Be All That You Can Be.

Man. The bad thing about reading the news, is the knowledge you gain from it. Firstly, __ This Article__ talks about how After 155 Years of guarding a crypt, the Marines are being removed from that cerimonial position to actually fight in the war.

Now think about that. Yeah, they're gaurding a grave, But that's not the point. The point is that they're that hard up for warm bodies. The state of our military is so bad off that we have to stop a tradition that has been going on for 155 years. A tradition that was kept up through the Civil War, through both world wars, and through both wars that were in the Asian arena. (Korea and Vietnam) to me,that is really saying something scary about our current state of readiness.

You've got these guards who put in 18 Years in the service, and they finally get a cushy job that shows honor, gaurding this tomb, and then they call them back into the trenches to avoid bullets before they cash in their pension.

Next thing you know, they'll be pulling guards at the tomb of the unknown soldier to go fight in the Iraqi war.

And this has got to be the case, because the army is excepting people who rank a __catagory 4.__ Who are they? They're the high school dropouts, the rubes who have about as many teeth as they will fingers when they get shot over in Iraq. And that to me says it's only a couple steps away from the draft. But right now I guess they figure dumb folks catch bullets just as well as smart ones. Although the dumb ones will fire twice as many rounds and hit half as many targets affecting your bottom line.

Of course if the draft does happen, I'd wager big money Bush would never send his daughters into fight his war. Nor would the politicians who support it.

It's sad to lose traditions to something as trivial as shipping off another couple platoons of Marines to Iraq. Especially when you consider another company of Marines tossed into Iraq probablly won't change the situation, outside of a few more dead iraqi's and dead Marines.

It's the traditions that give the Marines some added humanity. A historical link that support their values, morals and character. Canceling traditions like this steals some of the spirit, their "esprit de corps".

Whoever dreamed these things up never carried a rifle and would probably tuck tail and run when push comes to shove. . .

/edited for easier link access

[edit on 15-1-2006 by Mirthful1]