: Marine ranking is indeed different from the Navy though. And the Marines have
: evolved far from the part of the Navy that can fight to a full branch.
: they are more like the army that can fight.
: But seriously the army is more resreved to defend then invade. He Navy is
: formed to protect and fight in the seas. It is unlikly that a space force
: will be under navy controll and not ther own uniqe branch if not the air
: force.
What we're dealing with is a future military force that consists of a fleet desighned for combat in space, and a mobile fighting force trained for combat on land and possibly in space (On space ships, of course). These have also been created by a single world government resulting from the congregation of many nations and militaries which may or may not honor the same ranking systems of the US.
At our present military level which for all intents and purposes does not extend beyond our atmosphere, such a fighting force would mean recognizing an whole new dimension which would trancend our own planet based armies, navies, and airforces. It is obvious that the dynamics of piloting a space ship would be very far removed from those used to pilot ships in the Navy or fly jets in the Airforce. Nevertheless, the comparison can still be made between a sea-going battle ship like the Bismark and a space ship like the Pillar of Autumn, therefore it is not unreasonable to call a fleet of such ships, or the military branch in control of them a Navy. Likewise a force of men relying on said "Navy" to undertake interplanitary groundwarfare might be considered Marines. Furthermore the Ship based fighter craft could also have been compared to what we call an Airforce, although there is no AIr in space.
So, in conclusion the military fighting force or forces we see in Halo would probably have been born from a combination of multiple branches and, subsiquently, systems of rank. Any military guys out there feel free to rag on me if I screwed anything up in this little faux Essay of mine as I am comeing from a place of nearly complete ignorance concerning military affairs.
Drive your cart and plow over the bones of the dead.
Wejam the Carter
