Today, November 10, marks the two hundred and thirty-third birthday of the Marine Corps. 1775-2008. The Marine Corps is my second religion and it under-girds, sometimes in questionable ways, my first religion: Christianity as represented by the Baptist Church. November 10 has special meaning to me and to thousands of other Marines and former Marines. Whenever possible I try to celebrate the birthday with comrades, the long line of the faithful who have served, suffered and died for this beloved nation.

I always choke up a little at the sight of the brave who wore the eagle, globe and anchor, some without limbs, fingers, toes; some in wheel chairs, all with visible or invisible scars; and sight of the brave who presently wear the emblem and will earn their own scars and missing parts. I choke up at the ceremonies and rituals: the presentation of the colors, the pledge of allegiance, the table of remembrance set for the fallen and those missing in action, the cutting of the cake, and passing cake, along with the other traditions, from the oldest Marine present to the youngest Marine present. It’s solemn and it leaves each Marine with his or her thoughts and memories. One of my memories is buying a drink for the Commandant at the Press Center in Da Nang.

The Commandant sends a birthday greeting that is read by Marines around the globe. This year the Commandant said that the war of terrorism began in 1983 when terrorists blew up the Marine Barracks in Beirut; however historians may argue about the beginning and/or cause of present terrorism. It probably would have been politically incorrect or perhaps not have been the right time or place to mention that a president had provided those terrorists with arms and continued to provide them with arms after the deaths of 241 Marines.

Moments after Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president, the Iranian hostages were freed and Reagan lifted the arms embargo so that Israel could sell arms to Iranian terrorists. The US replaced the Israeli weapons. Despite the bombing of the Marine Barracks and two US embassies, the deal continued until Israel sent advanced missiles that could turn the finest US warplane into flaming metal. The missiles were defective.

Through Oliver North, a former Marine, the arm sales to terrorists became direct and the money from those sales were diverted to fight Reagan’s privately financed wars of terror in Central America. Because of those wars the International Criminal Court found the US guilty of international terrorism, the only nation ever found guilty of international terrorism. Reagan withdrew the US from the World Court and vetoed a UN Security Council Resolution calling on all nations to obey international laws and conventions. 

Perhaps it wasn’t because it would have been politically correct or the wrong time and place to remind us of those facts. Perhaps it was because such mention would have clouded the proud history of the United States Marine Corps, darkened the memories of the dead and dimmed the lights of the city on a hill.   

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