Promote combat effectiveness within the U.S.
Armed Forces.
Part Two:
Aside from that which is implied in our Mission Statement,
we had some additional reasons for creating this website.
Doug and I have often discussed our experiences in the
Marine Corps. We both agreed that we learned far more
from listening to and observing experienced Marines than
we did from any formal training course or program. I think
it is safe to say that many veterans and active duty servicemen
share our opinion on this topic.
When we created this website in 2001, we realized that
the number of combat veterans in each branch of service
had decreased significantly and that much of their experiences
and knowledge had left the service with them. Compare
this to 1974 when I was a young enlisted Marine. In every
unit I served in, the vast majority of senior NCO's and
officers were veterans of the Vietnam War. A high percentage
of them had also served in the Korean War and the most
senior Marines were also veterans of World War II. Young,
inexperienced Marines like me learned much from these
highly experienced warriors. It is beyond debate that
their presence had a tremendous effect on the units they
served in.
As a result of extended combat operations in Afghanistan
and Iraq, there are now large numbers of combat veterans
in the Armed Forces and this website will enable them
to share their experiences with others and
Another reason why we created this website was the fact
that many of our older veterans are passing away at a
rapid rate. It is said that World War II and Korean War
veterans are dying at the rate of 3,000 per week. Soon,
there will be a shortage of World War II, Korea and Vietnam
veterans able to give interviews, write books or tell
people of their experiences in some of the most important
combat operations in our nation's history. We decided
to create this website in an effort to capture and preserve
as much experience and perspective from our older veterans
as possible.
