260 pages
Rating: (8K votes)
“My despair is less despair than boredom and loneliness.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“I have gone to war and now I can issue my complaint. I can sit on my porch and complain all day. And you must listen. Some of you will say to me: You signed the contract, you crying bitch, and you fought in a war because of your signature, no one held a gun to your head. This is true, but because I signed the contract and fulfilled my obligation to fight one of America’s wars, I am entitled to speak, to say, I belong to a fucked situation.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“It occured to me that we will never be young again.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“Every war is different. Every war is the same.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“Some wars are unavoidable and need well be fought, but this doesn't erase warfare's waste. Sorry, we must say to the mothers whose son's die horribly. This will never end. Sorry.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“My combat action has commenced... I've pissed my pants, but only a little.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“During the few months Troy had been back home, he’d told his friends about us, and so we quickly eased into the conversation as though we’d all known each other for many years. They embarrassed us with great thanks for having served overseas. They recounted combat events Troy had told them, and we realized by the context of their stories that Troy had made us heroes for his friends because we’d been heroes to him. At this point I was the saddest I’d yet been over Troy’s passing, because the true friend from war is the friend who obliterates his own story by telling the stories of others.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“It dosnt matter how many mr. and mrs. johnsons are anti war- the actuall killers who know how to use the weapons are not.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“Now I often think of the first time I received artillery fire, and the subsequent obliteration of the enemy observation post. I'll never know how many men manned the OP, but in memory I fix the number at two, and though at the time I was angry that the pompus captain took the handset from me and stole m y kills, I have lately been thankful he insisted on calling the fire mission, ans sometimes when I am feeling hopeful or even religious, I think that buy taking my two kills the pompous captain handed me life, some extra moments of living for myself or that I can offer others, though I have no idea to use or disuse these extra moments, or if I've wasted them already.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“When you fail, you disgrace yourself and others. When you succeed, be proud and others will be proud for you.”
― quote from Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles
“When you come to the king, and he asks for the beautiful princess, you must say, "Here she is!" Then he will be very joyful; and you will mount the golden horse that they are to give you, and put out your hand to take leave of them; but shake hands with the princess last. Then lift her quickly on to the horse behind you; clap your spurs to his side, and gallop away as fast as you can.”
― Jacob Grimm, quote from Grimm's Complete Fairy Tales
“I was hell-bent on being an effective humanitarian in Cambodia and Somalia. But a naïve fog is finally lifting. Revealed is a train wreck of illusions, the depravity of someone else's war, the futility of a competence stillborn there. To understand this you have to become this.”
― quote from Emergency Sex (And Other Desperate Measures): True Stories from a War Zone
“But fathers are soft on daughters. Look how Dad favors Angela. He gave her ten times more. Because she reminded him of Mae West. He was always smiling at her boobs. He wasn't aware of it. Mother and I saw it.”
― Saul Bellow, quote from Mr. Sammler's Planet
“Sometimes the greatest blessings are those that are withheld from us.”
― Jeff Wheeler, quote from The Hollow Crown
“After all of this, I do not want to be eaten by some random demon who just wanted a postshow snack.”
― Michelle Knudsen, quote from Evil Librarian
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