Sunni Maravillosa on Semper Fi, Pepe:
I recently learned that one of my brothers-in-law, who spent his first summer after completing high school going through basic training for the Marine Reserves, has been called up for active duty. Of course, no details were given regarding where he'll be going, but the few facts given are illuminating, and not at all surprising: he's being taught some Arabic phrases; he's being vaccinated against some possible biological warfare agents we've been hearing scary reports about; and he'll be sent to a camp that's a known staging area for U.S. troops going to the Middle East. I don't know Pepe very well; we live pretty far away, and he's a reserved, somewhat shy person. We don't seem to have that much in common, either: I'm viewed by much of the family as a radical, and I'm a busy mother and writer; he's a young man interested in computers and muscles and much younger femmes than I. Still, the news of his activation sent a shiver through my mind, which lingers even now.
I loathe war, for it's a tool that one group leader wields against another, using individuals who may or may not agree with the rationale and methods, to hurt other individuals. Inevitably, other individuals are caught in the crossfire, both literally and figuratively, and bear heavy prices with no possible value attached. In the end, no one wins, yet one group declares its victory and exerts its will over more individuals. I loathe war, because it is the ultimate anti-individual action, and a pure distillation of what's wrong with the rule of some over others.
Semper Fi, Pepe. From one Marine to another, good luck and come back in one piece Devildog.
Link courtesy of Rational Review News Digest.
Semper Fi, to James and Pepe.
Tom, USMCR 1965-1972
Back at ya Tom.