The safest place in Korea was right behind a
platoon of Marines.Lord, how they could fight!
MGen Frank E. Lowe, USA; Korea, 26 January 1952
Marines know how to use their bayonets. Army bayonets may as well be
paper-weights.
Navy Times; November 1994
Why in hell can't the Army do it if the Marines can. They are the same kind
of men; why can't they be like Marines.
Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, USA; 12 February 1918
The United States Marine Corps, with its fiercely proud
tradition of excellence in combat, its hallowed rituals, and its unbending
code of honor, is part of the fabric of American myth.
Thomas E. Ricks; Making the Corps, 1997
The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next five
hundred years.
James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy; 23 February 1945
(the flag-raising on Iwo Jima had been immortalized in a
photograph by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal)
I have just returned from visiting the Marines at the front, and there is
not a finer fighting organization in the world!
General of the Armies Douglas MacArthur; Korea, 21 September 1950
We have two companies of Marines running rampant all over the northern half
of this island, and three Army regiments pinned down in the southwestern
corner, doing nothing. What the hell is going on?
Gen. John W. Vessey Jr., USA, Chairman of the the Joint Chiefs of Staff
during the assault on Grenada, 1983
The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the
filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of
animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps!
Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States, 1945
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in
the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985
Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come
in two varieties, big and mean, or skinny and mean. They're aggressive on
the attack and tenacious on defense. They've got really short hair and they
always go for the throat.
RAdm "Jay" R. Stark, USN; 10 November 1995
They told (us) to open up the Embassy, or "we'll blow you away." And then
they looked up and saw the Marines on the roof with these really big guns,
and they said in Somali, "Igaralli ahow," which means "Excuse me, I didn't
mean it, my mistake".
Karen Aquilar, in the U.S. Embassy; Mogadishu, Somalia, 1991
For over 221 years our Corps has done two things for this great Nation. We
make Marines, and we win battles.
Gen. Charles C. Krulak, USMC (CMC); 5 May 1997
Come on, you sons of bitches! Do you want to live forever?
GySgt. Daniel J. "Dan" Daly, USMC near Lucy-`le-Bocage as he led the 5th
Marines' attack into Belleau Wood, 6 June 1918
We signed up knowing the risk. Those innocent people in New York didn't
go to work thinking there was any kind of risk.
Pvt. Mike Armendariz-Clark, USMC; Afghanistan, 20 September 2001 As reported
on page 1 of the New York Times
Gone to Florida to fight the Indians. Will be back when the war is over.
Colonel Commandant Archibald Henderson, USMC in a note pinned to his office
door, 1836
Don't you forget that you're First Marines! Not all the
communists in Hell can overrun you!
Col. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, USMC rallying his First Marine Regiment near
Chosin Reservoir, Korea, December 1950
Marines die, that's what we're here for. But the Marine Corps lives forever.
And that means YOU live forever.
the mythical GySgt. Hartman, USMC; portrayed by GySgt. R. Lee Ermey, a
Marine Corps Drill Instructor using his own choice of words in Full Metal
Jacket, 1987
You'll never get a Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole! Follow me!
Capt. Henry P. Crowe, USMC; Guadalcanal, 13 January 1943
We are United States Marines, and for two and a quarter
centuries we have defined the standards of courage, esprit, and military
prowess.
Gen. James L. Jones, USMC (CMC); 10 November 2000
I have only two men out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We
need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept
by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my
left and only a few on my right. I will hold.
1stLt. Clifton B. Cates, USMC
in Belleau Wood, 19 July 1918
I love the Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued:
pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for
generations of warriors past.
Cpl. Jeff Sornij, USMC; in Navy Times, November 1994
Courage is endurance for one moment more...
Unknown Marine Second Lieutenant in Vietnam
My only answer as to why the Marines get the toughest jobs is because the
average Leatherneck is a much better fighter. He has far more guts, courage,
and better officers... These boys out here have a pride in the Marine Corps
and will fight to the end no matter what the cost.
2nd Lt. Richard C. Kennard, Peleliu, World War II
A Marine should be sworn to the patient endurance of hardships,like the
ancient knights; and it is not the least of these necessary hardships to
have to serve with sailors.
Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery
Lying offshore, ready to act, the presence of ships and Marines sometimes
means much more than just having air power or ship's fire,when it comes to
deterring a crisis. And the ships and Marines may not have to do anything
but lie offshore. It is hard to lie offshore with a C-141 or C-130 full of
airborne troops.
Gen. Colin Powell, U. S. Army
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff
During Operation Desert Storm
This was the first time that the Marines of the two nations had fought side
by side since the defence of the Peking Legations in 1900. Let it be said
that the admiration of all ranks of 41 Commando for their
brothers in arms was and is unbounded. They fought like tigers and their
morale and esprit de corps is second to none.
Lt Col. D.B. Drysdale, Commanding
41 Commando, Chosen Reservoir, on the 1st Marine Division
You cannot exaggerate about the Marines. They are convinced to the point of
arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth- and the
amusing thing about it is that they are.
Father Kevin Keaney
1st Marine Division Chaplain
Korean War
There was always talk of espirit de corps, of being gung ho, and that must
have been a part of it. Better, tougher training, more marksmanship on the
firing range, the instant obedience to orders seared into men in boot camp.
James Brady, columnist, novelist, press secretary to President Reagan,
television personality and a Marine
The bended knee is not a tradition of our Corps.
General Alexander A. Vandergrift, USMC
to the Senate Naval Affairs Committee, 5 May 1946
By their victory, the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Divisions and other units of
the Fifth Amphibious Corps have made an accounting to their country which
only history will be able to value fully. Among the Americans who served on
Iwo Island, uncommon valor was a common virtue.
Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, U.S. Navy
Being ready is not what matters. What matters is winning after you get
there.
LtGen Victor H. Krulak, USMC
April 1965
The Marine Corps has just been called by the New York Times,'The elite of
this country.' I think it is the elite of the world.
Admiral William Halsey, U.S. Navy
I still need Marines who can shoot and salute. But I need Marines who can
fix jet engines and man sophisticated radar sets, as well.
General Robert E. Cushman, Jr., USMC
Commandant of the Marine Corps, 17 May 1974
I can't say enough about the two Marine divisions. If I use words like
'brilliant,' it would really be an under description of the absolutely
superb job that they did in breaching the so-called 'impenetrable barrier.'
It was a classic- absolutely classic- military breaching of a very very
tough minefield, barbed wire, fire trenches-type barrier.
Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, U. S. Army
Commander, Operation Desert Storm, February 1991
I am convinced that there is no smarter, handier, or more adaptable body of
troops in the world.
Prime Minister of Britain, Sir Winston Churchill
The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle.
Gen. John "Black Jack" Pershing, U.S. Army
Commander of American Forces in World War I
Do not attack the First Marine Division. Leave the yellowlegs alone. Strike
the American Army.
Orders given to Communist troops in the Korean War;
shortly afterward, the Marines were ordered to not wear their khaki
leggings.
The American Marines have it [pride], and benefit from it. They are tough,
cocky, sure of themselves and their buddies. They can fight and they know
it.
General Mark Clark, U.S. Army
They (Women Marines) don't have a nickname, and they don't need one. They
get their basic training in a Marine atmosphere, at a Marine Post. They
inherit the traditions of the Marines. They are Marines.
LtGen Thomas Holcomb, USMC
Commandant of the Marine Corps, 1943
I've always been proud of being a Marine. I won't hesitate to defend the
Corps.
Jonathan Winters, comic and Marine
Every Marine is, first and foremost, a rifleman. All other conditions are
secondary.
Gen. A. M. Gray, USMC
Commandant of the Marine Corps
A Ship without Marines is like a coat without buttons.
Adm. Farragut
If I had one more division like this First Marine Division could win this
war.
General of the Armies Douglas McArthur in Korea,
overheard and reported by Marine Staff Sergeant Bill Houghton,Weapons/2/5
For all of those that have son's or daughter's at boot camp let me pass
on what I found. Let me give you a little back ground first.When my son left
home he had no motivation, he was lazy, sloppy, no pride, no self worth.
This is the boy that got off the bus March 18th at
Parris Island. The man that I met on Thursday for parents' day is AWESOME.
There is no way I can describe to you all the difference. He looks
different, he walks different, he talks different, he has such a sense of
bearing and pride all I could do was look at him in awe. Oh yes, the
training is hard, what he went through is unimaginable to any
one that has not been there. They are definitely taught to be Warriors. Let
me tell you the surprise of what else they are taught. My Marine son has
better values, better morals, better manners than any one I know. It is so
much more than Yes Sir, Yes Ma'am...so much more. He cares about how he
looks, he cares about what he does, and its not a boastful,
bad-ass thing. He is a true gentleman. I saw patience, and a calmness in him
that I have never seen. I could never express my gratitude enough to the
Marine Corps for what they have given my son. I know this, I have an 11-year
old Devil pup still at home. When the time comes for his turn if
I had to I would take him kicking and screaming all the way. Although I'm
sure that will not happen. The hero worship I see in my younger sons eyes
for his Marine brother tells me I will have two Marines in the family, and I
will be one very proud mother.
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