A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....11-10-04....Happy Birthday to the United States Marine Corps!

Mama_Bear

[Mama_Bear]

I don't know whether you were at the Rally last Friday when Syncro said a prayer for these two young men.

Yes, I was there. A very solemn moment. I just can't imagine how the parents of these two young men bear the grief of losing them. It just breaks my heart.

[JustAmy]

LITTLE THINGS MEAN A LOT

Here is a soldier stationed in Iraq, stationed in a big sand box. He asked his wife to send him dirt, fertilizer and some grass seeds so he can have the sweet aroma and feel the grass grow beneath his feet.

If you notice, he is even cutting the grass with a pair of scissors. Sometimes we are in such a hurry that we don't stop and think about the little things that we take for granted. Upon receiving this, please say a prayer for our soldiers that give (and give up) so unselfishly for us.

[Mama_Bear]

Thanks for bringing that photo over here. Something about it just touches my heart.

I am finding this is turning into a very emotional day, probably for many of us.

[dansangel]

Wow. Just......Wow

((((((JustAmy))))))))

[JustAmy]

With the taking of Fallujah (sp) this week, it is a very emotional week.

I continue to pray for our military and their families.

[JustAmy]

((((( Dansy )))))

I received that via email last night. The picture reminds us of what these young people have given up to protect our freedoms.

[Mama_Bear]

On another note, my friend Dale has been injured in Iraq! Please keep him and his family in your prayers!!

Oh, no! I am so sorry to hear this, phancypants. I will pray for him. Please keep us posted.

Prayer ping!

[MEG33]

Upon receiving this, please say a prayer for our soldiers that give (and give up) so unselfishly for us.

May God shield our armed forces and bring them home safely to their families.

[MEG33]

I am sorry to hear about your friend,Dale..Prayers going up for his recovery.

[phancypants]

Thanks so much to both of you, I will keep you posted.

It could have been so much worse, and I believe that prayer has been the reason that he's still with us!

[Mama_Bear]

Thanks for your service, TC, and for posting the link to your 'Happy Birthday Marines' thread.

[Mama_Bear]

Allegra was in Iraq in a mess hall listening to the cheers that went up from civilians and military alike when victory was clear..Goose Bumps

Goose bumps is exactly what I am feeling!

[dutchess]

Hello everyone. What a beautiful tribute to our marines today Lori. I shared it with my marine father and it put a smile on his face.

Most the family left last night and this morning. I'm taking dad back to Ohio with me tomorrow. He's doing relatively well and is quite anxious to go. Would appreciate your continued prayers for him. He's really missing his "little angel" (((((sistahs)))))) (((((finest friends))))))

[Mama_Bear]

He's doing relatively well and is quite anxious to go. Would appreciate your continued prayers for him. He's really missing his "little angel".

Oh, bless his heart, and yours. Loving hugs and continued prayers for you both.

What a beautiful tribute to our marines today Lori. I shared it with my marine father and it put a smile on his face.

Thank you and I am so happy it pleased him. Tell him we love and appreciate our veterans here.............and today, we salute our Marine veterans!

[jwfiv]

Thank you, Mrs. Bear ... a fine tribute to the Few and the Proud.

God bless America and the USMC.

[MEG33]

((((((((((((Dutchess and your dad)))))))))))))
May God be with you.

[Mama_Bear]

Thank you, Mrs. Bear ... a fine tribute to the Few and the Proud.

And thank you, Sir Fox, for the compliments. :-)

I wonder if that is the "cigarette man" that DollyCali was taking about?

[DollyCali]

Cigarette Guy

Ceegar Guy

[Mama_Bear]

Thanks, Dolly. :-)

What a couple of good looking Marines! (But, this bear thinks they are ALL good looking, and courageous, and heroes.........they're MARINES!) ;-)

[Dubya]

By Kathleen T. Rhem
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 10, 2004 -- Two hundred twenty-nine years ago, Marines came
ashore from sailing ships; today they come off large amphibious ships. But the
service's core values have remained the same, the top Marine general said.

"The young Marines today . are emulating the warrior ethic that the Marines who
went before established," Marine Commandant Gen. Michael W. Hagee said Nov. 5
in an interview with the Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service.

Hagee, the Corps' 33rd commandant, explained that "Marines that have gone before
us really set the standard" in famous battles such as Belleau Wood, in France
in World War I; Iwo Jima, in Japan in World War II; and the Chosin Reservoir,
in the Korean War.

As the Corps celebrates its 229th birthday today, modern Marines have much in
common with those long-ago warriors, Hagee said. "We are a force in readiness,
and we've always been a force in readiness," he said. "We're an expeditionary
force, and by expeditionary I mean expeditionary in the fullest sense. In other
words, when we arrive, we can sustain ourselves. And finally, we are a
combined-arms team. That has remained the same for years and years."

Still, today's junior Marines shoulder much more responsibility than their
predecessors. Hagee said the war on terrorism is "essentially a war at the
squad-leader and platoon-leader level."

In 1999, then-Commandant Gen. Charles Krulak wrote of "the strategic corporal"
- young Marines "far from the flagpole without the direct supervision of senior
leadership."

Modern Marines "will be asked to deal with a bewildering array of challenges
and threats," Krulak wrote in Marines magazine. "In order to succeed under such
demanding conditions they will require unwavering maturity, judgment, and
strength of character."

Hagee said the emergence of "the strategic corporal" makes it much more vital
that Marines continue their education -- and that the Corps make education
opportunities available to Marines.

"We've got corporals and sergeants out there making very important decisions.
And they don't have time to get a 3x5 card out of their pocket, and they don't
have time to check with anyone," he said. "They need to make the decision
there. And in order to prepare them to do that, we have to properly educate
them."

The commandant said he'd like to see that every Marine has the opportunity to
earn at least a bachelor's degree over the course of a career.

In a wide-ranging interview about the past, present and future of the Marine
Corps, Hagee said he's often inspired when visiting Marines who have been
wounded in Iraq. He said it's "uplifting" to spend time with these young
Marines.

"They're very proud of what they have done. They're not thinking about
themselves," Hagee said of the wounded Marines he's visited. "They want to know
how their unit is doing, and they consistently tell me, 'I am ready to go
back.'"

The general also offered words on encouragement for those Marines who are
manning home stations and are not deployed to a war zone. "What I tell the
Marines who are back here in the United States is, 'Just think what you have
done over the past year,'" Hagee said.

He noted that Marines who are not deployed are a vital part of training and
equipping those who are deployed. "Without the support of Marines back here in
the United States, the force protection and the capabilities of the Marines in
theater would be much less," he said. "Everyone has an important job, whether
you're forward or whether you're back here."

Speaking before Operation Al Fajr began in Fallujah, Iraq, on Nov. 8, Hagee
said the Marines preparing to carry out that operation were ready for what they
would face and were in good spirits. "I would argue that the reason they feel
so confident is that they're properly equipped, properly trained, properly led,
and they understand the importance of the mission," he said.

Looking to the future of the force, Hagee said the Corps would maintain its
character and its three core missions: to maintain the service's force-in-
readiness posture, to maintain a combined-arms team and to maintain the
Marines' expeditionary character.

In short, he said, the Marines will remain "most ready (to respond) when the
nation is least ready."