Haditha probe supports accusations against Pendleton Marines
I used to live in Oceanside, CA, which is just south of Camp Pendleton. When the Marines shipped out, the town really felt it.
I was driving along in my truck one day, on the...south, yes, south side of the 78, running some errand, when I spotted a Marine on the side of the road and pulled over to give him a lift. He was trying to reach a cell-phone store and wound up on the wrong side of the highway, so I saved him about 20 minutes of hoofing it in major heat with a big ol' backpack.
We talked. It's not like we bared our souls or anything -- it wasn't a long ride.
He'd just finished training in something and was looking forward to shipping out to Iraq. When I let him out in the parking lot of the local Wal-Mart, I told him to "stay safe".
This was back when we were still the good guys. It never occurred to me to tell him, "stay true". Because he was a Marine, and they've always been faithful.
When I talk about honor being stained, I'm talking about Semper Fidelis being spat on. I'm talking about oaths betrayed. About a proud military tradition being sullied.
This is no small thing. This is about our character as a nation.
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