Witheringtree » Military

To the shores of Tripoli

David Freerksen — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:21:46 +0000

Before the uprising in Libya, even though it is part of the Marine Corps Hymn, I really doubt most Marines knew were Tripoli was located. ‘To the shores of Tripoli’ in the Marine Corps Hymn stems from the Battle of Derne. It is the first recorded land battle fought overseas by the United States. It was after this battle that 1st Lt. O’Bannon was presented the Mameluke sword, which is still worn by Marine officers today.

More Marines are aware that ‘The Halls of Montezuma’ is from the Battle of Chapultepec, only because it is from this battle that we get the blood stripe that NCOs wear to commemorate the Marines that died during this battle. I doubt most Marines know that the Battle of Chapultepec was fought during the Mexican-American War were US forces fought Mexican forces holding Chapultepec Castle located west of Mexico City.

INFIDEL 0341

David Freerksen — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 17:33:31 +0000

This has to be the best motorcycle photo I have ever seen. It is on an ’04 Harley-Davidson FXST. In case you don’t know what 0341 means, 0341 is the Marine Corps MOS number for infantry mortarman.

I found this picture on ChopCult.com. You can see the guys profile here.

Motivational Poster

David Freerksen — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:37:32 +0000

After I posted that last image, I found one that I liked better. So I’m posting this one as well.

Happy Birthday, Marines

David Freerksen — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 01:48:39 +0000

The United States Marine Corps turns 234 years old today. Happy Birthday to all of the Devil Dogs.

I Don’t Have PTSD, I Swear

David Freerksen — Sun, 10 May 2009 03:26:29 +0000

I was at work today and got a phone call from someone wanting to do a phone interview about my combat deployment. It was basically a bunch of questions about the status about my health (mental and physical) since I came back from deployment. I did a similar one after I cam back from the deployment in 2006. Why they needed to do another one three years later, I don’t know.

I answered all of her questions and at the end she said she wanted to transfer me to someone else because I show signs of having PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).

First of all, I don’t like someone I have never met telling me over the phone that I may have PTSD all because of the way I answered some questions. Second of all, I don’t even like being lumped into that kind of category.

Big deal if I have dreams every now and then. It was a combat deployment. It was a series of significant events in my life. And who cares if I try to avoid situations where I think something might remind me of something that happened over there. I just don’t want to deal with it.

The one thing that I will give her though is this. I sometimes feel disconnected from others. Like there is a difference between them and me. Not the “I’m a Marine and you aren’t and I’m better than you” kind of difference. More of a feeling that people won’t understand.

Victory Point

David Freerksen — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 09:55:42 +0000

I just ordered a book for myself and my family. This is the story of my unit, 2/3, during Operation Red Wings and Operation Whalers in Afghanistan in 2005. Be sure to order your copy!

Also be sure to visit the website for the book as well.

“This is how our grunts fight in Afghanistan. As you read, you will be exhausted, and above all, proud that these dauntless men guard our country.” – Bing West, National Bestselling Author

VICTORY POINT recounts the amazing story of the 2nd Battalion of the 3rd Marine Regiment (2/3) during Operations Red Wings and Whalers in the summer of 2005, where the Marines ultimately destroyed a ruthless Taliban- and Al Qaeda-linked insurgency cell led by a terrorist named Ahmad Shah.
Little has been comprehensively written about Red Wings, and virtually nothing has been disclosed or written about Operation Whalers, the subsequent mission, which yielded a vastly different outcome than that of Red Wings.

Semper Fi!