Devil Dogs

Today is the 231st birthday of the oldest military unit in America - the Marines. Nicknamed a number of things over the centuries, one of my favorites is the "Devil dogs," given them by Germans in World War I due to the Marines' ferocity in combat.

"Come on, you sons of bitches - do you want to live forever?"
Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly, USMC, Belleau Wood, June 1918

"Casualties many; Percentage of dead not known; Combat efficiency; we are winning."
Colonel David M. Shoup, USMC, Tarawa, 21 November 1943

"I have only two out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold."
First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates, USMC, 96th Co., Soissons, 19 July 1918

"Retreat hell! We just got here!"
USMC Captain Lloyd Williams, Lucy-le-Bocage, 1918

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem."
President Ronald Reagan, 1985

Indeed.