Stuart Schelle Biography – Wiki
Stuart Scheller is a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel who was relieved of his post after sharing a video on Facebook criticizing military leaders for their handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“I cannot respond to the overwhelming response,” Scheller wrote on his Facebook page after firing him. You can see the video of him later in this article. It went viral and generated an avalanche of support on social media as the country reels from the deaths of 13 Marines and service members in Kabul (you can view tributes to fallen service members here).
According to his Facebook page, Scheller “studied Military Science at Marine Corps University” and “studied Accounting at UC Lindner College of Business.” He went to Anderson High School and lives in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
In early August, he wrote on Facebook: “For every school teacher who told me that violence was never the answer … I wish you were teaching in Afghanistan right now to see the depth of your wrong worldview.”
According to his biography, “Lieutenant Colonel Stuart P. Scheller graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a BA in accounting. He started the Officer Candidate School in January 2005. After completing the Officer Candidate School, the Basic School, and the Infantry Officer Course, he entered the 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Corps in December 2005 ”.
“After registering with the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines and assuming the position of platoon commander, Lt. Col. Scheller carried out a deployment with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit. He participated in the non-combatant evacuation of US citizens out of Beirut during the 2006 Israeli / Lebanese conflict. Then, the following year, he was assigned the position of CEO of Alpha Company and sent to Ramadi, Iraq. It is noteworthy that during that time the infantry companies moved into a four-platoon infantry construction, so Lt. Col. Scheller, in addition to his company executive officer duties, was also the fire support leader, and also served in this capacity during a Mojave Viper and Ramadi. deployment.”
The biography adds: “In 2008, Lieutenant Colonel Scheller entered the East Infantry School, Infantry Training Battalion. He spent six months as the OIC Weapons Instructors group, and a year and a half as the Echo Company Commander. ”
He continues, “In 2010, Lt. Colón Scheller sought an Individual Augmentation deployment to Afghanistan. He was the Counter-IED team leader for the JIEDDO organization. He spent a year in Paktika and Ghazni provinces while supporting the Army’s 101st Infantry Brigade. He was the infantry subject matter expert for EOD and Route Clearance Platoon operations. From July 2011 to June 2012, Lt. Col. Scheller attended the resident Expeditionary Warfare School. After the Expeditionary Warfare School, Lt. Col. Scheller increased the Officer Candidate School as a platoon commander for a 10-week class. ”
The biography continues,
In September 2012 LtCol Scheller checked into 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines and served as the Company Commander for Headquarters and Service Company. During this Company Command tour, he completed the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit deployment. Following the deployment, in November 2013, LtCol Scheller assumed the duty as Weapons Company Commander. During his Weapons Company Command tour, he completed an Infantry Training Exercise and a Unit Deployment East.
In August 2015, LtCol Scheller checked into The Basic School. During his three-year tour, he served in many capacities, including Operations Officer, Company Commander, and Warfighting Director.
In July 2018, LtCol Scheller attended resident Command and Staff College where he earned a Masters in Military Science.
In July 2019, LtCol Scheller checked into Marine Special Forces Command and assumed the duties as the Executive Officer of the 2nd Support Battalion. Of note, the Battalion Commander spent the majority of the tour deployed on a Special Operations Task Force, allowing LtCol Scheller the opportunity to lead the battalion stateside.
In June 2020 LtCol Scheller checked into the 6th Marine Regiment and assumed the duties as Operations Officer. During this time the Regiment supported four battalions and completed a Service Level Training Exercise.
In June 2021 LtCol Scheller checked into the School of Infantry East, Advanced Infantry Training Battalion, as the commanding officer.
Age
Stuart Scheller’s age is unknown.
Video Criticizing Military Leaders on Afghanistan Goes Viral
“Facebook has stopped allowing me to accept friend requests. But I’ll offer you one more thought … Last night when I posted the video, several Marines immediately called me and asked me to remove the post. “We all agree with you, Stu, but nothing will change and it will cost you enormously.”
He added: “Obviously I didn’t remove it. Now that I’ve had time to process … I’ll offer you this … we can’t ALL be wrong. If everyone agrees … then step forward. They only have the power because we allow it. What if we all demanded accountability? “Then he shared this quote:” Every generation needs a revolution “✊🏻🇺🇸 Thomas Jefferson”.
In the video, Scheller rebuked the military leadership.
“I’m not saying we have to be in Afghanistan forever, but I’m saying: Did any of you throw your range on the table and say ‘hey, it’s a bad idea to evacuate Bagram Airfield, a strategic airbase, before we evacuate to everyone, ‘” he said in the video.
“Did someone do that? And when you didn’t think of doing that, did someone raise their hand and say ‘we totally screwed it up.’
Scheller Told Military Leaders, ‘I Demand Accountability
Scheller began his video with the caption: “To American leadership. Very respectfully, USA. ”
He began by explaining the experience to him. He served in the Marines for 17 years. He was the battalion commander with the Advanced Infantry Training Battalion at the time of the video. Scheller recorded the video of him just as news of the Kabul blast broke.
“One of those people who was killed was someone with whom he had a personal relationship,” he said. He did not go into additional details on that. I am not going to make this video because it is potentially an emotional moment. I do this because I have a growing discontent and contempt for … perceived ineptitude at the foreign policy level and I want to ask some questions specifically of some of my top leaders. ”
“I feel like I have a lot to lose,” he said, adding that he thought about “what could happen to me… if I had the courage to publish it. But I think what you believe can only be defined by what you are willing to risk. ”
“I’ve been fighting for 17 years,” Scheller said. “I’m willing to throw it all away to tell my top leaders: ‘I demand responsibility.’
He said he was “willing to risk my current battalion commander position, my retirement, the stability of my family to say some of the things I want to say.” He said that would give him “some moral authority to demand the same honesty, integrity, and responsibility from my senior leaders.”
He read a letter written by Marine Corps Commander David Berger, who wrote: “Was it worth it?”
“I’ve killed people and I’m seeking advice and it’s okay,” Scheller said. “There is a set time for that. But the reason people are so upset on social media is not that the marines on the battlefield let someone down, that service member has always risen to the occasion and has done extraordinary things, people she’s upset that their superior leaders let them down. And none of them raise their hands and accept responsibility or say, ‘We screwed it up.
He said lower-level soldiers are fired.
“We have a defense secretary [Lloyd Austin] who testified before Congress in May that the Afghan national security force could resist the Taliban advance. We have [the] joint chiefs [of the General Staff], the commander is a member of that, who is supposed to advise on military policy. We have a combatant commander from the Navy. All of these people are supposed to advise. ”
Scheller said that “I was not saying we have to be in Afghanistan forever, but I am saying, ‘Did any of you throw your range on the table and say, hey, is it a bad idea to evacuate the Bagram airfield, a strategic situation? ? airbase before we evacuate everyone? ‘Did someone do that?’ And when you didn’t think about doing that, did someone raise their hand and say, ‘We totally screwed it up?
“I have battalion commander friends right now who are posting similar things, and they say, wondering if all the lives were lost if it was in vain, all those people that we have lost in the last 20 years … Potentially, all those people they died in vain. If we don’t have high-level leaders who recognize and raise their hands and say, ‘We didn’t do well in the end,’ without that, we will keep repeating the same mistakes, “he said.
“This fusion of the economic-blunt-corporate-blunt-political-blunt-superior military ranks is not fulfilling its end of the bargain.”
Relieved for Cause Based on a Lack of Trust & Confidence
Scheller revealed that he was “relieved for good cause” on August 27, 2021, the day after he posted the video.
“To all my friends on social media,” he wrote. “I was relieved for a cause based on lack of trust and confidence at 2:30 PM today. My chain of command is doing exactly what I would do … if I were in your place. I appreciate the opportunities that the AITB command has given me. To all the news agencies that ask for interviews … I will not make any statements other than those on my social platforms until I leave the Marine Corps. ”
He continued: “America has many problems … but it is my home … it is where my three children will become men. America is still the light that shines in a midst of chaos. When my career in the Marine Corps arrives at its end, I look forward to a new beginning. His life’s purpose is to make America the most lethal and effective instrument of foreign diplomacy. While my days of hand-to-hand violence may be ending … I see a new light on the horizon. Semper “.
Mold to Make Ribbons Attach More Easily to Uniforms
On Facebook, Scheller wrote that he was “the owner and founder of The Perfect Ribbon” as well as an “infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps.”
An article Scheller shared on Military Influencer.com’s Facebook explained The Perfect Ribbon. He said Marine Corps Commander Stuart Scheller devised a product to eliminate “the hassle of uniform preparation.”
He helped create a mold that “would allow a service member to attach attachments to the tapes easily and according to regulations.” He made the cast with a military friend named Zach Rohlfing.
The invention “caught fire,” he said.
Receiving a Lot of Support on Social Media
Scheller’s video has received hundreds of comments and has been shared many times as it began to go viral on social media. “This is what happens when you tell the truth! You knew what would happen in this, but you had the courage to do the right thing and stick to our corporate values! Semper Fi, “wrote one person in his Facebook comment thread.
These are some of those comments:
“Absolutely honored and proud of you for saying what needed to be said. The cost of incompetence is permanent for these young people. ”
“You threw it on the line and if the big government takes it away. Many service members/veterans are willing to give. We support you financially and in any other way. ”
“True leaders are hard to come by, we must support them.”
“Thank you, Lord. This is the example of a leader of character that I look to.”
“Thank you for saying so eloquently what we civilians ask ourselves. Thanks for your service. I am the wife of a retired army officer and the mother of two army officers. ”
“Thank you for expressing what many of us feel. Semper Fi! I have your 6, sir!
