Monday, October 01, 2007

What We Are



This post was written by Sgt. Billy Knipper, who has joined Gunz Up as one of the writers. We moved this powerful post to the top of the blog because it defines the men we want to honor on Gunz Up. Sgt. Knipper was the Chief Instuctor for Camp Pendleton's Divisional Machine Gun Classes.

There are some who might ask if a young man today is as 'Rough and Tumble' as they were 60 or 70 years ago. If the iron will of the greatest generation has seeped away and left us with the shabby ram-shackle gathering of video gamers and I-Pod enthusiasts. Can Wars be won by such men?

Without a doubt the answer is YES!

All people are preprogrammed with survival traits and that fury of centuries old-anger and oppression that all people felt at some point in the earth's history, and the right kind of tempering will drive that Warrior to the surface. After that he will become an outcast, an anachronism seen amongst his former peers as an oddity. So we congregate together in our legions as "Brothers-of-the-Sword" have for millenia and wait.

And then a War strikes. And a person must decide if the metal and steel is sharp and hard enough.

Among who show merit-

We are gunslingers of the highest order. The Gear we carry is heavier than the others just as the burden which rests on our hardened shoulders. We know when the gunfight breaks out, whether it is reactionary of deliberate, our task will not change. We must become a ghost, a phantom, an in-human monster, that is not simply relegated to being part of the bullet-here, bullet-there, poke and hope rifleman way of the business. Our task will involve us leaving a covered area to get in to the fight with our two or three man team which is of one mind, one goal. To lay withering fires across the field and dominate the enemies real estate and their will. We know that the number of enemy we will destroy is tempered by the number of brothers that will not have to lay down their lives today because of the dragons fire we bring to the field.

We are not simply servicemen. We are not only Marines. Nor, or we just Marine Infantry. WE ARE MARINE MACHINE GUNNERS.

We will live by five truths.

The Marine Machine Gunner...

...Does Not Know Fear
...Does Not Know Pain
...Does Not Suffer From the Fog of War, but Creates It
...Seeks Position to Destroy Evil
...Is Not Human

We are avenging angels who will destroy the will of our enemy and bolster the spirits of our brothers for they know we watch the walls and dark places tonight. We are not simply a throwback to WWII or Korea, but the incarnation of all warriors who chose the path gauranteeing further destruction of those who would do their kinsmen harm. Like the perfect Spartan Phalanx in ancient times where each shield covers the man to your left or right thereby securing the safety of the whole we will become that perfect mesh of metal and iron will that will win the battle.

We are United States Marine Machine Gunners.

40 comments:

De'on Miller said...
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Anonymous said...
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De'on Miller said...

My Ya Ya

Anonymous said...

I have to say that i have never wanted to talk to reporters of any kind. but i have to say that you sir are the exception to my rule. Being their with Austin and in falluja with the my brothers from Echo. I have been a number of times to the Sandbox. Yet everynight i see another report or an artical of how the american people have turned their backs on the men and women who protect them because of a mis lead fact or a half a story. I comend you for what you are about to embark on and i only hope that more will fallow your lead.

SEMPER FI

SGT. WHITT
USMC

De'on Miller said...

Good to hear from you, Sgt. Steve is in Turkey or (on his way) while he's waiting on his visa (Oh, please, God). I know he'll appreciate your message, and I do, too.

Semper Fi,
De'on

Anonymous said...

my name is tim.My nephew was in fallujah during operation phantom fury,at the same time your son was.Im not sure they even knew each other and my nephew and his brother marines had sent me some pictures on cds,Im not sure if you or steve would be interested in these pictures for your coverage,and there not something i can post.My nephew dosnt talk about fallujah and i dont ask.I leave for iraq on the 22nd and will posting for the corpsblog about civilians working for the military and will be doing my part to make our soldiers comfortable during their down times.Im an hvac/r mechanic and have done it for 20+ yrs.being a little over the hill to join the military,and being a vet this is my contribution to our troops.Reading your story about your son makes me proud to be an american.Your son is in my heart and prayers.god bless you and your family and god bless aaron..Hes a great marine. semper fi thdavisemperfi@yahoo.com

De'on Miller said...

Oh wow. That would be great. My address is 1102 West Tyler
Lovington, NM 88260

That's great that you're going over there for them. I think they might be the ones I'll be writing for some?

Thank God for people like you! And God bless you for your touching words about Aaron.

Wow, this is all good. Maybe I've been wrong about the apathy. Maybe we're not, and maybe our support just doesn't get "heard" enough.

Don't we have so many opportunities to help?

Thank you for writing.

Semper Fi,
Aaron's Mom, De'on

De'on Miller said...

Aaron left for the sandbox again on Feb. 29, 2004. He was killed during Operation Vigilant Resolve on April 26. He wasn't there long.

Anonymous said...

Hi guys i posted today on corpsbloghope ya read it.I had some problems posting so russ did it for me...So hows steve,hey mister hope your taking great care up there.Im pretty pumped packing,getting the game face on.Yes maam im the one who wrote here..I was afraid to post as referman,it could be misunderstood..But now ya know its refrigeration..Bobby knight has toned down a bit but hes still a great coach..I cant wait to read more from you guys,got to do some more packing,be safe..GOD BLESS OUR SOLDIERS AND THEIR FAMILIES semper fi

De'on Miller said...

You are a wonderful man. And I would think so if you weren't referring to a reefer truck! Thank you for your kind, kind (and funny) posts and comments. I want to keep in touch with you!

De'on Miller said...

Erik, I'm so sorry for deleting your comment! Please post another. I hit your trash can instead of mine. I was hoping if I deleted "Perfume" that our sidebar would come back up. As you can see, we've started over a bit!

Semper Fi!

Anonymous said...

Be careful and God Speed.

This blog is so refreshing and extremely positive. I'll be back visting often. Semper Fi!

Thank you de'on for your kind words and interest over my way. I truly appreciated it.

Anonymous said...

Gunz gives Gunz up a thumbs up!

De'on Miller said...

Oh, Gunz....thank you! Bless you! And yes, Semper Fi!
De'on

The Chief said...

Well,

I understand you are 'in country'. Be careful and God bless.

Anonymous said...

Just wanted to let you know I just added you to my blog roll. Of course I use Blog Rolling for my links so it might take a few for it to appear...

Semper Fi!

De'on Miller said...

I consider that a huge complement. Your blog screams of talent, humor, faith, ...love and patriotism.

It inspires me and your encouragement of others is touching.

FreeCyprus said...

My first time visiting here. Very interesting stuff you've got here, enjoying the read and the pics.

Regarding "apathy"...there isn't as much as we sometimes think. It's just that the apathetic ones stick in our heads and really drag us down. However, I believe that the majority sincerely care about the brave men and women serving their country, even if they don't alway agree with their government's policies.

De'on Miller said...

I think I'm beginning to see that...lately anyway.

For so long, the war coverage had to be read in the highlighted material down at the bottom of the TV.

It seemed for so long that the MSM was more involved in college rapes, run-away brides...all that. But lately, they are covering a lot more. I hope it's not just because it's election time.

Since I started blogging, I see a great deal of interest. Which helps.

When Aaron left for OIF 1, it was solid...but maybe since it was "new."

I also wonder if Americans just hope if they "hope" long enough, it will all go away.

9/11 brought something into our lives that we have a hard time, even now, fully imagining.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you come back!

Neo-Con Tastic said...

My prayers are with you. Report the truth for us to hear.

De'on Miller said...

It will be... it's senseless to go there for anything less.

The troops must come first. Even before the families...

Thank you for your prayers.

De'on Miller said...

It is so nice to have people like you around. What a delight you are!

Anonymous said...

All present and accounted for. We're sorry for not writing but we've been a little busy kicking that insurgent ass!! We're good though. Just tired and diry. We didn't know where to leave a comment cause all the posts look like personal ones so we didn't know if it was cool to leave a comment there or not. We just decided to leave it here.

De'on Miller said...

Oh my precious Mushrooms, it is all personal here you know, and we are so thankful you're back.

Each Marine fatality whose name I typed, I was scared it could be you. I am shaking with thankfulness for your return and thank you for your fight!

You must jump in at any point! You are ours! We are family and it is all dedicated to you all! We love you.

Later, I am going to copy a story Aaron's gunner, Jose Cruz wrote for me 2 months after Aaron was KIA.

Welcome back my babies!

Anonymous said...

I want to encourage you on the work you are doing here. I have been reading here pretty much every day for some time now, and there is a presence of peace here. I have read other blogs, but I'm turned off by the negativity on most of them. This place is different. Please be encouraged. This is wonderful.

Opal Johnson
Nashville, Tennessee

Anonymous said...

I wanted to mention that my grandson is a Marine. I love him so much and I'm so proud of him.

De'on Miller said...

And I know you have every reason to be proud of him, Opal. Thank you so much.

De'on Miller said...

I just read your first comment, Opal. Thank you for the encouragement. We all need it during these troubled times. And those in uniform certainly need it. I am so encouraged by them. They are our best!

Thank you for taking the time to comment in this way.

Anonymous said...

that guy is a dude, makes me wanna joing the marines

De'on Miller said...

Thank you, and we could use you! :)

Tina Su said...

Great site. Love the posts. You should check out Little Green Footballs (www.littlegreenfootballs.com) It'sa great site. i just started going there last month. very interesting stuff. Keep posting!

De'on Miller said...

Thanks for coming by. I will!

blank said...

Go, Write, Record... It is a struggle that needs its story told.

De'on Miller said...

Thank you, roxieamerica. Your encouragement counts so very much.

Anonymous said...

Great piece, Billy!
Look forward to reading more of your writing.

blank said...

Excellent post! Thank you for all you do.

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De'on Miller said...

Pill pushers, product pushers, go peddle somewhere else. I'm fed up with you.