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Entries 1- 45 of 232 Reasons to Love The Corps
By Lt Col P
This list has been making the rounds by email today. Someone said that it came from Marine Corps Times, but I don't see it on the site after an admittedly cursory check. (If that ends up being the case, we hereby give them all due credit.)
232 is a lot to handle in one post, so let's do 45 or so each day until we hit the glorious 10th of November. My favorites are in bold, and my $.02 in [brackets]. Some of these are priceless.
1. Cpl. Jason Dunham. First Marine to receive the Medal of Honor since Vietnam. If jumping on a grenade to save a buddy isn’t worth the top of the list, nothing is.
2. Civilians have to find time to go to the gym. Marines get paid to go.
3. The National Museum of the Marine Corps. It’s like a Smithsonian of leatherneck.
4. There’s no such thing as an “ex” Marine.
5. Re-enlistment rates are higher IN the war zone.
6. Stink-proof socks. Well, almost. Systems Command is working on them.
7. Jalapeño cheese.
8. “Every Marine Into the Fight.”
9. Lump-sum re-enlistment bonuses up to $80,000. Many of you would consider doing it for free.
10. New uniforms #1. Pixel-pattern cammies? Yeah, the Corps came up with that.
11. “Doc.” [God Bless every one of them.]
12. Flexed arm hang is harder than it looks. We tried it.
13. Barracks parties on non-payday weekends.
14. Marine Gunners.
15. The Wounded Warrior Regiment.
16. MarAdmin 266/07: Letting 18-year-old Marines drink on base at this year’s birthday ball. [HELL YES. Long overdue.]
17. No receipt necessary for travel claim expenses less than $75.
18. The Lance Corporal underground.
19. Fallujah II. [Let's not forget Fallujah-I !]
21. Archibald Henderson’s couch, re-upholstered, is still in the Commandant’s living room.
22. “No better friend, no worse enemy.”
23. Typhoons approaching Okinawa often spark islandwide beer runs. [Often?? How about always! ]
24. Waivers.
25. Gen James Jones, who followed his tour as Commandant with an appointment as “supreme intergalactic overlord” (OK, it was Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, but close).
26. 10 rounds from the 500-yard line. [That's with iron sights, from the prone, using a sling. No bipod, no sandbags.]
27. Per diem. [OK, that's pretty joint but it's still a good piece of gear.]
28. To civilians, every Marine is recon.
29. Recruiting in Texas is like hunting at the zoo.
30. The “boat cloak.” Because every super hero needs a cape.
31. You can re-enlist in the IRR.
32. The wallet in your sock.
33. Motivating television commercials.
34. The “horse shoe” haircut, gone but not forgotten.
35. The global address list. Find your buddies and send them links to Marine Corps Times.
36. Running cadences that mention napalm. And Eskimos.
37. Stories that begin with, “So there I was ...”
38. Modified parade rest.
39. The transformation. Who you are when you join is not nearly as important as who you become.
40. LtGen Mattis getting a fourth star.
41. If you’ve been on liberty in Twentynine Palms, you’ve been on liberty in Yuma and Barstow, too.
42. Grooming standards. Not only can you not act like a thug, you cannot look like a thug.
43. It’s not the Army.
44. Women in Manhattan have all seen the Fleet Week episode of “Sex and the City.”
45. Combat shotguns.
And speaking of the Marine Corps Birthday...
We had ours this past weekend, since the actual birthday is of course contiguous with Vets Day, and therefore a holiday.
I've been to some fine Birthday celebrations in my 18.5 years of commissioned service, some small and some big, some informal and some very formal indeed.
But this one was in a class by itself.
Some truly selfless citizens in south Florida treated us to an all-expenses paid evening at what has to be the state's premiere country club. From the instant we walked in to the instant they poured us into back into the comp'ed limos, we wanted for nothing.
Folks, I can't say enough. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
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Comments
Hehe for some of them, but seriously, I admire Marines a lot. I have not seen sex and the city. I have read The Gift of Valor about Jason. It is a small book, and worht your time.
I got scared for a moment - I thought the title of the post was "...reasons to LEAVE the Corps".
LOL!
This is what happens before the first cup of coffee.
Semper Fi (even though I wasn't a Marine)
GregS
Not that I don't love the USMC, but Canadians had CADPAT before the USMC had MARPAT.
Spade's right on that one. Someone at the Times dropped the ball on Reason #10. Either way: Semper Fi, Marines, and happy birthday!
MCAS Iwakuni.
The M-14 rifle.
Sir, Everything on the list is awesome, there are manny that inspired me to laugh aloud, and some, well, brought back some old memories.
I loved, "The LCPL Underground".
If you need scoop or gear..find a LCPL, he either has it in his pack or knows where he left it, or wo has it.
The reunion was a BLAST last night, you were missed by everyone. I understand though. Next year, I will have to send in the LCPL kidnapp squad to bring you in. Don't worry, I made them stop using slash wire for restraints. Now there more advanced, using
Wild Turkey and Benedryl.
Happy Birthday Sir, see you soon,
Semper FI,
Gunny Demro
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Great stuff...all wonderful reasons to be Marine! Can't tell you how many times the #28 impression is true.
I also attended the ball LtCol P describes above. Everything was to the 9s...The font is not large enough and the comment box cannot hold all the characters necessary to express our gratitude to the citizens of South Florida who put on this year's birthday ball.
Boca West outdid themselves.