Gareth, let me explain this way. They did a study a few years ago about how quickly members of the U.S. armed forces reintegrate to civilian society, to be a complete civilian again I mean. I lost the citation but the tables are as follows:
Airforce - 6 months to a year
Army/Navy - 1 year of reintegration for every year served
Marines - Never
So yes, the Corps is what I am. Being a Marine is part of the very fabric of what makes me up as an individual. It's a little worse for me because it's family tradition to serve. Again mostly in the Marine Corps.
That's what you get for joining a cult though, and per Marine Corps order we never leave the service. You're a Marine till you die, and if there's an afterlife you're expected to promptly report in at your next duty station.
"Marines are about the most peculiar breed of human beings, I have ever witnessed. They treat their service as if it were some kind of cult, plastering their emblem on almost everything they own, making themselves up to look like insane fanatics with haircuts to ungentlemanly lengths, worshipping their Commandant almost as if he were a god, and making weird animal noises like a band of savages. They'll fight like rabid dogs at the drop of a hat just for the sake of a little action, and are the cockiest sons of bitches I have ever known. Most have the foulest mouths and drink well beyond man's normal limits, but their high spirits and sense of brotherhood set them apart and, generally speaking, the United States Marines I've come in contact with are the most professional soldiers and the finest men I have ever had the pleasure to meet."
-Anonymous Canadian Citizen
