Nathaniel Fick is a former Force Recon Marine who wrote a masterful book on Iraq and our forces there entitled One Bullet Away. He and his band of merry marauders served as the model for Evan Wright’s Generation Kill, the Rolling Stones’ version of the Marine Corps.
From his new organization’s website:
Prior to joining CNAS, Mr. Fick served as a Marine Corps infantry officer. He took part in the earliest phases of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2001 and 2002 and led a reconnaissance unit during the invasion of Iraq in 2003. He served in 2007 as a civilian instructor at the Afghanistan Counterinsurgency Academy in Kabul, and in 2008 on the Presidential Transition Team at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
He is the author of the 2005 New York Times bestseller One Bullet Away, recognized as one of the “Best Books of the Year” by The Washington Post and one of the “Best Military Books of the Decade” by The Military Times. The Commanding General of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Central Command made One Bullet Away required reading for officers deploying to Afghanistan and Iraq.
If you have not already read the book, you should. It is great. But this post is not about Mr. Fick. Well, not entirely. It is about teenagers who want to follow in his footsteps and become Force Recon Marines. Like this little Genghis Khan:
Friend has Force Recon fever?
Me and a friend have wanted to join the Marine Corps since middle school. Well I want to be a pilot or someone in logistics and he wants to be in Force Recon. Since he learned about what Force Recon does he’s been doing stupid sh*t. Freshman year of high school he stayed outside during a blizzard and he nearly froze to death. He has climbed down and up numerous cliffs. He’s been known to crawl to school. He was just telling me that he tried swimming from our town to a town about 15 miles from us. He’s got a screw loose and I’m afraid he’s going to end up dying. How do I get a highly motivated individual to calm down and should I tell his recruiter? If I tell his recruiter will he get in any kind of trouble?
Hmm, he should consider swimming the crawl to school. That way he can check off two boxes on his Force Recon bucket list. Swim to school. And crawl to school.
Some years ago, my son could be seen in Army boots and fatigues running through our hilly neighborhood with a heavy backpack. On vacations at the beach, everyone else was in bathing suits, he with his gear was running through the surf. He had his Navy Seals workout regiment posted on his white board, daily diligently building his body. His goal was infantry. He is now senior weapons sergeant on a Special Forces A-team in Afghanistan on his fourth tour. This future recon Marine is well on his way to his dream, with his determination and dedication. His dad will be proud of him.
That is a great story. Our country excels because of dedication like this.
Dedication and determination; two of the many qualities I find so engaging and admirable in my love the Marine Corps…k
Generation kill was not good. Too hollyweird.
that’s “regimen”, no t.
When I got to K-Bay I had never been with Recon Marines. One day we were running P.T. and I was calling cadence. We were a 4th echeleon Motor T. platoon but we kept in decent shape (we deployed alot with 3rd Marines and were the MPS team). Well anyway… I was calling cadence and someone came running up behind use trying to be louder than me, I got louder and turned my head to see some Recon Marines comming up on me with their boat on their shoulders full of gear and one big guy with a boat motor on his back. I made up my mind that day that I was not cut out to be Recon.
Kris: Have you told the Marines about your feelings?
Senor Azur: Hollyweird has a way of messing things up.
twolaneflash: Roger!
SgtM: Great Americans. . .