3 ms·

Actually SEAL's are Special Operations, US Army has the Special Forces designation. They are completely different in the context of the military.

jacobolus 10y ago
Wikipedia: Special forces and special operations forces are military units trained to conduct special operations.[1][2][3] NATO defines special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, trained, and equipped forces, manned with selected personnel, using unconventional tactics, techniques, and modes of employment".[4][1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_special_forces_units#United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_special_force... > They are completely different From what I can tell “special operations” and “special forces” mean the same thing, as far as lay definitions of the generic terms are concerned. Here’s what Collins Dictionary says: “special forces: élite, highly trained military forces, specially selected to work on difficult missions”
- overcast 10y ago
  I'm just telling you how the military designates the branches.
  - rhizome 10y ago
    Sure, and it's useful as far as it goes (I didn't know precisely), but this isn't the military.
- mr_overalls 10y ago
  overcast is correct. "Special Forces", in the context of US military units, refers specifically to the Army's Green Berets. "Special Operations" is an umbrella term describing the high-trained, unconventional soldiers who serve in all branches of our military. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Forces_(United_States_Army) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Forces_(United_States_...
bryondowd 10y ago
To be fair, that appears to be directed to a layman audience, possibly including non-US. In a general context like that, lower case 'special forces' can be assumed to be the generic term for the many international groups with a wide variety of official designations that fit similar loose criteria. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces

jacobolus 10y ago

Wikipedia: Special forces and special operations forces are military units trained to conduct special operations.[1][2][3] NATO defines special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, trained, and equipped forces, manned with selected personnel, using unconventional tactics, techniques, and modes of employment".[4][1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_special_forces_units#United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_special_force... > They are completely different From what I can tell “special operations” and “special forces” mean the same thing, as far as lay definitions of the generic terms are concerned. Here’s what Collins Dictionary says: “special forces: élite, highly trained military forces, specially selected to work on difficult missions”

overcast 10y ago
I'm just telling you how the military designates the branches.
- rhizome 10y ago
  Sure, and it's useful as far as it goes (I didn't know precisely), but this isn't the military.
mr_overalls 10y ago
overcast is correct. "Special Forces", in the context of US military units, refers specifically to the Army's Green Berets. "Special Operations" is an umbrella term describing the high-trained, unconventional soldiers who serve in all branches of our military. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Forces_(United_States_Army) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Forces_(United_States_...

bryondowd 10y ago

To be fair, that appears to be directed to a layman audience, possibly including non-US. In a general context like that, lower case 'special forces' can be assumed to be the generic term for the many international groups with a wide variety of official designations that fit similar loose criteria. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_forces