually NEED the internet to live now.

Hm. What mission would be hindered without the use of facebook? Trying to befriend the Al Qaeda leaders? Are we tweeting locations on the battlefield?

I don't see how censoring the internet is more important than morale.

here is the reason: personnal information. People tend to describe every aspect of their lives on this, even stuff nobody cares about.

Propaganda, counter intelligence, or delivering notification for soldiers who lost their lives.

Are you listing things that can be easily, efficiently, and securely accomplished without the use of facebook or twitter?

I don't think a tween and a soldier are comparable. Unfiltered civilian internet is already available in warzones anyway.

The new Marine Corps policy makes about as much sense as the Army having a recruiting web presence on social websites, but now no one can see it on their network!

The exceptions they have in place are pretty much BS. Having been in the Marines, there are always these "exceptions" tacked on to many things that will never see the light of day. I don't even know why they bother adding them in.

"...Facebook, Twitter" or "...Facebook and Twitter"?

Are you seriously suggesting a person find out their loved one was killed from a 140-character tweet? I'm not sure how the military does it anymore, but the image of an officer driving up in a sedan and solemnly walking up to the door is a lot better than "FYI: your son is dead." As for spreading the news to friends and whatnot, that's the family's concern, not the duty of some soldier still on the battle field.

Sure, counter-intelligence and propaganda are powerful tools, but not ones used by the infantry (hence the need for special request). I also understand the need for soldiers to maintain relationships for morale, however, telling your family you're going on a raid tomorrow might have far worse consequences for you and your unit.

Face it, everyone in the military knows their only job is to take orders, if you can't handle that you shouldn't have enlisted, sorry. Now, if the government bans all Twitter access (like they did in Iran), THEN you can complain.

It was military policy not to talk to people back home about mission critical details even before the internet. They used to just have actual operators listening in on phone calls home.
I was in Iraq at the beginning of the war (03-04) and we eventually got some limited internet access. Supposedly, it was all being monitored and we weren't allowed to talk about any mission details or you'd get in trouble. There was one guy that got arrested for trying to get his wife to mail him cocaine, so I guess they were watching.
Now my sister just shipped to Iraq 2 weeks ago, and she is posting pictures and messages on facebook to keep in touch. It's a little late in the game now for the military to completely block these information leaks, but they do need a policy in place for the future.

Nope. No amount of propaganda and counter intelligence can be done without full use of internet resources today. The enemies of the US are using them to their full potential. Why the US military should leave it out?

Sun Tzu said that the military strategy is all about cunningness. When you want to attack point A instead of point B, you need to convince your enemy that you're gonna attack point B. You do whatever it takes to confuse and fool your enemy into believing that point A is diversion and point B is your objective.




If deceased soldier's will says so, then it shall be done. I'm only listing missions that can be waived, not critical to every single units in USMC.

I'm sure there is an iPhone app for that.

The ban should have been implemented ages ago.

Just because "when you were a kid you walked 5 miles uphill in the snow to school both ways," means nothing to other people today.

Don't let the politicians know about this....someone actually taking responsibility to enforce new SOP instead of grandstanding to pass a bill to ban the use of certain malicious technologies on government networks.

Please quit calling them "soldiers", they are Marines and have earned the title!
know your protectors people...

Can you imagine this? Soldier with twitter texting on his cellphone:

Warrior for Freedom: Damn its like they were expecting us or something, also I found a cool phone on one of them. (Aug 11, 4:36am)
Warrior for Freedom: I'm about to knock down this door and get some al'queda who holed up here. (Aug 11, 2:08am)

More old news...the Navy has had myspace/hotmail/facebook blocked for like 3 years now...sucked pretty bad out in the middle of the ocean...and suddenly no more my space!

All military censorship these days is aimed at whistle-blowers, they couldn't care less about anything else. They don't want people twittering stuff like:

"Massive war-crimes in progress, Blackwater contractors are involved in a massacre of unarmed civilians"

More on the people behind our privatizing of the armed services here:

http://www.uruknet.info/?p=m56654&hd=&size=1&l=e

The mission always comes first. We made due without twitting or tweetering or what ever the hell you call it for thousands of years, so I'm sure we can make due without this twit shit now. You want to boost morale, call you family back home and say hi. Get out from behind your PC and have fun in the real world. Go surf porn! I don't really care, but don't give me this bull shit that this is needed to boost morale and is in any way mission critical. Your M16, bullets, boots and water are mission critical. Freak'n cry babies. I've servered the Marines and have the tatts to prove it. I'm sick of this MySpace, Twitter, and FaceBook CRAP!

Morale is a luxury that doesn't generate profit for anyone. Censoring generates profit. The warmashine is, like any other business, there to generate profit.

Morale only applies to private entities, and these aren't taught what it is.

These social sites are a joke for a real life replacement anyways, really only alienate you from society. I understand completely why they are doing this. One, there are some that are dumb enough to share sensitive information with civilians through these sites, especially if they are under stress and maybe a holding a grudge against someone and want to find a way to cause some damage. Another is to prevent the spread of malware, viruses etc. that could end up being transmitted to sensitive networks. I really do have much respect for all those in the service. Don't give up, there are people in this country that love you whether you no it or not. Work hard and be men and women of integrity so that we can overcome any foreign threat that seeks to harm Americans.

LOL wehat can you expect from a bunch of jar heads who actually think military intelligence is intelligent ??? i eman after all these guys are the guys that to this day still deny that any thing crashed in roswell even though they built one of us largest secretet (yet un secret) facilities for that nothing that didnt happen LOL

now don't get me wrong i'm not a beleiver in teh whole alien shit , thing , but come on ther was obviously soemthign taht wnet down in roswell , more than likely it was soemthign we were testing and stil are testing.

I'm not trying to start a flame war, but again:
Just because "when you were a kid you walked 5 miles uphill in the snow to school both ways," means nothing to other people today.

You'd be surprised what information you can glean from facebook entries by service members..including what DAY they're leaving for deployment (which is supposed to be kept vague until a few days prior. .you can give a general time frame). Things you're never supposed to make public: Date you leave and return, and your assignment. these's "video game generation" kids have no concept of this, even though their instructors beat it into them in basic (I should know, my wife was an instructor in basic for the Air Force). People will post crap like "going on a patrol tomorrow." and other garbage which you know the opposing side can and will be watching. you report on it to your friends and family after it's happened when you won't get your buddies KIA because of your stupidity and need to blab. And the marine is right... Mission critical is what you have on hand. there are ways to communicate with loved ones..called email, OLD FASHIONED LETTERS and PACKAGES which are like gold overseas (even more so than email), and the ability to phone home, or Skype home.

Read! I never talked about when I was a kid or what unrelated thing I did way back when. I said I served the Marine Corps, so that means I am speaking directly from experience. And I still work for them, but now as a civilian.