Monday, August 15, 2005
The Marines
Subject: Why Marines are Different!
Those Goddamn Marines... By Lt. Col. David W. Szelowski USMCR (ret.) May
5, 2003 01:02 PM
I wonder how many times during Operation Iraqi Freedom that the phrase
"goddamn Marines" was uttered? Even in the best of times, Army and Air
Force officers have been heard muttering some epithet about Marines,
invoking either heaven or hell. Interestingly enough, we Marines find it
all rather reassuring and, at times, amusing.
Most of the time, Marines do not go out of our way to be obnoxious; we
are just doing what Marines have done for over 200 years. A good example
is the fact that Marines always raise the American flag over mountains
or cities they have conquered. From Mt. Suribachi to the City of Hue, to
Kuwait City to Baghdad, U.S. Marines have raised the Stars and
Stripes-in the latter examples, much to the chagrin of higher
headquarters. You don't get these kinds of problems with the Army. So
what is it about the U.S. Marines that they stick U.S. flags on
everything and do more with less, a less that is either old or an army
hand-me-down? We call it Esprit de Corps, but it goes deeper than that.
We learn and maintain myths of the past, which also means living up to
those historical examples. Marine Corps boot camp is the longest of the
services; it is where we mold young men and women into the mythical
image called a Marine. You can be in the Army, you can join the Air
Force, but you become a Marine. All of the other uniformed services have
songs; the U.S. Marines have a hymn. The basic pattern of Marine Corps
uniforms comes from the late nineteenth century; our emblem "the Eagle,
Globe and Anchor" has remained largely unchanged since 1868. The buttons
on our dress blues, whites and greens date back to the founding of our
Corps. The Marine Corps is the only service that requires its officers
to carry a sword, whose pattern dates back to 1805.
I think that the path of being a Marine was established long ago. On the
10th of November 1775, the Marine Corps was first established...in a
tavern. To this day, no matter where in the world, Marines celebrate the
founding of our beloved Corps, much to the confusion of the other
services.
A few years ago, a congresswoman from Colorado felt that the Marine
Corps was radical and extreme. She contended that the Marine Corps was
not politically correct, nor did we seem to be part of the Department of
Defense's transition to a "kinder and gentler" military. She was
correct, and the Marine Corps took it as a compliment.
But the proof is in the doing, and during Iraqi Freedom the Marines
demonstrated what Marines can do. I watched with some amusement as a
reporter asked a young lance corporal about being in Iraq and under
rifle fire. "Love it, sir!" was his response. The reporter was taken
aback and asked, "No, really." The Marine then tried to explain that
this is what he was trained to do, he looked forward to doing it and was
now happy to be doing it. No doubt in boot camp he was told that he was
"a minister of death praying for war" Contrast that with the poor U.S.
Army Apache pilots who said that if they had to take life, they would do
so reluctantly. You are either a warrior or you are not.
Marines are mission oriented. Live or die, the most important thing to a
Marine is accomplishing the mission. Whether taking the bridge, river or
town, accomplishing the mission is the Holy Grail of being a Marine. How
the mission is accomplished is not so important, as it is expected of
all Marines to accomplish the mission with the tools available. This is
probably why we heard that Marines in one engagement were fighting with
knives and bayonets. This was hardly high tech, but it was effective.
These Marines now have bragging rights, for they have proven that they
talk-the-talk and walk-the-walk. I doubt there is a single Marine who is
not envious.
Marines are practical, as well. I enjoyed hearing two reporters
interviewing each other, one embedded with the Army, the other with the
Marines. The reporter with the Army noted that the sandstorm had blown
down many of the soldiers' cots. The other reporter countered that the
Marines did not have this problem because they slept on the ground. The
Marine learns to live with what he can carry on his back. He expects to
be moved around on the battlefield via his two black Cadillacs (boots).
If he is lucky and gets a ride on an amtrack, so much the better-but it
is not expected. At the end of a mission, the priority for cleaning is
weapon, then equipment, and finally, body. When the other services talk
about "quality of life," they are referring to housing, clubs and food.
Marines are talking about better weapons, equipment and training,
winning the battle and coming home alive is considered "quality of
life."
All of this translates into combat power. In comparison to the U.S.
Army's 3rd Infantry Division, the Marines of I Marine Expeditionary
Force were lightly equipped. Yet, they battled through the heart of
Iraq, fought to the center of Baghdad and then moved off to Tikrit,
taking that city as well. The press was so enamored with the Marines
that in the final days of the war they even credited the Marines with
deeds actually accomplished by the Army. Little wonder we heard "Goddamn
Marines!" so often. So we need to give the Marines some slack when they
do something politically incorrect, such as raising the flag or
appearing insensitive when killing the enemy. In the field, they look
sloppy compared to the Army, but are aggressive in the attack and
generally unhappy in the defense. Marines take pride in their work, even
if that work is war. We are just Marines and that is what we do.
Lt. Col. David W. Szelowski USMCR (ret.)
3 Comments:
By 
TigerHawk, at
Mon Aug 15, 09:54:00 AM:
I certainly hope that the Marines celebrate their 230th anniversary this fall by opening up a can o' wupass in the Sunni triangle. A massive November 10 offensive would be symmetrical payback for all the "anniversary" bombings so beloved by al Qaeda.
By Cardinalpark, at
Mon Aug 15, 10:39:00 AM:
I think the asswuppin' has been well underway now for several weeks in that happy place. And it started right after the election when we went into Fallujah and cleaned house.
I think there is this periodic MSM groundswell which breaks out which is a little like Chicken Little whining that the sky is falling. It's a joke.
Last time I picked up a history book (or played Risk or Stratego), when the other country's tyrant is locked up and his heirs are riddled with bullets, and the government has been elected under your auspices, it means YOU WON. Anybody who says otherwise is pure left-partisan or pacifist (they might be something else too but let's be nice and give them credit for a philosophy at least)....because they feel like THEY LOST and they're projecting. They obviously forgot where they live. Or don't care. OR ARE SHORT A FEW...whatever.
Now that the Iraqi elections are a few months past, the MSM have picked up this whiny we're losing thread (or the Frank Rich "we lost" thread - fool, and imagine they brought him back). Next we'll have Iraqi elections and an Iraqi constitution and there will be a swing of the pendulum in the other direction.
Again. Whatever. The Battle of Iraq has been won. What the Iraqis now do with it we shall see. They might certainly squander their gain. But I doubt it. The Shiites and Kurds "been down so long, since they began to crawl" that they won't easily surrender themselves to the Sunnis. Worst case I think is a civil war where the Kurds break out for independence and the Shiites start killing Sunnis. I doubt it will happen, but who knows. It may. That would be a shame. But hey, last time around, we left the sunnis there to massacre the shiites. This was honorable?
Then the next whine is that we are too streched to deal with Iran. As Col. Potter used to say, "HORSE PUCKY." We've SURROUNDED Iran. They may try to break the encirclement (the way Japan did by bombing Pearl Harbor when they couldn't take our oil embargo anymore). Does anybody seriously think we can't flatten the place, the mullahs and every cockraoch in the whole place? Seriously? Pretty clearly they do, or they would have run across the Iraqi border and tried to kill our guys there while they were busy. The mulahs are all talk and terror, no serious action. 26 years later...have they attacked Israel, the hated enemy? No, they relegate their activity to little one offs here and there. Iran...Sheesh. Please.
Of course there will be a cost. But oh please give me a break. They said Afghanistan would be a quagmire and Iraq a quagmire and of course Iran will be a quagmire.
Is there any doubt?
A better term would be swamp. And we are draining it. With the Marines leading the way.
By Charlottesvillain, at
Mon Aug 15, 01:56:00 PM:
I went to college with a bunch of marines,including one of my best friends, who served in Desert Storm. They are a different breed. Cassandra said it best, so I'll not try to improve on her comment.
