Semper Fidelis.

Born as an act of Congress on this date, 236 years ago, consecrated in sacrifice, steeped in tradition, and tested in battle. From the Barbary Coast to Belleau Wood to Tarawa and Iwo, to Beirut, Afghanistan and Iraq, the Marine Corps has fought through adversity emerging victorious from the rills of blood, sweat and tears of those fallen brothers who gave all for God, country and Corps. Gen. Lejeune in his 1921 message to the Corps could not have said it better: 

"This high name of distinction and soldierly repute we who are Marines today have received from those who preceded us in the Corps. With it we also received from them the eternal spirit which has animated our Corps from generation to generation and has been the distinguishing mark of the Marines in every age. So long as that spirit continues to flourish Marines will be found equal to every emergency in the future as they have been in the past, and the men of our nation will regard us as worthy successors to the long line of illustrious men who have served as "Soldiers of the Sea" since the founding of the Corps."

Semper Fidelis to all Marines past, present and future.

Never Forget.

"Are you guys ready? Let's roll."

After reciting the Lord’s Prayer, Todd Beamer, a passenger aboard United 93 rallied his compatriots with those words in an assault against the terrorist-occupied cockpit of the Boeing 757.

It has been 10 years since Islamic fundamentalists flew three airliners, packed with people aboard, into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon. It’s been 10 years since the heroism of those few aboard flight United 93 who stormed the cockpit, crashing the aircraft into the ground, preventing the terrorists from attacking one of their final targets, the Capitol or the White House. 

2976 died as a result of those attacks. Most of these people at work, waiting for the long day to end, so they could head home to their families, kick up their feet and spend time with their kids. They were sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, uncles and aunts and friends.
Many of the passengers were settling in for a quiet, boring flight. Maybe they were off on a business trip, or to see family. They did not know that this would be their eternity flight. Their loved ones would never see them again.

Ten years ago, I was eating breakfast, ready to start another boring day at grade school. My parents turned on the television to check out the news. After the first tower was struck, all of the channels changed to newsfeeds. We watched live as the second aircraft flew into the South Tower. We watched as the news cameras showed disturbing videos of men and women jumping from the tower. We learned of United 93 and the attack on the Pentagon later. The phone lines were jammed. As it turns out, we lost a friend. A distant one, but a friend nevertheless.

It was truly a day of fear.

The attacks spawned a new generation of Americans. Suddenly, the defense of the nation fell to the shoulders of America’s youth. The attacks moved so many to join the military and to fight for what they, previously, had taken for granted.

We can never forget the heroes of 9/11. Those brave NYPD officers and firefighters who ran towards the dust, giving up everything to save whoever they could. They ran to the sound of the guns, not away. They would have been justified in attempting to escape the situation with other fleeing civilians. They had families too. They had wives and kids, but they nevertheless steeled themselves for the worst ran to save those who they could, so that they could return to their families and loved ones.

We can only pray to God that history will never repeat itself in this way. We can never forget these attacks, and those who died. We can never forget the heroes and the sacrifices they made to save others. We can never forget our military and their continued fight against terrorism and injustice and their defense of their nation.

Flattop

Some of the most beautiful warships to have come out of the Second World War were the Essex Class aircraft carriers. In all, 24 of these carriers (or flattops as they were nicknamed) were built for the Navy. Today, only four of the largest class of capital ships ever made remain as museum-ships; testaments to the military engineering might of the United States. The Hornet, Intrepid, Yorktown and Lexington are berthed as floating museums across the United States.

I had the opportunity to visit the USS Intrepid earlier this summer and explore what can be truly considered a marvel of engineering. On a hot Sunday in July (it was 100+), we trekked over to see the Intrepid, after getting off at the wrong subway station. Finally, after half an hour of blistering heat, chilidogs and stops to take in the view along the Hudson, the gigantic gray mass of the Intrepid became visible, and my heart started pounding. You see, my entire goal in life is to be a Naval Aviator. The problem is that everything is in my way. On an international level.  It’s hard to explain, so I won’t waste your time trying to. The thing is, I know I’ll accomplish my goals. So when I saw the carrier for the first time, I was overjoyed, because I could see a part of my future.

After buying the tickets, entering the museum and heading over to the elevator, nothing could have prepared me for the rush I felt when I stepped on the flight deck. Walking across a gangway, I got a clearer view of the aircraft exhibits. To my right was an F-16, an F-9 Cougar and right behind them was the venerable A-12, the granddaddy of the infamous SR-71 Blackbird. Across the deck there was an F-14, an A-6 and an F-11 Tiger. I won’t bore you to death listing the names of the various exhibits, though God knows I’d love to.

After exploring all the aircraft on the deck in detail, including a Marine Corps F-4 Phantom II that flew in Vietnam, I headed into the island superstructure. I could just imagine sailors scrambling around the tiny, cramped up interior, when the call for General Quarters was made. The ladders were angled slightly, and that proved an issue for me because of my height. I could have sworn I bumped my head at least 30 times climbing down the first set of ladders into the Admiral’s bridge. Finally, after I finished exploring the Island, I went below decks into the hangar bay. 

Good God almighty was it huge! There were a couple of simulators which I wound up trying out a little later, a bunch of space-related exhibits and a few helicopters.

Standing in front of a TBM Avenger, like the one Former President Bush flew in WWII, I was amazed by the gargantuan proportions of the aircraft. It was undoubtedly a death-dealing mass of raw power.

Seeing all this and more below the hangar deck, I made a definite decision that next summer, I’m going to check out the Hornet in California, the Lexington in Texas and Yorktown in South Carolina.

Folks, if you’re as obsessed with naval aviation as I am, I highly recommend you visit these ships. They serve as memorials to the brave sailors and Marines who fought on these ships throughout the Pacific, tearing a path of destruction throughout the Japanese naval armadas.

The Aviator's Prayer

Lord, guide and guide the men who fly

Through the great spaces of the sky;
Be with them traversing the air
In darkening storms or sunshine fair.

Thou who dost keep with tender might
The balanced birds in all their flight,
Thou of the tempered winds, be near,
That, having Thee, they know no fear.

Control their minds with instinct fit
What time, adventuring, they quit
The firm security of land;
Grant steadfast eye and skillful hand.

Aloft in solitudes of space,
Uphold them with Thy saving grace.
O God, protect the men who fly
Through lonely ways beneath the sky.