Semper Fi, Mac!

by pessimist

As much as Bu$hCo wants to forget about quaint little things like honesty and integrity, they can't. Despite all of the propagandizing and the lying, there are some who refuse to abandon their honor, and the oaths they took up uphold certain values - you know, quaint little things like honor, honesty, loyalty... and doing the right thing at all times.

The Concord Monitor of New Hampshire happened to do an ingenious thing. They went to talk to several retired Marines to get their take on the recent problems the Marine Corps - and by extension, Bu$hCo itself - has had over the reports of several criminal massacres comitted by Marines.

Far from blindly following Bu$hCo's lead and pretending that the Marines were too good and honorable to do such a thing, these retired Marines stood by their honor and expressed the following comments [over the fold].

Killings disturb local Marines

Local retired and former Marines expressed disappointment and sadness over recent reports that Marines may have killed 24 unarmed civilians in Haditha, Iraq, last year. [M]any worried that allegations of a Marine massacre and cover-up could be a black eye for a military branch that prides itself on honor and integrity.

Marines are known for their loyalty to each other, but their Latin motto, Semper Fidelis or "always faithful" requires loyalty to the Corps, the country, the Constitution.

Killing civilians or covering it up disgraces the Corps, said Tony Romano, former commandant of the Lakes Region Marine Corps League, a veterans group for retired and former Marines. "We don't want any tarnishes," said Romano, 69, of New Hampton. "Duty, honor country; we don't want any blemishes.

When you say Marine, you see a Marine that's bright and shiny
and ready to serve his country."

George Patten, a retired Marine staff sergeant who served in Iraq in 2003, brought a hand to his heart when asked about Haditha, which has dominated headlines and news broadcasts this week. "It would really hurt me if it came out that it was a cover-up," said Patten, who served 20 years.

"I'm a big believer in integrity.
If you lose your integrity, you might never get it back.
If somebody has erred, you've got to get the truth out
because cover-ups just tend to snowball."

Ken Warren, a former Marine who fought in the Korean War, said he saw fellow Marines take gold teeth out of dead men's mouths and cut off ears to save as trophies.

Warren said he doesn't condone such actions, but he isn't surprised by incidents like Haditha. "It happens in every war," said Warren, 74, of Laconia.

"When you're in a live combat, you do things that maybe you wouldn't do at home.

"Maybe you become immune to killing."

Especially if you never had to kill, because you had "other priorities".


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