Death Knight

The dumber people think you are,
the more surprised they're going to be when you kill them
--William Clayton

Sure it's going to kill a lot of people,
but they may be dying of something else anyway
--Othal Brand

A prisoner of war is a man who tries to kill you
and fails, and then asks you not to kill him
--Winston Churchill
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I had the pleasure of speaking yesterday with a Marine who was out enjoying the sun on a bench. His talk of being a "killing machine" ties into the previous post.

The forearm tattoo and Marine Corps flags outside of his business were the giveaways, and I asked if he'd been in Vietnam. He said he was on the USS Kitty Hawk off of Vietnam, but never in Vietnam, as he joined the war late. He said he was also present off shore when the U.S. Embassy was overrun and masses of people were fleeing.

He told of his enlistment, how he joined in the Buddy System, how they managed to pass the entrance exam and how his mother signed his enlistment papers allowing him to join at age 17 from the 11th grade.

We spoke all too briefly, but his most poignant tale was of his transformation after Boot Camp at Parris Island. He was a country boy who had never left home, who fished and hunted and enjoyed a rather bucolic life. "The drill sergeants didn't have rules like they do today," he said. They punched, kicked and slapped the recruits into submission.

He used the word "brutalize," explaining they did this to break you all the way down. "But then they do build you back up, but into a killing machine." He explained how some of your self esteem returns, but not all.

I asked if reintegration into civilian life was difficult, and he said it wasn't for him, but allowed it might be different for those who had seen combat. He is married and seems to be a successful businessman.

He did note that he had a great focus on weapons when he came out, and that was because his esteem was wrapped into how good of a killing machine he could be, and the maintenance of his weapons was integral to that.

I was impressed with his good humor, self-awareness and willingness to speak with a stranger.