Aha! It's A Good Sign.

In 2001, then Army Cheif of Staff Dennis Shinseiki (sp?) instituted a change to Army Uniform Policy that removed the black beret from the Ranger units and gave it to the entire Armywide force. His flawed rationale was that it would instill in the army a sense of esprit d'corp, borrowed from the beret's association with the Rangers. The black beret was to be his 'Legacy'.

Now it seems that soldiers, seasoned by war and emboldened by their real-world missions, are speaking their mind on the subject...

Stars and Stripes|by Ashley Rowland

SEOUL — They’re hot, sweaty and do nothing to keep the sun out of your eyes during a long formation.

Those are just a few of the reasons the Army should stop making soldiers wear wool berets outdoors, a group of delegates said Friday at the 8th Army’s annual Army Family Action Plan conference.

"Everyone is affected by the beret," said Sgt. Brad Stuckey, spokesman for a group that studied family-support issues. "This is an issue that your average soldier feels very strongly about."

The group recommended that soldiers be required to wear lighter, cotton-nylon blend patrol caps instead. They block the sun, absorb sweat and are somewhat water resistant, Stuckey said.

Soldiers had a list of complaints about the black beret. Among them:

*It doesn’t match the Army Combat Uniform, which has no black in its pattern.

*It has to be shaved, washed and dried on a lampshade or hat stand to hold its shape.

*It can cost nearly twice as much as a patrol cap, and there’s no standard way to wear it.

"You have seven people wearing it seven different ways," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jon Butler.

He said people have complained about the beret since it became part of the uniform in 2001.

"It’s been brought up a lot, but it’s consistently shot down," he said. "If it’s an issue enough to keep being brought up, then there’s definitely something behind it."

8th Army commander Lt. Gen. Joseph Fil said at the end of the conference that all of the ideas presented were good ones.

"We’re going to have to think about the one on the beret," he said. "That’s a hard sell."

Yeah, I suppose it is a hard sell, general; the army senior leadership corporate managers don't give a rat's ass what the troops say about their gear if it affects the darling sentiment of a former general-in-command and severs him from his 'Legacy'. I'm laughing and it feels really good!