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And To This Cause We Dedicate Our Very Lives
My heroes don’t wear capes or spin webs. They have both a single origin story and a million individual ones. There is no mega-media company to pay billions of dollars to claim their name because it is not for sale. They do not believe in prequels or sequels or having a separate “universe” apart from the real world.
They answer to names like “Jar Head,” “Leatherneck” and “Devil Dog.” The only colors they see are Mother Green, Desert Tan, Dress Blue and Scarlet and Gold.
They bear the unbearable. They live for me, die for me and call me “Sir” when I do not deserve such respect. And they do that for every American, even though the number of those in uniform today would barely fill the city of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
This Sunday, November 10, is the 244th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. To my son, and all of his brothers and sisters active, retired and in reserve, “Oorah!” and thank you.
Published in Military
To my brother, a Marine veteran of Desert Storm, and all his compatriots, I echo your thanks and appreciation.
And here’s to Chesty Puller and all the men who stood up under fire when he stood up first.
OOH-RAH.
Whenever I think of the Marines, I think of Dan Daly. A WWI recruit, on hearing that Daly was going to be his sergeant, supposedly said “You mean he’s real? I thought that the Marines just made him up, like Paul Bunyan.” Daly was already a legend with two Medals of Honor when he shouted to his men at Belleau Wood “Come on, your sons of bitches! Do you want to live forever?”
@percival, you just made me tear up a little bit, there. Bastard.
If you want the multimedia version of this post… and as a bonus the boy is in the last shot.
And here’s to the memory of my great uncle, who was also at Belleau Wood.
I wish I could have been at Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Pelelieu, Guadalcanal, etc.
What I have learned is that the Marine Corps does a really good job of making Marines, even in our age of political correctness and the farce of allowing women into jobs they shouldn’t have.
When I was in Iraq, we were in very active combat. My battalion had 50 killed (one didn’t die until just a few years ago, but the Department of the Navy ruled that his death was a combat death nonetheless) and more than a hundred sent home wounded. Despite the fact that IED’s were ubiquitous, we had innumerable fire fights, and you never knew when you’d be fighting or getting mortared or rocketed, I never once saw a single Marine shirk his duty. Whenever it came time to mount up and head out, our Marines did it without any hesitation.
One time, the day before Mother’s Day in 2005, the enemy had a very large and complex ambush set up. They had occupied the hospital in Haditha and had set up machine guns on tripods with T&E mechanisms. It wasn’t a bunch of hooligans, these guys knew what they were doing. So many people had already been killed and it looked bad, and the Quick Reaction Force already committed and no other unit was available. The Operations Officer made a call for a new force to be constituted. They grabbed anyone they could find, mostly headquarters guys. Not a single one blanched. They geared up, stormed down to that hospital and assaulted through it, driving out or killing all the enemy. Marines don’t readily give out awards, but one guy got a Navy Cross, and I think two others got Silver Stars that day.
We still make them the same as ever. I like to think that my battalion would have done well on Iwo Jima. I wish I could have been there. I think we have, and I hope we have, maintained a continuous heritage that our nation should be very proud of.
Happy 244th to my Marine friends!
This is inspiring, Skyler. We realize that you have told only a sliver of your story, but you have told it well.
What you and your battalion did was of great worth. My salute is worth nothing at all, but I give it anyway because it subtracts nothing from your honor, and I feel compelled to give it.
Thanks @ejhill. To my son (reserve), husband (retired), and all US Marines – thank you for keeping watch.
Wow!
No. Yours is worth more. Mine just has more personal details.
Ha!!! You are a truly generous friend! not just a generous patriot. If I have the chance to do for you and your comrades what you did for me, I hope I will return the favor.
More likely, I will just have to remember these kindly thoughts if you write something on Ricochet that ticks me off in the future. If I don’t, everyone please remind me and I will redact myself.
For my youngest son,currently stationed at MCRD in San Diego, the men and women in his unit, and Marines on post allover God’s green earth, Happy Birthday and Semper Fidelis.
My son just finished up a three year posting on recruiting duty. My observation from hearing his stories is that not surprisingly Marines are just people too. They have their share of shortcomings and petty jealousies. They aren’t afraid to invoke a soldiers inalienable right to bitch. But I have no doubt that when the devil comes knocking the Marines will be the first to put all that away and run towards the sound of gunfire.
About a year ago: