Back into the Fight

[thedrifter]

12-08-2003

Back into the Fight





By Matthew Dodd



When I heard the news that the USS Cole had left port, my reaction was to say, ?God Bless America!?



On Nov 29, the now-famous guided-missile destroyer steamed out of Naval Station Norfolk for its very first overseas deployment since it was attacked by two suicide bombers in a small boat in Aden, Yemen, on Oct. 12, 2000. That terrorist attack killed 17 crewmembers, wounded another 39, and tore a large hole in the side of the Cole that almost caused it to sink while anchored offshore.



I can still see in my mind the electronic images of the crippled Cole that were forwarded to me via e-mail shortly after the attack. I can still remember reading the harrowing and horrific accounts of the survivors who were rescued and pulled to safety by their truly heroic shipmates.



I cannot forget watching on the internet and in the public media the agonizingly slow transit of the Cole on the deck of what seemed to be an impossibly huge lift ship back to the United States. She looked every bit like a wounded warrior being carried back to a triage unit to have her injuries cared for by the healing hands and aching hearts of dedicated doctors.



I remember discussing with my fellow Pentagon office mates what we had heard and read about the tragedy. We tried to imagine what it must have been like for those sailors to be going about their normal duties before the unimaginable happened in what I am sure was considered by them to be an impregnable floating fortress.



None of us working in the Pentagon ever imagined that less than 11 months after the Cole attack, we ourselves would be the subjects of discussion for countless other people trying to imagine what it must have been like for us to be going about our normal duties before the unimaginable happened in our impregnable fortress.



For me, the story of the Cole illustrates what makes the American people and our way of life so unique.



She is proud, yet able to be humbled.



She is powerful, yet vulnerable.



She is feared and respected, yet a target of bullies and unappreciated by many.



She was caught off-guard and unprepared, yet her spirit never faltered and she never went down.



Just knowing what she went through, to know that she is back out there doing what she does best in support of our global war on terrorism, sends shivers up and down my spine. I bet her 340-man crew and their families back home feel mighty proud and honored to be associated with such a special ship. They should.



The indomitable spirit of the Cole reminds me of a little motivating message I picked up during my initial days in the Marine Corps at Officer Candidate School. Its title and theme definitely applies to the Cole as well as to our country following the 9/11 terrorist attacks:



Fight One More Round?



Fight one more round when your feet are so tired that you have to shuffle back to the center of the ring ? fight one more round.



When your arms are so tired you can hardly lift your hands to come on guard ? fight one more round.



When your nose is bleeding and your eyes are black and you are so tired you wish your opponent would crack you on the jaw and put you to sleep ? fight one more round.



Remembering that the man who always fights one more round is never whipped.



Let the world know, without a doubt, that the USS Cole is back and ready to fight one more round.



Our nation?s history is full of calls to remember: ?Remember the Alamo!? ?Remember the Maine!? ?Remember Pearl Harbor!? Now, it is only appropriate that we say:



?Remember the Cole!?



Lt. Col. Matthew Dodd USMC is a Senior Editor of DefenseWatch. He can be reached at mattdodd1775@hotmail.com.


http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/...2.9455821978933

Sempers,

Roger