What the hell are the merchant marines?
 

Does anyone know who they are?

What the heck do they do?

How are they different from the Navy and the Marines?

-Rudey

The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy is in Kings Point, NY.
http://www.usmma.edu/about/history.htm
http://www.usmma.edu/about/default.htm

Merchant Marines were/are basically crew members of commercial ships that worked risking life & limb to fend off pirates or enemies of their home nation and deliver supplies.
Trained like a National Guard or Army Reserve- Merchant Marines get called up during war.

Most famous action of trained & untrained UK Merchant Marines would probably be the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940.


eta: did a google search, here ya go: http://www.usmm.org/

Why don't commercial ships protect their own goods? If Exxon is shipping oil, the US government protects it?

-Rudey

From the limited knowledge I have from a friend who is a merchant marine, they are more like engineer-saliors. He served on navy ships, keeping their sanitary and water systems running.

Other than that, I really have no idea.

Here yah go:

What is the Merchant Marine?
The Merchant Marine is the fleet of ships which carries imports and exports during peacetime and becomes a naval auxiliary during wartime to deliver troops and war materiel. According to the Merchant Marine Act of 1936: "It is necessary for the national defense... that the United States shall have a merchant marine of the best equipped and most suitable types of vessels sufficient to carry the greater portion of its commerce and serve as a naval or military auxiliary in time of war or national emergency..." During World War II the fleet was in effect nationalized, that is, the U.S. Government controlled the cargo and the destinations, contracted with private companies to operate the ships, put guns and Navy personnel (Armed Guard) on board. The Government trained the men to operate the ships and assist in manning the guns through the U.S. Maritime Service.


Taken from the US Merchant Marine website:
http://www.usmm.org/

There's an old saying in the Navy, "steer well clear of a merchie, lest he make your day by ramming you!" :D