[smoothsailing]

From what I've read of his record, his only active duty time was his 12-13 month tour in Vietnam,and his basic training. The rest of his service was as a reservist.Promotion there is slower than if he had spent 37 years on active duty.

Beyond that, I don't know other than the fact that attaining full Colonel or General rank is no easy task.

[Old Seadog]

He learned about military service from the bottom up, beginning as a raw recruit when he left Washington and Jefferson College in 1952 to join the Marines out of a growing sense of obligation to his country during the Korean War. There he earned the American Spirit Honor Medal, awarded to fewer than one in 10,000 recruits. He rose through the ranks to become a drill instructor at Parris Island and was selected for Officer Candidate School at Quantico, Virginia. He then was assigned to the Second Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. In 1959, Captain Murtha took command of the 34th Special Infantry Company, Marine Corps Reserves, in Johnstown. He remained in the Reserves after his discharge from active duty until he volunteered for Vietnam in 1966-67, receiving the Bronze Star with Combat "V", two Purple Hearts and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. He remained in the Reserves until his retirement. This first-hand knowledge of military and defense issues has made him a trusted adviser to presidents of both parties and one of the most effective advocates for the national defense in Washington. At the request of Presidents and Speakers of the House, he served as chairman of delegations monitoring elections in the Philippines, El Salvador, Panama and Bosnia. He was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal by the Marine Corps Commandant when he retired from the Marines.

Excerpt from his biography at http://www.house.gov/murtha/