To be a warrior

By Bob McDowell

It is not my intention to glorify war. I have been there and found no glory.

War is a terrible thing, but sometimes the alternative can be much worse.
Freedom is only won and kept at great cost, and it is a warrior's place to pay that cost.
A true warrior does not want war,
he prays that his mere presence will deter the enemies of his people.
He fights because he must, and kills only when necessary.
The taking of a life is a terrible thing, it changes you forever.
History tells us that Mankind has always waged war, and there is no end in sight.
We take our freedom for granted,
but the only way we will remain free is to be prepared to fight for that freedom.

Honor

A warrior without honor is a bandit.
A warriors honor is his most valued possession.
Allow a defeated enemy to retain his honor and he may become an ally.
Remove his honor and have an enemy for eternity!

Duty

A warrior lives on duty.
Duty is what gets you through the dull boring parts.
That is what your core values are standing for.

Courage

A warrior without courage is worthless.
Do not confuse courage with having no fear.
Everyone is afraid, courage is going on anyway.
A little fear is good, it keeps you careful,
too much fear keeps you from doing what must be done.

Teamwork

In combat a bad attitude gets you killed.
Your buddies are your world and teamwork keeps you all alive.
A good team can accomplish what would be impossible for a group of individuals.
In combat you fight to stay alive and to keep your buddies alive!

Command

Command is the hardest of all.
In combat there is no time for a democratic vote.
One and only one must be in charge,
and make the decisions for all.
This does not mean that a commander does not listen to his troops,
on the contrary,
a good commander always listens to those under his command.
But there is a big difference between advise and information
and the actual decision.
Even the "right" decision may result in some being killed.
The ability to provide leadership under these circumstances
is very difficult
and requires a special individual:

…and an Officer!