basically the opposite of every "high-powered" lawyer I've worked with.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209439)

The SEALs were probably cockier but stilll all cool bros Green berets were all cool, mostly very chill

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209514)

Hell yes. Like the most solid people you can think of

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209558)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Wheeler#/media/File:Joshua_Wheeler_portrait.jpg

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209531)

It angers me that we plaster the faces of useless celebrities all over the media, and men like this go largely unnoticed.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209924)

Another I only know through a friend. I think he’s in his 70’s. This guy was a LEGIT operator (Vietnam era Green Beret); who knows how many people he personally killed or assassinated. When he “retired” he basically ran a next level / off the books SERE school for the government where he and his cohorts would just fucking throw you in a van and take you off somewhere remote. I honestly thought it was all BS, but then I got to see a shit ton of old pictures the guy kept...yeah, black ops is real.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37209954)

Rangers were more gung ho/cocky, constantly making jokes, and were usually younger than the others. SF were very laid-back, very very humble, pretty serious (although they do like giving you shit/teasing a lot). The SMU guys are kind of like a blend of the above, in that they're humble and laid back, but a few still have the humor streak of the Rangers guys. All of them enjoy giving you shit, all of them had super thick skins, and all of them were analytical, esp. the SF and special missions guys. Literally all of them are/were great leaders, and very willing and able to take others under their wing/teach. The retired ones were very very competent at whatever post-mil career path they went - of the ones that didn't go to security/ops contracting, a few were lawyers, one ran a gym, two ran a weapons/tactics training group, one had a construction company, and there were a few others. Literally all of them were very focused on professional development/being very good at what they did, and they generally got pissed off at people who didn't do their job (whether in a professional setting or a casual one like church dinners, etc.).

Most of them were average height (5'10ish; one was markedly shorter) although there were a few bigger guys, and a lot of the Rangers/SF guys were leaner/skinnier than I would've expected. All of the SMU guys were fucking jacked though.

Very fun to be around, great men.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37210020)

special forces guys in iraq were cool as shit, way more mature than younger high speed types (seals, rangers, etc)

nothing really stands out physically -- they're all just white dudes in great shape

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37210058)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37210388)

Most people tend to think spec ops guys fit the mold of Arnold in Predator or Commando...massive muscle studs who can wield dual M60s. In reality they tend to be more like marathon runners/triathletes than gym rats.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37214268)

My experience:

Green Berets:

Back in 2003 I did a 3 week pre-Afghanistan training workup in the mountains with a team that was redeploying from Colombia to Afghanistan. They were all without exception big and muscular. They hardly said a word and were incredibly quiet, and exuded confidence and intensity. You would crack a joke at them and they would just stare back at you with steely cold, emotionless faces. I don't think they appreciated us tagging-along, but 10th Mountain was deploying at the same time so it had to be done.

Granted, this was a pretty high tempo training op and these guys were about to get shipped out to go to war so they may have been more serious than normal. Or they were just pissed they were going straight from one deployment to another without any leave.

Navy SEALS:

I did a training op with a bunch of green Navy SEALs. The officers were pretty lean/lanky but the enlisted were jacked and ripped. They were huge. They also liked to play up to their "Hollywood" reputation and would always be lifting in their free time or fucking around like a bunch of immature frat boys as if they owned the place (it was an Army base but we couldn't touch them).

Army Rangers (75th Regiment):

I used to see them running around Ft. Benning. Most of these guys were big, built like football players. Loud and cocky. But I met a few who had just rotated back home from Afghanistan who were involved in Roberts Ridge, and those guys were not overly bulky or huge, but still big. These guys tended to be very quiet and kept to themselves, but were also polite and sociable. I guess it's the deployment and combat that changed their demeanor.

Force Recon (I don't even know what they're called anymore):

You could tell they had a chip on their shoulder. They get the second hand missions and crap gear / crap budget. My general impression was they took themselves too seriously, trying too hard to appear "tip of the spear" and were almost obnoxiously anti-social with outsiders (elitism). When they were amongst themselves, they act like a bunch of rowdy high school kids and cause all sorts of trouble. I was not surprised when they were kicked out of Afghanistan.

Have not met any Air Force or Devgru/Delta guys, although I did see an increase in the number of intense, scary looking dudes with long hair and the beginnings of facial hair walking around base in civilians, so these guys may have been Tier-1 operators but who knows.

Keep in mind this was all at the early stages of OEF/OIF, so the whole beard thing hadn't happened and not many SOCOM dudes had significant combat experience to-date. This obviously all changed, and I'm sure a lot of those guys lost weight during multiple deployments, so maybe that explains the differences in experience.

Tell me these guys look lean:

http://thechive.com/2017/01/12/youre-not-a-navy-seal-until-you-survive-hell-week-52-hq-photos/

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2644315/You-receive-medal-Hero-Green-Beret-mocks-Gwyneth-Paltrow-comparing-celebrities-soldiers-sarcastic-letter.html

The gear is fucking heavy as hell, you can't be some skinny twink and ruck 80-100lbs of shit up a mountain (much more if you jumped in) or mandhandle an M240 with twink arms.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37214332)

I knewsome rangers when they were serving and I was in college. They were very average guys and did not enjoy the experience.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37218657)

Were pretty quiet and seemed fucked up when i would talk to them about it. They just said they wouldn't ever recommend it and pretty sure they killed a few taliban

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37218748)

Every month:

-one 3-4 day training op where you're literally running on no sleep in a simulated mission out in the middle of nowhere

-one randomly scheduled "alert" where you get the notice to be on base within 1 hour and immediately get deployed on a 1-3 day training op

-weekly (or biweekly) parachute jumps, where you have to ruck all of your gear back to base, 20 miles away

Every year:

-two or three weeklong (sometimes multiweek) training ops

-mandatory advanced training (Ranger School, Air Assault, Airborne, HALO, sniper, what have you), where a failure means you get kicked out of the Regiment

So, as you can see your year is completely packed with training ops. And these are not fun, sit in a classroom 9-5 type of training. It's sleep outside in the mud or on top of a rock while it's pouring rain in November eating cold MREs.

The average Ranger only lasts something like 6-12 months in a batallion before either burning out or getting injured out.

Of course there's the constant mindufcking that happens with all the crazy characters who love to haze the new guys. Even officers get hazed and shit out like diaraea on a regular basis.

The funniest story I heard was a timed 8 mile run, told to run as fast as they could. As the dudes would sprint to the finish crossing the 8 mile mark , the cadre would ask them why'd they stop halfway through a 16 mile run and send these guys who just spent everything back to run another 8..lol.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37229755)

they are mostly lithe af gym rats. even ra ra rangers aren't that big.

Rangers must meet the standard Army weight requirements, which vary by height and age. Only the male chart is used; as of 2012, only men could become Army Rangers. This chart ranges from 58 inches tall to 80 inches tall. According to the Army's Special Operations Command, the average height and weight of an Army Ranger are 69 inches and 174 pounds.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37231843)

And LJL at you citing weight requirements. There are waivers for everything.

https://www.fortbenningphotos.com/Tenant-Units/75th-Ranger-Regiment/2011-08-20-75th-Ranger/i-tBC86S5/

These aren't some skinny dudes. Hint: only look at the guys in the black t-shirts with the Ranger Scroll on the top left chest, the rest are support or regular Army.

Yeah, most of them are not jacked (although a lot are), but they certainly aren't some skinny lean triathlon bodies.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#37236220)

they are both probably sociopaths too, with at least two failed marriages apiece so far

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=4130261&forum_id=2#41447538)