LtCol Douglas G “Lucky” Luccio, USMC was recently published in The Marine Corps Gazette. His article titled The Godfather Doctrine - SFA (security force assistance) trainingan
offer the Marine Corps can't refuse is attached.
Summary of the article: The Marine Corps, like many institutions, has a rich history. Part of that history includes military advising to include the Philippines (1890s), the Banana Wars (early 1900s), WWII, Korea and Vietnam. POST-9/11 the DOD has had to adapt to skill sets that are not considered core capabilities in waging a counterinsurgency fight. The opportunity to train and deploy military advisors was approached by the Marine Corps as if it was a new idea, something that had never been done before. Training was impromptu and often inadequate when the first Marine Corps advisors were sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. Several years later the kinks were worked out, and lessons learned in blood were adapted to ensure the best training for Marine advisors. The conclusion follows a similar parallel to Viet Nam era Marine Corps advising. Comparing lessons learned from Viet Nam to current conflict, there is a realization that this knowledge on how to train the next generation of Marine Corps advisors. Specifically, there needs to be a Don of Military advising. Just like Don Corleone (Godfather trilogy) led his family and ensured a legacy for the future of his enterprise, the Marine Corps should equally look at who is groomed for combat advising roles and under what environment. We need not relearn from scratch. The Marine Corps needs to codify its doctrine on military advising and ensure the next war has a running start with this often misunderstood endeavor.
Full Article: Marine Corps Gazette October 2017