2009 marks the 50th anniversary of Armed Forces Day, which honors Americans serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. Find inspiration and honor in the 25 quotes below, which apply to all of the armed forces:
1. He loves his country best who strives to make it best. -Robert G. Ingersoll
2. From time to time, the tree of liberty must be watered with the blood of tyrants and patriots. -Thomas Jefferson
3. What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight – it’s the size of the fight in the dog. -General Dwight D. Eisenhower
4. American soldiers in battle don’t fight for what some president says on T.V., they don’t fight for mom, apple pie, the American flag…they fight for one another. -Lt. Col. Hal Moore
5. For those who have fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know. -Unknown
6. This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave. -Elmer Davis
7. Coffee tastes better if the latrines are dug downstream from an encampment. -US Army Field Regulations, 1861
8. Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered automatic weapons. -General MacArthur
9. Hard pressed on my right. My center is yielding. Impossible to maneuver. Situation excellent. I am attacking. -Ferdinand Foch (Battle of the Marne_
10. If it moves, salute it; if it doesn’t move, pick it up; and if you can’t pick it up, paint it.
-Anonymous
11. Bravery is being the only one who knows you’re afraid. -David Hackworth Li
12. If the enemy is in range, so are you. -Infantry Journal
13. People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. -George Orwell
14. Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it. -Dwight D. Eisenhower
15. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. -Thomas Jefferson
16. There is no security in this life. There is only opportunity. -Gen. Douglas MacArthur
17. One cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war. -Albert Einstein
18. To lead uninstructed people to war is to throw them away. –Confucius
19. The more comfort the less courage there is. -Field Marshal Prince Aleksandr V. Suvorov
20. The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his. -George Patton
21. Always forgive your enemies–nothing annoys them so much. -Oscar Wilde
22. Having lost sight of our objectives we need to redouble our efforts. -Anonymous
23. Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.
-Winston Churchill
24. Soldiers usually win the battles and generals get the credit for them. -Napoleon Bonaparte
25. No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation. -General Douglas MacArthur
