This is cool

[Peace Alliance]

@Shores of T
Please don't double post. You can just edit the post you just made. This will keep things a little cleaner for the forum.
- Moderationalizing Dutifications

What made you want to be a marine?

[Shores of Tripoli]

The Marine Corps is the best and always first to fight. It's a warrior culture comparative to Sparta. It's also a family, point in case being bumper stickers: the U.S. Army outnumbers the Marine Corps somewhere around 5:1 if I remember correctly, yet if I go down the road I'll see 10-15 times more Marine Corps bumper stickers than Army ones. Not only that, but they all honk and wave at me and each other (I have a Marine Corps sticker on my Jeep). It's a family aspect that you can't find in any other branch.

[Peace Alliance]

So you feel a kinship for the marines. Besides bumper stickers how have you come to feel this kinship?

[Shores of Tripoli]

 Ha, obviously bumper stickers is an example in it's most insignificant form. The kinship is displayed at it's best on the battlefield. In combat you must come to the realization that no matter what you do, how hard you try, or how few mistakes you make, you could still die. It's comforting to know that the worlds most advanced killing machine is sitting next to you in the mud with an M16A4 service rifle. You can rest a little easier in your foxhole knowing that the Marine next to you would willingly give his life to save yours. You can see this illustrated in every Marine who has been awarded a medal for valor in combat. If you were to ask that Marine what made him do it or call him a hero he would be confused, thus being that every single Marine that's ever lived would have done the same in his situation. I'm not trying to downplay his heroism, only up play that of every Marine and Navy Corpsman that's ever been in combat.

[Pippin]

just out of curiosity, what separates the Marines for any other member in the forces?

[Shores of Tripoli]

 Marines are held to a higher standard than a Soldier, Marines are naval infantry therefore must be both proficient in ground combat and naval combat skills as it pertains to infantry. Marines are held to higher physical standards than any other branch. Marines are generally tasked for more strenuous jobs than the Army. Most importantly however, every Marine is a rifleman. Allow me to elaborate, every Marine cook, administrator, custodian, accountant, supply officer, every single Marine, must qualify with a M16A4 service rifle in a way dictated by the standards of combat. This means that no matter who he is, what his job is, every single Marine can effectively engage and kill his enemy in a standard deemed proficient by the old commandant of the Marine Corps, General Lejeune who made said policy.

[Pippin]

fair play to them, tough standards.

enlisting in the services, army in particular, is to some people within the age range considered a way out of a tough life or if they feel they have nothing to lose. now i know the marines wouldnt accept just anyone, but what do you think about that tripoli?

im just interested to know if thats true or not from anyone elses point of view

[Shores of Tripoli]

fair play to them, tough standards.

enlisting in the services, army in particular, is to some people within the age range considered a way out of a tough life or if they feel they have nothing to lose. now i know the marines wouldnt accept just anyone, but what do you think about that tripoli?

im just interested to know if thats true or not from anyone elses point of view

Marines do accept just anyone (with exception to those with physical disabilities and medical conditions that would prohibit them from preforming in combat, such as epileptics). Boot camp isn't about selecting people into the Marine Corps, it's about making Marines. They break a person down and then rebuild them in a way that would suit them in combat. Having what it takes to be a Marine is partially given by god (standard health) and the rest is given in training by the Corps, it doesn't matter if you are 5ft 7in and 120 lbs, they will feed you more and build up your muscular strength, or if you are 5ft 8in and 290lbs, they will feed you less and make you run a lot. They make you into a Marine, you aren't selected for it.

[Pippin]

makes sense, build your army how you see fit, your very inspiring man haha :)

dogs to loose when war is waged

[Shores of Tripoli]

 That comes from the nickname that Marines earned at the battle of belleau wood in France during WW1. One German Soldier wrote back to his family and said that the soldiers he faced were not ordinary soldiers, but dogs from hell sent to carry away the souls of his comrades, he was referring to the Marines. Ever since Marines have been know as Devil Dogs. (and Navy Corpsman as Devil Docs)

[Neobaron]

There are a lot of interesting stories from ww1 regarding European reactions to American soldiers. Hooting and hollering and well fed giants among men, as excited to kill a man as they were anything else.

That lingering image is part of how the image of Americans today developed.

[Shores of Tripoli]

 Yes, we developed quite a reputation in that war didn't we?

[Neobaron]

This would normally be a place for a tirade about the condition of the war at the time but there is little point.

[Shadow]

~patriotism~

[Ungatt Trunn II]

~sedition~