Flags of our fathers

The battle of Iwo Jima began on 19 February, 1945. Four days later, on the 23rd of February, five Marines and a Navy Corpsman took part in the flag raising that led to the most famous photograph ever.

The photograph is a metaphor for the Marine Corps and the generation that shouldered the brunt of the great depression and WWII. Of the six men taking part, only an unidentifiable profile of one man can be made out. Two men are on the backside, and except for feet, hands and arms are not visible at all. The men struggle, working together, to hoisting the heavy pole with the flag, while exposed to enemy fires. It is the team work, anonymity and risk on display in this photograph that mark the Marine Corps and the greatest generation to this day.

When people first saw the photograph, many believed that the flag raising was the triumphant end of the battle on Iwo Jima. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The battle raged on until the night of 25 March when a 300-man Japanese force launched a final counterattack.

Of the over 20,000 Japanese troops defending the island, 18,000 died. Only 216 were captured. The Allied forces suffered 26,000 casualties, with nearly 7,000 dead (nearly one-third of all the Marine deaths in World War II). This was the only large engagement of WWII in which the Allied forces suffered more casualties (dead plus injured) than their Japanese opponents. Over a quarter of the Medals of Honor awarded to Marines in World War II were given for actions during the battle for Iwo Jima. The heroism of marines on Iwo Jima led Chester Nimits to remark, "Among the men who fought on Iwo Jima, uncommon valor was a common virtue."

“Uncommon valor was a common virtue” are the words etched into the Marine’s massive war memorial, Felix DeWeldon's artistic interpretation of of Joe Rosenthal's famous photo, adjacent Arlington Cemetery in Washington D.C. The Marines from 8th & I in Washington perform a sunset parade on summer evenings at the war memorial with the Washington Memorial and the Capital Building adding to beauty of the setting. Check it out if you get the chance.

It would just be too easy to juxtapose the courage of America and its leaders in 1945 to the craven few surrender monkeys running the Defeatocrat Party today. What remains largely unchanged is the honor, courage and commitment of the men who raised the flag on Iwo Jima on 23 February, 1945 and the Marines serving in the hostile Iraqi environment today. They remain today as they were then, Semper Fidelis – Always Faithful to God, Country and Corps.