The slogan “A Few Good Men” is one the United States Marine Corps (USMC) has been using since as far back as 1799. To some this is nothing more than a catchy recruiting slogan, but the USMC really takes this to heart.
Having served in the USMC for nearly ten years, it has been hard recently to be proud of that service. But in what some might feel is our darkest hour at least two of these “Few Good Men” stood up to be counted.
The first, former Secretary of Defense and Marine General (ret.) James Mattis stated clearly where he stood on recent events when he stated:
“Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.”
The Atlantic – “James Mattis Denounces President Trump, Describes Him as a Threat to the Constitution” by Jeffery Goldberg, June 3, 2020
The second is retired Marine General John Allen who published an article on the online site Foreign Policy that ends with these words:
“So, what is to be done? At nearly the same moment that Americans were being beaten near the White House on behalf of their president, George Floyd’s brother Terrence Floyd visited the site of George’s murder. Overcome with grief and anger, he loudly upbraided the crowd for tarnishing his brother’s memory with violence and looting. And then he told Americans what to do: vote. “Educate yourselves,” he said, “there’s a lot of us.” So, while June 1 could easily be confused with a day of shame and peril if we listen to Donald Trump, if instead we listen to Terrence Floyd, it is a day of hope. So mark your calendars—this could be the beginning of the change of American democracy not to illiberalism, but to enlightenment. But it will have to come from the bottom up. For at the White House, there is no one home.”
Foreign Policy – “A Moment of National Shame and Peril—and Hope” by John Allen, June 3, 2020.
It has always taken “A Few Good Men” to stand up to tyrants and despots. These two men exemplify the esprit de corps that is emphasized so heavily in the United States Marine Corps.