I have returned. By the grace of Almighty God, our forces stand again on Philippine soil.
I have every confidence in the ultimate success of our joint cause; but success in modern war requires something more than courage and a willingness to die: it requires careful preparation.
I have known war as few men now living know it. It’s very destructiveness on both friend and foe has rendered it useless as a means of settling international disputes.
They died hard, those savage men – like wounded wolves at bay. They were filthy, and they were lousy, and they stunk. And I loved them.
The soldier, above all other men, is required to practice the greatest act of religious training – sacrifice.
In war, as it is waged now, with the enormous losses on both sides, both sides will lose. It is a form of mutual suicide.
In war, when a commander becomes so bereft of reason and perspective that he fails to understand the dependence of arms on Divine guidance, he no longer deserves victory.
However horrible the incidents of war may be, the soldier who is called upon to offer and to give his life for his country is the noblest development of mankind.
I will defend Korea as I would my own country-just as I would California.
Training distinguishes an army from an armed mob.
I suppose, in a way, this has become part of my soul. It is a symbol of my life. Whatever I have done that really matters, I’ve done wearing it. When the time comes, it will be in this that I journey forth. What greater honor could come to an American, and a soldier?
The hated system of land tenure, so contributory to general unrest in Asia, has been abolished. Every farmer is now accorded the right and dignity of ownership of the land he long has tilled.
The chickens are coming home to roost, and you happen to have just moved into the chicken house.
The great question is, can war be outlawed from the world? If so, it would mark the greatest advance in civilization since the Sermon on the Mount.
Never ask age of a woman.
A better world shall emerge based on faith and understanding.
Life is a lively process of becoming.
Part of the American dream is to live long and die young. Only those Americans who are willing to die for their country are fit to live.
The inescapable price of liberty is an ability to preserve it from destruction.
I know that this operation will be sort of helter-skelter. But the First Marine Division is going to win the war by landing at Inchon.