Charles B. Rangel Quotes

When soldiers have been baptized in the fire of a battle-field, they have all one rank in my eyes.

As a Korean War veteran, I know firsthand and understand the sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform.

The notion that war forever separates veterans from the rest of mankind has been long embedded in our collective consciousness.

I never thought anyone would pity me because of my time in the Marine Corps.

I would not trade you a billion dollars for the kids I led to combat in Vietnam or in fact any of the Marines that I served with for a quarter of a century.

War is hell. Sending young people to conflicts that are unwinnable and unresolvable - it puts them in a position where they're going to suffer. And yet their experience is that they're proud of their service, and they should be. Service freely rendered is a noble thing.

As a combat veteran, I know the cost of war.

I'm a Vietnam veteran. I was here when there was no public support, not just for the effort in Vietnam, for the mission in Vietnam, but for our men and women in uniform.

As young West Point cadets, our motto was 'duty, honor, country.' But it was in the field, from the rice paddies of Southeast Asia to the sands of the Middle East, that I learned that motto's fullest meaning. There I saw gallant young Americans of every race, creed and background fight, and sometimes die, for 'duty, honor, and their country.'

Spending time with America's soldiers is always inspiring.

I talked to some vets in L.A. about what they go through and do they think about their experiences a lot. I got a wide array of answers. Some people get very emotional, which is understandable. Two of my best friends growing up are in the armed services, and getting to represent those guys was a big honor for me.

Battle is the soldier's vital breath! Peace turns him into a stooping asthmatic. War makes him a whole man again, and gives him the heart, strength, and vigor of a hero.

My experience on 'Jarhead' was life changing.

Everything starts and finishes with the soldier.

Against the wishes of my family, I gave up my legal career, and I volunteered for the Army. I became an infantryman. I went to Iraq and Afghanistan.

We Marines believe that God gave America the greatest gift He could bestow to man while he lived on this earth -freedom. We also believe He gave us another gift nearly as precious - our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Coast Guardsmen, and Marines - to safeguard that gift and guarantee no force on this earth can ever steal it away.

I'm proud to have served there for 12 months with Alpha Company of the 39th Infantry.

I am not going to second-guess my old battlefield comrades from Iraq and Afghanistan; each has his own reason for what he has done.

I've learned our soldiers are so much like everybody else. They're just put into an extreme situation.

Any time I can spend time with my brothers and sisters who fight for this country and fight for freedom, it's a positive thing.

Vets are different than other people. Frontline or support, they carry themselves differently than the rest of us. It is as if they entered the service as one person and came out another, and that is the person who they are the rest of their lives.

The military is a path of the unknown. I wasn't in denial about the risk.

I am proud to be a SEAL and serve in the military.

You know, I had gone to war.

Surely no issue unites us more than our appreciation for our military personnel who are bringing aid to devastated countries, defending us against terrorism, and fighting to make a free election possible in Iraq.