The infamous E4 mafia. Were you in it? - Page 2

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - The infamous E4 mafia. Were you in it? (Page 2 of 2)

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:33:44 PM EDT

[#1]

Along with shamming , knowing how to “acquire” things is second nature to an E-4

Supply sergeant won’t give you any of his precious cleaning supplies ? Just wait till his three hour lunch and we’ll, sometimes locks just unlock themselves .

Battalion supply won’t give you the pain to repaint the company tanks ? Pffft , Top knows who to send on a midnight requisition run .

Your platoon have a few missing tools before the big inspection ? No worries , just .....”fall asleep” in your tank till everyone’s gone and the guards are in place . Wake up and say , exit tank , acquire needed tools elsewhere , tell guards look mfers I didn’t get to be an E-4 without knowing how to sleep anywhere anytime . Of course croot privates look at you with bug eyes since you scared the ever loving shit out of them already being inside the fence

Next day , voila , all your platoon tanks have everything they need and each guy now owes you .

Scrounging was an art form , hell our Top showed up one day with a 5 ton truck full of brand new mini fridges .

We were told we had exactly 30 seconds to make that truck empty

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:36:45 PM EDT

[#2]

Proudly wore the sham shield, some great years.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:42:28 PM EDT

[#3]

There's no such thing.

And youze should stop askin' about it. Capisce?

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:43:31 PM EDT

[#4]

Quote History

Quoted:
Reminds me of that saying.

"How do you make E4 in Korea? Go there as an E5."

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There was a PFC who was accused of being a PX Ranger on Camp Casey, IIRC he was Delta Company 1/503. Ranger ghost scroll combat patch, mustard stain jump wings, tab etc. turns out he found out how to be demoted to E3 from E6. Apparently his CO fell down a few times in his presence….

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:44:15 PM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
I am working on a bottle of 12 year Glen Grant Single Malt (it was on sale) and thinking about some of the stupid shit I did while I was in the E4 mafia.

A few things I clearly recall doing.

Rode the floor buffer enough times to qualify for a badge
Drive both my squad leader and platoon sergeant crazy
Placed a "free candy" sign on the military bus I was driving one day

Who else was in the mafia?

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First rule about the E4 mafia, never talk about the E4 mafia.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:50:54 PM EDT

[#6]

Former member from the Cold War checking in

Full Bird Private, I'd never heard that.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:51:20 PM EDT

[#7]

Absolutely. Best rank ever!

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:54:45 PM EDT

[#8]

It was good training for when I became a Warrant Officer!!!

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:55:52 PM EDT

[#9]

Yes, of course I was. And because Navy nukes automatically get E4 when graduating A school, we all thought we were bad ass.

The most mafia thing we did was, when standing quarterdeck watch at the Nuclear Power School in Orlando Florida, we discovered a DSN phonebook. In said phonebook we discovered that it listed the individual barracks DSN numbers up at Great Lakes. We discovered that we could call said number from our DSN phone, a recruit would sound off when answering the phone. We discovered that we could make an entire division of recruits get out of bed in the middle of the night and make them do pushups and other such things by yelling at them through the phone.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:55:56 PM EDT

[#10]

I was using MRP recruits in boot camp, as a boot myself, to smuggle candy bars into the barracks at night (for $10 each) for about 8 of the 13 weeks I was at the depot.

You can only imagine the swindler type nonsense I did as an E4.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:57:47 PM EDT

[#11]

Was promoted to Specialist in 1984 in Korea on the DMZ in 2/17 artillery the North Koreans kept us to busy to sham and we in was in my first fire fight on patrol shortly there after. I was in an E5 slot most of my time and Corporal most of it.

So no technically I was not in the E4 mafia.

Posted: 12/26/2021 8:58:05 PM EDT

[#12]

Yep, they just handed me Specialist one day.

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:01:37 PM EDT

[#13]

E4P

Left as an E2.

Don’t ask.

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:06:17 PM EDT

[#14]

Got off active duty in 1994 as a Spec 4. Joined the National Guard immediately thereafter and I held my rank until 2006. It was awesome. I’d welcome new privates to the unit and watched them make squad leader and platoon sergeant. I wore my sham shield with unbridled pride. Only reason I got myself promoted was because we deployed to Iraq and they made me a team leader because of my time in grade. If it wasn’t for that I’d be an E-4 fo’ life!

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:06:31 PM EDT

[#15]

Quote History

Quoted:
It was good training for when I became a Warrant Officer!!!

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I know, right?

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:08:43 PM EDT

[#16]

Aviation Machinist's Mate 3rd Class.

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:08:56 PM EDT

[#17]

The most mafia thing I did was have a bunch of privates blow off some Major needing help loading rail car.

I had to take a fireteam of cherrys to the motor pool to load our shit on a rail car and we were expected to stay around and help others. Others were various leg support units.
I said fuck this we are going back to the barracks and were walking next to a handful of guys in the same predicament, but were from a different Company.

Some Major standing by a rail car saw us walking towards him and his shit but slightly off to the side. He had that look in his face like he was going to ask help. Kinda hopeful even.

As soon as he faces us an his lips parted just before his words came out I yelled "run" and we booked it the fuck back to the barracks. The other element from Alpha Company ended up helping the fuckers load the rail car for an hour lol.

The noobs were like "can you do that"? I said you can do anything if you don't get caught. Have to teach em early

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:10:55 PM EDT

[#18]

Quote History

Quoted:
Nope, However I was in the LPA. (Lieutenant Protection Agency.)

I have since quit the O grade rat race and become what every E4 wishes he was… a W2.

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Warrant....def a permanent light duty chit

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:14:41 PM EDT

[#19]

E-4. ABH3 - was CAPPED on an aircraft carrier as ships company. Toot toot.

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:17:37 PM EDT

[#20]

Posted: 12/26/2021 9:18:15 PM EDT

[#21]

Quote History

Quoted:
Why yes, yes I was...

It occurs to me that I sort of am again in my current position (LEO). I'm not a supervisor, but I'm the second most senior patrol guy in the Dept. Many parallels between me in the Army and me now...

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Yea, there were a few perks, BS detail they want to pull you in on and no OT with it. Yea Lt. I’m not doing that. I decided I am taking a personal day that day.

A couple of those and they got the idea to ask me if I wanted on the detail or not. If not I could be a roving patrol covering my regular post and maybe cover whatever adjoining post was picked clean of man power.

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:10:41 PM EDT

[#22]

Back in the early 70s, in my Division, there was no "E4 mafia"; E4 and below were just EMs. Some got over and some didn't. I did, and still did my job.

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:13:52 PM EDT

[#23]

Checking in.

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:16:48 PM EDT

[#24]

Quote History

Quoted:
That's a legitimate NCO in the Marines, but I was definitely one of the Lance Criminals when I was E3.

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It is not the same as a SP4 in the Army.

An Army SP4 is a creature all unto its own, they are the dumbest, yet smartest people you will ever encounter, if you can find them.

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:43:03 PM EDT

[#25]

I thought it was called the Angry Major’s Club..

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:44:31 PM EDT

[#26]

Present.

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:45:17 PM EDT

[#27]

Quote History

Quoted:

Its basically the highest rank you see before you become an NCO. So you aren't in charge, but you are usually the next highest ranking person in your team. The privates get stuck with the shitty details while you get left alone. That also allows the E4's to just get away with more stuff that would get people in trouble.. because they aren't being babysat 24 hours a day.

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Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
For a never been there guy, what's so weird about E4?

Its basically the highest rank you see before you become an NCO. So you aren't in charge, but you are usually the next highest ranking person in your team. The privates get stuck with the shitty details while you get left alone. That also allows the E4's to just get away with more stuff that would get people in trouble.. because they aren't being babysat 24 hours a day.

In the USMC an E-4 is the rank of Corporal. A Corporal is an NCO (non-commissioned officer). I saw many work their asses off for four years to get that rank with no line for Sgt. If they reenlisted. Sometimes depression sets in and some yahoo is going to pay!

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:49:46 PM EDT

[#28]

Quote History

Quoted:
I was in the E4 mafia but I did stupider shit as an O1.

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Same but DUMBER as a W4!

ETA my ears really aren't that big. WTF?

Posted: 12/26/2021 10:58:18 PM EDT

[#29]

An some "Old Fucks" wore SP5. SP6 and SP7. Full Bird Privates in my day.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:00:11 PM EDT

[#30]

E-4 Mafia reporting.

- I wrote my own transfer orders, along with a MFR for the COL's signature. Submitted to the company commander, who wrote an Endorsement of the COL's MFR. Mind you the COL had not seen this document yet.
When I submitted it for signature, the Colonel rewrote the MFR I authored, because the company commander's endorsement used "stronger, more urgent" language than what I had written. I was on a plane 2 days later.

- A Chaplain Officer I worked with wanted a transfer to someplace else. The Commander kept denying his request, stating there were no available billets and that he would have to stay in his position. So I called a friend in the 25th ID asking if there were still battalions with no Chaplain. Answer was yes, why. So I explained the circumstances, put them in touch with each other, and a few days later the Chaplain was requested by name from the Commander in WestCom. He and his family transferred out almost immediately.

- A few other miscellaneous stunts, but those were my big ones.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:02:18 PM EDT

[#31]

Quote History

Quoted:
An some "Old Fucks" wore SP5. SP6 and SP7. Full Bird Privates in my day.

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Mess hall run by a SP7. Several SP6 and SP5 in my unit, including my squad leader SP5.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:12:52 PM EDT

[#32]

I had certain skills.

I “acquired” many things in my time.

I disappeared.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:18:06 PM EDT

[#33]

Quote History

Quoted:
An some "Old Fucks" wore SP5. SP6 and SP7. Full Bird Privates in my day.

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Most of the ones I saw in training battalions were black and cocky as hell.
Thank God for the Marine Liaison Officer.

This shit has been going on for a lot longer than a lot of people think.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:27:07 PM EDT

[#34]

Quote History

Quoted:

In the USMC an E-4 is the rank of Corporal. A Corporal is an NCO (non-commissioned officer). I saw many work their asses off for four years to get that rank with no line for Sgt. If they reenlisted. Sometimes depression sets in and some yahoo is going to pay!

View Quote

Made it in 15 months, when I was still 18yo.

I was a baby-faced made man. You went home and got your shine box or I would ride a buffer over your ass.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:44:52 PM EDT

[#35]

Quote History

Quoted:

I had certain skills.

I "acquired" many things in my time.

I disappeared.

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LOL. Same.

My last squad before I got out had an E-6 SL and the rest of us were E-4s. It was total mayhem most of the time, but when shit needed to be found, disappeared, or a critical mission achieved, we were the first squad the PL, PSG, 1SG or CO called.

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:48:14 PM EDT

[#36]

Tap

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:49:04 PM EDT

[#37]

Quote History

Quoted:

The goddamn Army is not the Fucking United States Marine Corps!!

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Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:

In the USMC an E-4 is the rank of Corporal. A Corporal is an NCO (non-commissioned officer). I saw many work their asses off for four years to get that rank with no line for Sgt. If they reenlisted. Sometimes depression sets in and some yahoo is going to pay!

Made it in 15 months, when I was still 18yo.

I was a baby-faced made man. You went home and got your shine box or I would ride a buffer over your ass.

https://i.imgur.com/MmlqVAS.jpg

The goddamn Army is not the Fucking United States Marine Corps!!

Posted: 12/26/2021 11:49:35 PM EDT

[#38]

Got my NAVSTA GTMO boating license while a member of the mafia, spent the first week of a deployment there getting drunk and fishing while waiting on our helicopter with a Chief who wanted one last trip before retirement. Raised hell from one end of the base to the other when our boat was making port calls with the other flight mech on the crew. Ended up pinning on E5 50ft from communist Cuba at the NE gate during the last week of that deployment, it was a good trip.

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