I’ve been getting quite a few questions lately regarding the intent for our putting this site together and how it benefits the Marine Corps or other viewers. Even though this site is operated completely independently of the Marine Corps, Marines and soldiers heading into harms way as they prepare to deploy will always be my target audience. I also include our nation’s police officers in this group. Any reference to “Marines” here is meant to apply to anyone in that audience, but here are a few reasons why this site exists:
1. Profiling provides Marines an incredible capability.
Whether our enemy is an insurgent in Afghanistan or a drug dealer on the streets here at home, the “protectors” of our society need to have access to every advantage available to them. Not letting the enemy hide from us and use our laws and rules of engagement against us will remove one more layer of protection that he exploits in his criminal pursuits.
As Sherlock Holmes said “It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.” This site hopes to teach Marines the little subtle clues that are all around us that will provide us the information that we need to make well-informed decisions in our lives.
2. There are limitations and restrictions on training in our profession.
Even though we have been doing this our entire lives, it still takes practice to become proficient at the art of profiling. In order for an action to become a habit, it takes endless and countless repetitions. Early on in the process of learning any new skill, it takes conscious thought and effort to remember to practice. Over time and through repetition, as the file folder for the new skill grows, it becomes easier to complete that task and will ultimately require less mental energy and concentration.
Layers of bureaucracy and rules plague the military and law enforcement communities, which often times results in training becoming a watered down version of what was originally envisioned. In order to conduct training in a realistic setting, risk management issues need to be addressed, often causing the concept of training to be outright denied by less involved decision makers. This is the nature of the beast for the profession that we have chosen.
A main reason this site was created is to provide a forum for Marines who want to become better and provide easy access to video training and information located in the blog posts. The hope is that the site will help get them past that first time period of initial exposure to the new skill, where they may simply forget to apply their training. Through the repetition of watching videos on this site, students will be more likely to make observations in a real life setting and develop their skills.
3. Behavioral Analysis has been restricted from civilian instruction for a long time.
There were a number of years as the Combat Hunter Program grew in reputation that access to instructional material and instructor development was very limited to Marine Instructors. While there are plenty of reasons why contracting is a logical solution to the problems of personnel turnover and shifting budgets that the military faces, there needs to be a balance between the residency of civilian expertise located in the training units and the facilitation of that material to those wearing a uniform.
Civilian contractors and programs will come and go, but if there is not a wealth of information available to Marines, there is a concern that the material will eventually die on the vine. Marines take care of each other and should never be in a position where they become completely reliable on an outside agency for instruction.
4. In an age where people are inwardly focused on the technology in their hands, those with a greater understanding of human behavior are bound to succeed.
I have an iPhone and I absolutely love it. With the exception of a short period of time where I became a traitor and changed to a BlackBerry, I have been an Apple zealot since the original iPhone was released. I couldn’t live without it and it is easy for any person in today’s society to become overwhelmed by the speed and accessibility that current technology provides us. Technology however, will continue to change and there are always the limitations that technology inherently has, like the battery life on your phone running out in the middle of a Facebook status update.
The one thing that will never change though, are people. People will always be around us. Understanding human behavior and opening a window into what a person is feeling or predicting what they might do will never be a worthless skill. We teach our children to read, write and speak, focusing solely on the verbal channel of communication, but no where is time spent teaching Americans how to read non-verbal communication. This site again (repetition), seeks to help spread information and educate those who seek it.