Marines' honor is at stake

My daddy Earl was a Marine on Okinawa. An uncle, retired Gunnery Sgt. John Graham Smith, USMC, landed on Guadalcanal with the 1st Marine Division.

Another family Marine, my Uncle Doc, served in two wars. The first military funeral I attended was for my cousin, Cpl. Charles Rogers, USMC.

I grew up in the shadow of the "Old Breed," those proud Marines whose blood, sweat and bravery inspired the enduring legends of the Corps.

There is a line in their hymn that cuts to the heart of what it means to wear Marine blue: "First to fight for right and freedom and to keep our honor clean, we are proud to claim the title of United States Marine."

Marine honor is at stake in an investigation into what happened in the awful town of Haditha, Iraq. There are reports -- some reliable and some perhaps not -- that 1st Division Marines there intentionally gunned down innocent people.

Reports say as many as two dozen Iraqis died. How many Marines, if any, did the killing, no one knows. A squad has been brought home pending an investigation. Three Marine officers have been relieved of duty, but a lawyer for one says that's not related to the Haditha incident.

I hope the massacre didn't happen. I served in the Army, but my heart has always been with the Corps. I admire Marine traditions, history and their unquestioned faith in themselves and each other.

Before we are quick to condemn warriors in a war, we should remember what they are trained to do: Break things, and kill the enemy. Everything else is a part-time job. Nation-building and peacekeeping are important, but they are jobs for diplomats and police officers.

The military is the nation's fast and furious closed fist, not the open hand of friendship.

Sometimes the hardest job is knowing friend from foe. From what I have read, Haditha is a hotbed of insurgency and a nasty killing ground for Marines. Last summer, six Marines died in an ambush. Two days later, 14 Marines died when a roadside bomb destroyed their vehicle.

Last November, a popular young lance corporal from El Paso named Miguel Terrazas was killed and two Marines were wounded when yet another roadside bomb exploded.

Initial reports said the civilians died in the blast and ensuing firefight. Later reports say the Marines, perhaps fueled by rage and a lust for revenge, may have gone on a killing spree.

I don't want it to be true. I need to believe in the Marine Corps and those who wear the eagle, globe and anchor insignia. I need to believe that Marines stand for something good, clean and decent.

But if a terrible thing happened in that place, the Marine Corps owes it to the Old Breed to get to the truth.

The Corps has a debt to men like my Uncle John, who grows old in Charleston; to men like my daddy, who died with little to show for World War II but a Purple Heart, alcoholism and a 1st Marine Division patch; to men like my young friend, Pfc. Evan Gearino, USMC, who is training to take his place in the proud ranks of Marines who have gone before.

They deserve to know that the honor and reputation of the Corps they served, like their hymn says, is still clean.

Semper fi, Daddy.