Monday, August 07, 2006
Marines
I received a widely-circulated email this morning that purports to be a letter home from Col. Brett Wyrick. It rocked my world:
Dear Dad,
If I ever hear airmen griping and complaining, I jump into them pretty quickly, now. Most people over here have nothing to gripe about compared to Marines. Marines are different. They have a different outlook on life.
One Marine Private was here for several days because he was a lower priority evacuation patient. He insisted on coming to attention and displaying proper military courtesy every morning when I came through on rounds. He was in a great deal of pain, and it was a stressful to watch him work his way off the bed and onto his crutches. I told him he was excused and did not have to come to attention while he was a patient, and he informed me that he was a good Marine and would address "Air Force Colonels standing on my feet, sir."
I had to turn away so he would not see the tear in my eye. He did not have "feet" because we amputated his right leg below the knee on the first night he came in.
I asked a Marine Lance Corporal if there was anything I could get him as I was making rounds one morning. He was an above the knee amputation after an IED blast, and he surprised me when he asked for a trigonometry book.
"You enjoy math do you?" I asked.
He replied, "Not particularly, sir. I was never good at it, but I need to get good at it, now."
"Are you planning on going back to school?" I asked.
"No sir, I am planning on shooting artillery. I will slow an infantry platoon down with just one good leg, but I am going to get good at math and learn how to shoot artillery".
I hope he does.
I had the sad duty of standing over a young Marine sergeant when he recovered from anesthesia. Despite our best efforts there was just no way to save his left arm, and it had to come off just below the elbow.
"Can I have my arm back, sir?" he asked.
"No, we had to cut it off, we cannot re-attach it." I said.
"But can I have my arm?" he asked again.
"You see, we had to cut it off."
He interrupted, "I know you had to cut it off, but I want it back. It must be in a bag or something, sir."
"Why do you want it?" I asked.
"I am going to have it stuffed and use it as a club when I get back to my unit." I must have looked shocked because he tried to comfort me. "Don't you worry now, Colonel. You did a fine job, and I hardly hurt at all; besides I scratch and shoot with my other hand anyway."
God Bless the Marines!
Col. Brett Wyrick
VAE VICTIS
Col. Wyrick is a real person who has otherwise written about the war in Iraq, so there is reason to believe the email is genuine.
Semper fi.
9 Comments:
By 
Cassandra, at
Mon Aug 07, 01:50:00 PM:
I know I have told you, TH, on one or two occasions that my husband isn't a "typical" Marine. I've often wondered how he made it this far.
I think I got my answer years ago when he was serving at the Naval Academy. At the time they were starting up a program called Bulldog. There had been some issues with midshipmen who went Marine not performing well. This didn't sit well with some of the academy elite - in their view anyone good enough for the Naval Academy should be more than good enough for the Marine Corps.
What they did not understand was that the Marines are different. It isn't smarts, or even, necessarily being a hotshot, that makes a good Marine. I asked my husband what the Marines were looking for.
"It's simple", he said.
"Marines are, first and foremost, team players."
If I had to sum up everything my husband has ever said or done over a 25+ year career, I think that just about says it all. People see the spit shines, the jaunty walk and the sometimes cocky demanor and they miss what lies beneath. Marines really are team players. And they are so very proud to be part of something much larger than themselves.
And as generations of Marines have shown, if you believe in something larger than yourself, you can - sometimes literally - move mountains.
Thanks for this. We suffered some losses this weekend. This is a reminded that nothing will keep our guys down for long :)
By Cardinalpark, at
Mon Aug 07, 05:04:00 PM:
TH and Cass --
In addition to being team players, Marines are also the deadliest warriors on the planet. As the young fellow said, he would use his lost arm as a club to bludgeon the enemy. The saying goes, "No better friend, no worse enemy." There is no question of this fundamental truth. An American Marine is the finest warrior today or, in all likelihhod, ever in history.
By TigerHawk, at
Mon Aug 07, 05:06:00 PM:
Not counting ninjas, of course.
By allen, at
Tue Aug 08, 12:24:00 AM:
"Retreat Hell! We're just attacking in another direction."
"Come on, you sons of bitches-do you want to live forever?"
"Casualties many; Percentage of dead not known; Combat efficiency; we are winning."
"Once a Marine, always a Marine!"
By 
, at
Tue Aug 08, 07:15:00 AM:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/07/iraq.familyslain/index.html
So emotional, so powerful...I almost shed a tear. Almost. Fuck off with this, right now.
By Cassandra, at
Tue Aug 08, 09:55:00 AM:
Heck, I cried for her Justin. Does that prove something?
And there is not a group of people - not teachers, not doctors, not lawyers, not bloggers not anyone - who don't have their ration of nut jobs, sadists, pedophiles, rapists, murderers, psychopaths.
I'm not quite sure what your point is? That murderers, psychopaths, and rapists should be strung up? Thanks Captain Obvious, for the stunning insight.
I doubt you'll find anyone in the military who disagrees with that statement. Most of them are *in* the military because they want to protect other people from exactly the kind of nut jobs who do that sort of thing to innocent people. You know, like Saddam was doing as an instrument of state policy, not as a drive-by happenstance that is... ummm... you know, punished when it gets discovered?
A few bad apples get in, just like they get into the teaching profession. But last time I checked we didn't stop teaching kids because of that.
My oldest son weighs about 145 lbs. He's a cop because he wanted to protect people, to work with kids. He's the kind of kid who never got into fights. He was never a bully. I worry about him on the street - a lot. He's the kind of cop who probably won't pull his gun fast enough some day.
And he's the kind of cop who gets vilified by ignorant people all the time who like to throw labels around because it's easier than thinking.
Bad things happen in the world, but we don't turn our brains off when they do.
By Cassandra, at
Tue Aug 08, 10:01:00 AM:
Cardinalpark, Jim Mattis uses a phrase I have always liked very much: a combination of ferocity and chivalry.
By , at
Wed Aug 09, 11:00:00 AM:
Cassandra. Good response, as usual. I do respect your opinion, even if I disagree.
I am not doubting that Saddam was held unaccountable for his actions, nor that each profession has "their ration of nut jobs, sadists, etc," or that those dudes should be held accountable. This is not my point (and nobody has used the phrase "Dr. Obvious" since 1997, but it's cool).
I guess I just have issue with the whole "a few bad apples get in" notion. I get it on my CNN, as does the rest of the world. There are no few bad apples. There are countless cases of unjustified murder, rape, and torture by the hands of our military. Go to any military bases around the world and you will find the greatest guys in the world, and you will also find too fair amount of the most knuckle dragging fuckheads I have ever met. Just like in any profession like you said...doctor, laywer, teacher, it exists, though I have had a hard time keeping daily tabs (I don't have to, my all knowing expert news stations do it for me ;)) on the murdering nuerogsurgeons.* Of course those guys aren't in constant combat. Maybe it's that darned biased media, but I see cases of U.S. military criminal behavior almost daily on tv.
I absolutely love our military. I do. But as somebody whose grown up around it my whole life, I find it troubling that I see so much unjustified brutal violence towards those who do not deserve it. And I really enjoy TH's (and your) blogs. But maybe I just had a knee jerk reaction when I saw yet another post praising our troops and seeing many posts that view the marines as such strong and galiant warrriors. Many truly are, but the tone of the posts and responses seem to imply that they are all superhuman. Do they often have noble intentions and try to save many lives? Absolutely. Are there still way too many situations of deplorable violence against innocents? Too much. There area far less arguments criticizing what is wrong with too many of our troops, and sometimes recognizing this behavior and changing it is really needed . Both views are equally valid, and need recognition.
If the letter was intended to recognize those great marines who do awesome work...great. I'll buy that. It's just that I hardly ever see the ugly truth with many of our army solidiers and marines posted, and I feel that it is, in a way, lying by omission.
Respect,
JB
*The Fugitive does kick ass, though.
By Cassandra, at
Wed Aug 09, 01:59:00 PM:
Justin:
You can't read into posts things that aren't there. It's simply not reasonable.
To take a post that says "A" and say that because it doesn't say "B" it logically asserts that "B" is not true is a bit much.
There is only so much one can say in a single post.
And if you see the media putting down the military (which they do, constantly) then perhaps you don't see any need as a non-professional volunteering your time in a private opinion-writing forum funded with your own money to say anything except what you wish to say.
And by the way, your 'lying by omission' statement, if carried to its logical conclusion, would require that every single article on every single subject state both sides of every issue. Which makes the media's reporting on the War (as well as your CNN article) dreadful lies by omission, since they didn't point out that the vast majority of military stationed in Iraq do not rape, murder, or pour gasoline on innocent civilians, nor has this particular gentleman (who, by the way, appears to have a prior record of problems) been convicted in a court of law.
