E-4 Mafia: Origin of the Specialist (US Army)

Ah yes, the notorious "Full Bird" Private!

Some Specialist ranks held on longer than this video depicts. I saw SP7s as late as 1982, SP6s a bit longer, and SP5 held on till the mid-1980s or so. E.g. it didn't happen overnight. When SP7 went away, newly promoted folks would go to SFC, but converting existing SP7s seemed to take a while for some reason.

I went from SGT to SP5 after changing MOS (that was a dreary day lol). My new career field went to SSG at E6, and dontcha know they did away with SP5 a couple of months after I made SSG. There was a difference in soldier skills between these systems, but some of that was unit/assignment dependent. A comm guy on an SF team was generally a SP5 for instance - based solely on MOS.

Still, there was some value in the dual system. Folks really learned their job and became proficient at a higher technical level than was practical/possible later on. Marksmanship and maxing your APFT became more important than learning your job. The SQT test was gone too, so unless you really liked your actual job, you focused on those things that would get you promoted. Human nature. If you focused on the technical, you basically gave up promotion past SSG. I saw this well into the 2010s (as a GS at that point).

A few of us could juggle technical and tactical proficiency, but most of that group (including me) had a combat arms background. The Army kinda forces folks to choose one or the other.

In an unusual twist, I saw a familiar face in this video! Good soldier who went on to become a good senior NCO later.

When I was trying to join the army, I was given the offer of being given a specialist rank after completing basic and MOS training, because the MOS I would have been placed in was counter intelligence - everyone was either a specialist or an officer.
Unfortunately, I was medically barred from joining.

Being a Full Bird Specialist rocks You’re atop the regular Enlisted Members whereas E-5 is the most demanding NCO rank. You’re the peon bitch boy of the NCO ranks & have to supervise all or most the crappy details like CQ, Staff Duty, EPA, guard duty, etc

I was a tanker & we had weekends off but we had to have a guard detail for our tanks downrange when we trained in the field. Of course it was always either disgustingly hot or freezing cold in the field. If we were in tank gunnery at least we could stay inside the buildings or barracks downrange for some shelter versus pitching tents when out in the bush. Anyway, they were our unit’s tanks & we were responsible for guarding them. My ex-GF was a supply clerk who worked at the airfield. Units had to rotate guarding the airfield which I thought was ridiculous. No one guarded our tanks but us yet on top of all the other awful details like EPA we had to guard other unit’s vehicles which was BS. Tanks always spilled & leaked fuel, lubricants, hydraulics, etc I don’t know how many times I’ve had to dig up all the contaminated earth which we had to bring to the EPA site. Just awful. It’s great serving & a lot of fun but all the crappy details & politics ruins a lot of the fun.

Good times though. I think more people especially in these times would benefit from serving & the experience. Many today want to be a part of a group & seek meaning & purpose that’s bigger than themselves. Instead of joining groups that use you as political pawns like Antifa & BLM, young people would be better off joining the military or peace corp which will help them appreciate all that we have, humble them, & give them invaluable life skills & experiences. Our society would arguably be much better off IMAO🙂👍

I was SP4, SP5, and SP6 - when I was at Fort Riley in 1975, the up or out program came out and you had to be promoted to certain ranks within a certain amount of time or they booted you out. My next door neighbor was a SP4 Bulldozer driver in the Engineer Bn and after 10 years he had to be promoted to SGT or get thrown out. SGT required a High School Diploma or GED and he refused to get one. Also, getting promoted, his job would change from bulldozer operator to Surveyor and all he wanted to do was drive a bulldozer. I bet Junction City got the best bulldozer driver in the US for a very good price when Dennis got kicked out

E4 Mafia is POWERFUL too.

SEE NOTHING
SAY NOTHING

Praise the mafia!!!

E4 for LIFE!

In Field Artillery we had Spec's and Corporal's. You went from Spec to "hard stripe" if you were in a leadership position. Mainly saw this in Direct Support Arty not so much in General Support. I was a Spec and the Gunner at 3/3 Artillery (Hood) when I PCS'ed to Bamberg Germany to 6/10 Artillery and was put in the same position orders were put in to "promote" me to Corporal. I wasted all that money getting sew on insignia because less than a year later the cut off score for E-5 dropped and I went up to Sergeant.

I loved being a SPC. Didn't want to deal with all butt kissing you had to do being a NCO. When they sent me to the E-5 board I bombed it! They did ask me if I wanted to be there said no I told you I didn't plus knew I was getting med board.

E-4 Mafia Baby! Whhooaaaa! 😎🤙🤙

I was in the army for close to ten years and I just cannot fathom them being like "hey Joe we got this new rank for you."

It seems bizarre but I get it had to happen I guess.
E4 mafia for a very very long time.
I was once E5 for 3 days
Still hate being called sir by civilians

Yeah but what about the "mafia" aspect of the E-4 today?

I never liked the term E-4 Mafia, it might be different per career field, but at least in Air Force Comm (Which is Signal I think for Army), half of ever SrA was a buddy fucker or rat even if they were the main collaborator on some hijinx that occurred. Mafia implies keeping your mouth shut and not stepping on the other E-4's in your shop, but I did not experience any loyalty like that.

I hear that Medal of Honor Vanguard music

The rank insignia of the Specialist is ugly and is out of place in regards to the other enlisted ranks

Hello 👋.
Please guide me?
What is the job rank based on education in the US army?

I remember when Spec 5,6,7 went out. Fiscal year 85, and I remember we had an old school E-7 that HATED Spec anything!

I was a SP6 Legal NCO, at the Brigade level in the 80s. I supervised 5 subordinate SP5 Battalion Legal NCOs. I also briefed the Brigade Commander once a week, of all the legal actions and admin discharges pending within the brigade. I disliked it very much, when they converted me to a hard stripe SSG. Being a SP6 identified you as a specialist in a certain MOS. Most times it was Legal or Medical.

Why does the Army have so many SPCs? Well, the world has a lot of cigarettes, and they aren't going to smoke themselves.

I get to enter the army as an E4. I want to end as an officer

The Army should have kept the Specialist line. Not everyone is a NCO. Some are just really good at a job and deserve more responsibility and pay for doing said job

I have served with SP9's(Missile maintainers) in Germany in the early 1980's. So yes that rank was still around.

All the specialists morphed into warrant officers. They will get you in the end. There is one service which seems to enjoy fiddling with the enlisted rank structure.

I was a CPL in the Infantry and so were a few of my friends, we sat at CPL as team leaders. I think CPL should be a more utilized rank for soldiers who aspire to be leaders.

E4 Specialist, aka Full Bird Private, aka Sham Shield, aka E4 Mafia

E4 forever

The E4 Mafia doesn't exist, they all have terribly important documents to deliver to broom closets

3 times I was in the Mafia! 😝

This doesn’t work if you want to go sf

E-4 is just a full bird private, lol.

Every soldier and veteran that I have ever met has either denied that the E-4 Mafia exists, or they claim they've never heard of the E-4 Mafia. That's how tight-knit the E-4 Mafia is.

Specialist still does the jobs of a lot of NCO's....the are considered an NCO in training

Even in indonesia, the E-4 mafia exist. They're . . . Hard to order around for ordinary bullshit.

If they allow it to stay as a holding rank until a spot opens for the NCO rank equivalent so if a top performing Soldier can be promoted to a specialist position do to the slots for there nco is filled but don't what them to be time out by not promoting to aid in retaining already trained and skilled troops

9 yrs 10 months. Got out a corporal. I could have stayed an E4 forever.
Wasn't there for the money.

From my time in the Army, a Corporal was a NCO while a Spec-4 was an EM. A NCO can be Sergeant of the Guard while an EN has to stand a post. So, in the cold of winter, being an Corporal was a lot "warmer" than being an Spec-4. That was the main motivation behind the Spec-4s being angry that they were not Corporals.

There is no E4 mafia, that's a myth. Who told you about this? I want his name

First rule of E-4 Mafia is you don't speak about E-4 Mafia, carry on!

They stay Specialist because nobody wants to wipe anyone else’s A$$! In my MOS once you make Sgt they take you out of the field and you get to play babysitter from an office.

Back then could you jump from Spec to NCO? Like you're comming up on Staff Sgt and you decide you'd prefer to be a Spec-6

E4s are true backbone of the Army.

Proud Member! Was an 80s Army Spec 4. I’d continue to expand on my shamming experiences, but I have an appointment after formation.

I feel so special now. Thanks 👍

Wouldn't the warrant officer ranks be the modern specialist ranks

the e4 mafia doeas not exist. i have no idea what you are talking about

✌🏻👼🏻✌🏻

You didn’t say anything about the mafia. Lazy writing man, lazy.