My Favorite Quotes

I've been building a collection of quotes about and by Marines and our military for a while. Lots of us Marine moms like to have quotes in our signature lines on the message boards. That's where I got many of these. I'll start with the most popular quote (at least among the moms).

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

"Marines are about the most peculiar breed of human beings I have ever witnessed. They treat their service as if it were some kind of cult, plastering their emblems on almost everything they own, making themselves up to look like insane fanatics with haircuts to ungentlemanly lengths, worshipping their Commandant almost as if he were a god, and making weird animal noises like a bunch of savages. They'll fight like rabid dogs at the drop of a hat just for the sake of a little action, and are the cockiest sons of bit**es I have ever known. Most have the foulest mouths and drink well beyond man's normal limits, but their high spirits and sense of brotherhood set them apart and, generally speaking, the United States Marines I've come in contact with are the most professional soldiers and the finest men I have ever had the pleasure to meet."
- an anonymous Canadian citizen

"People sleep peacebably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
- George Orwell

"You have earned the title "Marine" upon graduation from recruit training. It wasn't willed to you; it isn't a gift. It is not a government subsidy. Few can claim the title; no one may take it away. It is forever yours."
-Tom Bartlett, Leatherneck Magazine

"The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank GOD for the United States Marine Corps."
- Eleanor Roosevelt, 1945

"I have only two men 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."
- 1st Lt. Clifton B. Cates in Belleau Wood, 19 July 1918

"Freedom is not free, but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share."
- Ned Dolan

"I am convinced that there is no smarter, handier, or more adaptable body of troops in the world."
- Prime Minister of Britain, Sir Winston Churchill

"Being ready is not what matters. What matters is winning after you get there."
- LtGen Victor H. Krulak, USMC April 1965

You cannot exaggerate about the Marines. They are convinced to the point of arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth- and the amusing thing about it is that they are.
- Father Kevin Keaney
1st Marine Division Chaplain, Korean War

"We steal the Eagle from the Air Force, the Anchor from the Navy, the rope from the Army, and on the Seventh Day when God rested, we overran his perimeter and stole the Globe, and have been protecting our shores ever since."
-USMC

"It is physically and morally impossible to support the troops but not the war. That is a coward's way of saying he/she hopes we lose. Either support our forces in their efforts to win or support our enemies. One cannot choose between the two."
-Steve Clayton

"As Marines, our message to our foes has always been essentially the same...'We own this side of the street! Threaten my Country or our allies and we will come over to your side of the street, burn your hut down, whisper in your ear 'Can you hear me now?' ...and then secure your heartbeat.'"
-Colonel James M. Lowe