Hands.....

.... there was a slight, steady breeze most of the afternoon today.... and I spent quite a few hours out on the patio under the shade of the dogwoods reading and writing - and sweating in the shade in spite of the breeze....... 90 degrees with 95% humidity?...... a breeze only creates a convection for the outdoor oven to all-the-better bake you with....... it's a helluva thing to sit in the shade - drinking cool liquids - and still sweat yourself into a puddle........

...... anyhoo, I found an interview of Paul Cartledge in last April's issue of Military History magazine that I couldn't quit laughing at....... he's evidently written a book about the Spartan's defense at Thermopylae that the critics are enjoying...... he had some interesting ideas in the interview....... but here is a brief quote for your enjoyment......

Question: Was this battle an example of what some historians later defined as "a Western way of war"?

Answer: Yes. The notion is that somehow we in the West are solitary and fight hand to hand. We look the enemy in the eyes, whereas Orientals tend to fight at a distance or from horseback, so they distance themselves from the actual physicality of war. Now guns transformed the notion of courage straightaway, so you have to look quite hard to find is Western tradition of courage persisting beyond the 17th or 18th century. But there is something to it.

...... look to the 17th or 18th centuries??....... good god........ when I was in the Corps, we were ALL taught hand to hand.... and as an adult I learned to fight with a knife...... a knife that I carry every day that I have my pants on....... and I have the defensive scars on my arms and hands to prove that I've played a few hands with blades......

.... I remember my Dad - a USMC Vietnam vet - telling me a story about some Marines trapped on some hilltop in Vietnam calling in for an evac........ the helicopter pilot radioed down to the embattled Marines... "Is the enemy close?"..... to which the grunt on the ground replied, "yeah, sir... hang on just a second and I'll let you talk to one of them."......

..... five years ago a soldier from El Salvador whipped out his pocket knife in Iraq and knifed two Bad Guys who were attacking the rest of his squad with AK-47s......

... 1600s?..... 1700s?..... hardly.... the spirit to get in there and mix it up is still MORE than alive and ready and living happily in the hearts of our warriors.......

..... I will say, though, that I think that I am very glad that the Japanese samurai stayed in Japan......... because that would have blown his theory right out of the water........ (even though there were a couple thousand years between the Greeks, Persians, and the Samurai.).......

...... still, though, all you have to do is to look at the "mission" of every Marine combat unit........ their mission?... words that we all learned in bootcamp......

... "to Locate, close with and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver.".....

.... catch that?...... "close with"...... for those of you who don't know, that means "to get close, to engage, to pursue, to make contact with. etc"........

....... and as a rule?..... if you meet someone - anyone - who is willing to locate, close with, and destroy you?....... well, it is safe to say that the pretty well mean business..........

.... I might suggest that Mr. Cartledge read some more up to date history...... that warrior spirit is still very, very alive and well.......... especially in the Marine Corps.....