Happy Birthday, Marines!

[Stryker]

Just got my latest issue of Leatherneck; only two weeks late. Inside was the Commandant's Birthday Message. Happy 229th, Devil Dogs!
 
The Commandant of the Marine Corps'
2004 Birthday Message
[/b]

Two hundred and twenty-nine years ago, the Second Continental Congress established a Corps of Marines to fight for a democratic people's independence. Since then countless Marines have raised their hand and sworn to defend our Nation's freedoms and preserve its liberties. This year's anniversary again finds Marines engaged throughout the globe for the same noble purposes. The bravery, heroism and selflessness of all Marines—wherever they are serving—have added significantly to our rich legacy and measured up to the high standards that have come to epitomize all who wear the eagle, globe and anchor.

 

The current battlefields of the global war on terror are linked to the storied campaigns of our past by an unbroken tradition of proud and loyal service. At New Providence, Chapultepec, Belleau Wood, Tarawa, Iwo Jima, the Chosin Reservoir, Con Thien, Kuwait and now in places like Fallujah, Marines have consistently demonstrated a dedication to duty, a commitment to warfighting excellence, and a devotion to each other that has instilled a fierce determination to overcome seemingly impossible challenges. Our warrior ethos is and will continue to be the Corps' hallmark.

 

The fortitude and sacrifices of Marines and their families have been vital in protecting our Nation from those who would do us harm. Whether preparing and sustaining our agile force or engaged in battle, the esprit de corps, tireless energy, calm courage and inspired leadership of Marines continue to make a monumental difference in this world. Your unselfish dedication and significant accomplishments—demonstrated repeatedly over this past year in numerous places such as the Anbar province of Iraq, Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa, Haiti and in the crucial job here at home supporting our deployed forces—are deeply respected and valued by your fellow Americans.

 

Marines, as we celebrate with friends and families the founding of our beloved Corps, you should take pride in our long history of distinguished service to this great Nation and its citizens. I ask you to remember especially the sacrifices of our fallen and wounded comrades. Finally, rededicate yourselves to taking care of one another and ensuring we remain the finest warfighting organization in the world.

 

Happy Birthday, Marines. Semper Fidelis, and Keep Attacking!

 

M. W. Hagee

General, U.S. Marine Corps[/size]
 
 
[/size]

[RatherBHuntin]

Well, I'll give you an OooRahhhh!  And a fine job they are doing in Fallujah this past week, Chesty would be proud.  Happy Birthday Devil Dogs!

[Jay Edward (deceased)]

I am unable to express either the depth of my pride or the extent of my debt to the men and women of all our armed forces.  

At one time in my life I investigated the history of the Marines in great depth.  Their history seems quite different than others when viewed objectively.  Furthermore, they seemed to have created and nurtured a mystique quite similar to (and well before) Special Forces units.  They are a proud organization (deservedly so) and I am still amazed, at this late date in my life, how striking their dress uniform is compared to the other services.

I found some words on another web site that I would like to share with you.  They apply to all services when viewed correctly:

"But we also learned of danger areas when some of our Marines said certain things. For instance:

A PFC when he says "I learned this in boot camp."

A Sergeant saying, "Trust me sir..."

A 2nd Lieutenant saying "based on my experience..."

A 1st Lieutenant saying "I was just thinking..."

A Captain saying "I think I know a short cut..."

A Major saying "Chow and ammo should be on the way..."

A Colonel saying "One more mission this week won't hurt us..."

A General saying "last night I had a dream..."

And a gunny saying, "Watch this...""

[Stryker]

A 2nd Lieutenant saying "based on my experience..."
 

I think I knew that 2nd Lieutenant...

[Alboy]

Stryker
 
I notice you stated that in the past tense.
 
Works kind of like a Red Necks famous last words "You guys watch this......"
 
During my time to play in Uncle Sams games I was fortunate enough to be loaned to many services. Unequivocally the Marines had the best pilots.
 
Thanks and Happy Birthday Jarheads.

[Stryker]

Stryker
 
I notice you stated that in the past tense.
 
Works kind of like a Red Necks famous last words "You guys watch this......"
 
During my time to play in Uncle Sams games I was fortunate enough to be loaned to many services. Unequivocally the Marines had the best pilots.
 
Thanks and Happy Birthday Jarheads.

Alboy,
We do have some of the finest pilots out there. I myself was an electronic countermeasures specialist. I worked on ALQ's, AN-APR's and AN-ALE's. I was an I-level technician, so the crew chiefs brought the broken gear to us for repair. I did not have to spend much time on the flightline, which I do regret, but our maintenance system just wasn't set up that way.

As to the 2nd Louey, in the previous message. Let's just say he thought he was the re-incarnation of "Chesty" Puller and "Howlin' Mad" Smith combined.

[RatherBHuntin]

hmmmmm, I'm an Electronic Warfare operator myself, cool.  We never break any of our equipment.
 
 Did you just do countermeasures or did you also get involved with the "measures"?  Most of our techs are a real professional bunch, I'm sure yours are the same.  Unfortunately, there's always one who cant tell a soldering iron from a screw driver.

[Stryker]

hmmmmm, I'm an Electronic Warfare operator myself, cool. We never break any of our equipment.
 
Did you just do countermeasures or did you also get involved with the "measures"? Most of our techs are a real professional bunch, I'm sure yours are the same. Unfortunately, there's always one who cant tell a soldering iron from a screw driver.

We never got to "play" with the stuff, that's what the pilots were for. A lot of the stuff we repaired were "drops" from the crew chiefs and corrosion control (from being to close to the ocean). I worked on eggbeater gear, which was primarily designed for weapons that were about to be or had just been launched. Our fixed wing counter parts got to do the "warfare" side of it. We still fly the EA-6B, if you can believe that. We've even had a couple of our squadrons win the squadron of the year award from the Association of Old Crows.

The guys I worked with were exceptionally professional. We were constantly being TAD to units like FLIR and TAFTs for our knowledge. A few of our guys even got reassigned permantely. We were constantly being asked for. The one really nice part of our job is we seldom were assigned to guard or mess duty.

[Alboy]

Interesting how Initials change. I assume TAD means Temporary Assigned Duty or something close to that. We called it TDY which I always interpreted as Temporary Duty Yonder being from the South and unable to say very many words that start with "Y".
 
Magic box boys, well thanks. I never did understand those things but felt comforted by them more than once.

[Stryker]

Interesting how Initials change. I assume TAD means Temporary Assigned Duty or something close to that. We called it TDY which I always interpreted as Temporary Duty Yonder being from the South and unable to say very many words that start with "Y".
 
Magic box boys, well thanks. I never did understand those things but felt comforted by them more than once.

Temporary Assigned Duty is right. I spent some time at Seymour Johnson AFB and they asked for my TDY paperwork. I had to think about it for a minute.

FLIR was Forward Looking Infa-Red and TAFTs stood for Tailored Automatic Test System. It was part of the TOW missile system but I'm sure it's probably long gone since we upgraded to the Hellfire missile system. Ah, the days before lasers when our missle systems pulled wire behind them and we needed to shoot from a position that required a Line of Sight lock. Not like today, were we can shoot from behind a hill, let the AWACS guide the missle in, and never see the target. It's kind of like comparing BP to a modern rifle.

[Kit]

Yes, Happy Birthday Marines!  Can we keep celebrating for a few weeks?  My most wonderful cuz (cousin) is  USMC.  And, he is still repairing aircraft civ. now.   Well - - actually management.
 
 After 9-11 there were so many layoffs and he became concerned.  I told him don't worry, at this point in time they are not going to lay off their US MARINES whom they can TRUST.
 
 Y'all have my utmost respect and appreciation.