The September-October issue of Semper Fi, the Magazine of the Marine Corps League, highlights two extremes of military might: the stealthy, lethal sniper and the massive force of tanks, amtracks and other armored vehicles.

Today's Marine Corps snipers carry on a lengthy military tradition - that of the solitary elite marksman patiently stalking his quarry often behind enemy lines. Today's Devil Dog snipers usually work in small teams, and may spend as much time gathering intel on shadowy terrorists as getting into place for a lethal shot.

Marine Corps armor also bears a proud tradition, one that made its legendary battles in the Pacific in WWII unforgettable as amphibious vehicles and tanks fought their way ashore. Today's tankers operate the mighty M1A1 Abrams; the Corps has upgraded and refitted its old amphibian assault vehicles to meet modern needs as a stopgap for the next generation of amphibs.

Also in this issue of Semper Fi which we produce for the Marine Corps League is a look back 60 years to another famous Marine flag raising, this one above the US Ambassador's residence in Seoul, South Korea. And we report on the 87th National MCL Convention, held this past August in Greensboro, NC.

A few of the gazillion
Twitter apps and clients

But to better understand Twitter, and why it is so important, you must think of it as more than a website. Indeed, there are millions of Twitter users who rarely, if ever, visit the Twitter website.

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New ABM CEO Clark Pettit

For the past several months, I've served on the search committee to find a new president and CEO of the business-to-business media association, American Business Media. Today that committee disbanded as the Board of Directors of ABM made official the hiring of Clark Pettit as President and CEO, succeeding Gordon T. Hughes II. (I've included the press release at the bottom of this post.)

Continue reading "ABM's new president and thoughts on the future of business media" »

All this extra mass required correspondingly greater amounts of fuel and electricity to run. Now, eying a return to its seafaring roots, the Corps is slimming down. From battlefield to base barracks, the Corps is particularly interested in curbing its appetite for fuel and power. The July-August issue of Semper Fi, the magazine of the Marine Corps League, examines how the Marines plan to get back into fighting trim.

Some of that new equipment was on display at the recent Marine South Military Expo aboard Camp Lejeune, NC. Sponsored by the Marine Corps League the Expos showcase the finest gear available to the military in the world.

Elsewhere in this issue, we meet a Marine veteran who did a tour in Korea during that "Forgotten War," leading a squad of airplane mechanics who kept Marine aviators in the air around the clock. Flight mechanics had to go up with pilots to check out repairs, leading to some hair-raising moments - and a very personal commitment to do it right - first time, every time.

Semper Fi also remembers the Navajo Code Talkers of World War II, who used their native language to transmit unbreakable messages during the bloody battles with the Japanese on remote Pacific Islands. With only a few left, they are pursuing a new goal: To build a museum and veterans center honoring their legacy.

The new issue also coincides with the League's 87th National Convention in August in Greensboro, NC, and the magazines salutes retiring National Commandant Jim Laskey.

The issue also reports on progress toward a cherished League objective — redesignating the Department of the Navy as the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps. Though approved by the House and with most of the Senate signed on as cosponsors, the effort still faces potentially stiff opposition when debate starts sometime this summer.

"A veteran - whether active duty, retired, National Guard or Reserve - is someone who, at one point in his (or her) life, wrote a blank check made payable to the United States of America for an amount of 'up to and including my life'."

Memorial Day has been set aside as a time to remember those who have paid that ultimate price, and also to honor and thank those who returned from their time of service.

We think often of our military serving overseas, but time and again, they have come to aid citizens here when floods, blizzards, hurricanes and other disasters strike. It matters not whether they faced combat or served in a time of – always relative – peace. What matters is that they were willing to put their lives between us and our enemies in serving America.

Hammock Inc. has the privilege of publishing the member magazine for the Marine Corps League. None of us is a veteran, but as we tell members who ask, we try to be a friend. And though most of the rest of the year we'd argue that the Marines are America's best, on Memorial Day, and Veterans' Day, we lay that aside to honor all equally.

In the 4 years that we have worked with the League and heard amazing stories of heroism and hardship, I've often thought back to the immortal speech William Shakespeare gave Henry V before that battle on St. Crispian's Day. It's worth repeating part of it here, as a reminder of why veterans deserve honor not due to us civilians:

" We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day."

(Photo At Top: Airman Jacob Proffer, a member of the Air Force Honor Guard, pauses to salute a grave after placing a miniature flag at its base during the “Flags In” tribute at Arlington National Cemetery, May 21, 2009. “When I do this, it makes me take a lot more pride every time I put on my uniform, seeing the measure of sacrifice so many have made,” he said. DoD photo by Donna Miles")