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What makes Navy Intel so highly regarded?

MIDNJAC

is clara ship
pilot
I've been very impressed by USAF and USMC intel, but that could also be just luck of the draw as those folks covered a pretty small sample size.
 
I think his point that Navy Intel his highly regarded is reasonable; The public sees CDR James Bond, Michael from CW's Nikita, Magnum PI, Montel Williams* (Crypto I think, but usually referred to as "Intel"), the guy who wrote "How to Catch a Russian Spy", plus the WWII code-breaking victories mentioned, PLUS DCO Intel seems pretty darn competitive to get into.

Personally, my 3 or 4 data points with Navy Intel folks left me with the impression that actual Navy Intel was not what those folks thought it would be, but I do think there's some momentum in glamorizing Navy Intel in the public's eye as well.

*I'm not saying people do or do not say "I want to be like Montel Williams", but rather that his naval career seems to be referred to with an aura of mystery and respect.
 

azguy

Well-Known Member
None
Personally, my 3 or 4 data points with Navy Intel folks left me with the impression that actual Navy Intel was not what those folks thought it would be, but I do think there's some momentum in glamorizing Navy Intel in the public's eye as well.

Yep, as one of our resident intel guys has said, "it's more Janes than James Bond."
 

rotorhead1871

UH-1N.....NAS Agana, Guam....circa 1975
pilot
Personal bias aside (!), it seems that within the intel community, Naval intelligence is accorded the highest regard within the US military. Obviously, exceptions will exist among individual leaders, sailors, etc. But on aggregate, it seems to be held in very high esteem. I was speaking with a friend the other day who mentioned that her Army recruiter had told her to go Navy if she wanted to do intel.

This made me curious as to what factors have shaped this perception within the intel community. Is it the selection process, the assignments, the history...? Curious to hear from those who've been in the community a while.



land, sea ,and air, underwater.....and space!!.....the NAVY has its feelers EVERYWHERE!! the other services are specialists in their own AOR's.....only the NAVY sees it ALL.
 

MIDNJAC

is clara ship
pilot
land, sea ,and air, underwater.....and space!!.....the NAVY has its feelers EVERYWHERE!! the other services are specialists in their own AOR's.....only the NAVY sees it ALL.

I think things may have changed since your time in the service. I've never seen anything particularly unusual, or even "special" about Naval Intelligence compared to the other services, and the title of this thread itself is laughable.
 

Hair Warrior

Well-Known Member
Contributor
to be a nuke , I think you just have to like fission.
127429456066613076600501197_HaveaPlan.jpg
 

rotorhead1871

UH-1N.....NAS Agana, Guam....circa 1975
pilot
I think things may have changed since your time in the service. I've never seen anything particularly unusual, or even "special" about Naval Intelligence compared to the other services, and the title of this thread itself is laughable.

maybe a little.....back then only the russians were the bad guys...now the bad guys are everywhere....I had a few intel guys in my reserve unit and they were nice but "spooky" lots of facts on internal operations of almost all societies on earth,. very involved stuff. of course they came from sub base Bangor where they keep the boomers, so they were paranoid to start with. NAVAIR is pretty insulated from the real worlds of surface and subsurface....
 

nittany03

Recovering NFO. Herder of Programmers.
pilot
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
Intel types are intel types. Their usefulness or uselessness has everything to do with the person wearing the uniform (or the civvies), and nothing to do with the uniform itself. Each service's intel component, and the IC's civilians, have brilliance and Big Bang Theory-esque clueless nerdery in equal measure. All else is high school and undergrad wannabes' wanking. Get a commission somewhere in the IC, and earn your credibility from the green-suiters you support. In the words of the Red Baron, "all else is rubbish."
 

azguy

Well-Known Member
None
Intel types are intel types. Their usefulness or uselessness has everything to do with the person wearing the uniform (or the civvies), and nothing to do with the uniform itself. Each service's intel component, and the IC's civilians, have brilliance and Big Bang Theory-esque clueless nerdery in equal measure. All else is high school and undergrad wannabes' wanking. Get a commission somewhere in the IC, and earn your credibility from the green-suiters you support. In the words of the Red Baron, "all else is rubbish."

This is a good post. I mostly agree with you. The problem with Intel (and RL in general) is they seem much less able to police themselves, mostly because they live in 1 of 1 jobs most of their career; also because they generally lack a community identity and try to meld into whatever career field they are assigned to at the time.

Would IntelOs be better off if they served their first 6 years in commands with loads of other IntelOs? Of course. But they are support...and it wouldn't make sense to structure the Navy around them.
 
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