First to Fight
First to Fight!
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Is First to Fight Really that Good of a Book… Air War College 2 September 2009 By Michael E. Cordero LtCol USMC
First to Fight!
General Al Gray, the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) placed the book First to Fight (FtF) written by Lieutenant General (LtGen) Victor Krulak, on the first Service reading list established in 1988.2 General James Conway, the 34th and current CMC mandated in an All Marine (ALMAR) message
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during May 2007 that all Devil Dogs would read the book FtF and discuss its importance and what it means to them.3 During September 2009, General Conway published another ALMAR that supported his Commanders who recommended retaining FtF as the CMC’s choice.4 Is this book really that good?! LtGen Krulak retired from the United States Marine Corps (USMC) in 1968 surrounded by much controversy; he was promised by both the Secretary of the Navy and Defense that he was going to be the next CMC and President Johnson surprised everyone by selecting somebody else.5 He finished/published FtF in 1984; the title comes from recruiting slogans of World War I (WWI) and has been preached at USMC boot camps and Officer Candidates School since at least 1984.6 Although history would prove that the USMC is usually the first into a conflict, the book is not a complete history of the USMC. In a book that is 270 pages long, well over half of the book is written about events that took place primarily between 1934-1968, the years that he was on active duty. Surprisingly, he mentions nothing about the USMC’s role in America leaving Vietnam in 1975 and dedicates less than a sentence to the tragedy of the Beirut bombing attack of 23 October 1983. So why did LtGen Krulak write this entertaining, easy to read book? LtGen Krulak wrote FtF as a means to show both the American public and future Marines why the USMC is such a special and unique institution. When General Conway first made FtF mandatory reading, he stated, “This book
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Is First to Fight Really that Good of a Book… Air War College 2 September 2009 By Michael E. Cordero LtCol USMC
First to Fight!
General Al Gray, the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) placed the book First to Fight (FtF) written by Lieutenant General (LtGen) Victor Krulak, on the first Service reading list established in 1988.2 General James Conway, the 34th and current CMC mandated in an All Marine (ALMAR) message
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during May 2007 that all Devil Dogs would read the book FtF and discuss its importance and what it means to them.3 During September 2009, General Conway published another ALMAR that supported his Commanders who recommended retaining FtF as the CMC’s choice.4 Is this book really that good?! LtGen Krulak retired from the United States Marine Corps (USMC) in 1968 surrounded by much controversy; he was promised by both the Secretary of the Navy and Defense that he was going to be the next CMC and President Johnson surprised everyone by selecting somebody else.5 He finished/published FtF in 1984; the title comes from recruiting slogans of World War I (WWI) and has been preached at USMC boot camps and Officer Candidates School since at least 1984.6 Although history would prove that the USMC is usually the first into a conflict, the book is not a complete history of the USMC. In a book that is 270 pages long, well over half of the book is written about events that took place primarily between 1934-1968, the years that he was on active duty. Surprisingly, he mentions nothing about the USMC’s role in America leaving Vietnam in 1975 and dedicates less than a sentence to the tragedy of the Beirut bombing attack of 23 October 1983. So why did LtGen Krulak write this entertaining, easy to read book? LtGen Krulak wrote FtF as a means to show both the American public and future Marines why the USMC is such a special and unique institution. When General Conway first made FtF mandatory reading, he stated, “This book