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http://www.tecom.usmc.mil/HD/Whos_Who/Basilone_J.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A Leatherneck friend of mine told me the story of John Basilone
and mentioned that he carried 60 pounds of ammo.

The above link and accompanying Medal of Honor memo from FDR
do not mention the carrying of 60 pounds of ammo, but I'm
speculating that he did so while re-supplying the 2 machine guns
he was commanding.

If any of us ever come under fire from a BG, keep "fighting spirit"
in mind. John Basilone certainly did.

SIA

Thank God for men like that.

I have a small vial of black Iwo Jima sand, taken from the spot where John Basilone was killed. It was sent to me by an acquaintance who was a Gunny with the 3rd Division, stationed on Okinawa. Part of his job was to conduct VIP tours of Iwo Jima for visiting Americans, and he told me he filled a sandbag with that black volcanic sand, taken from that spot, and brought it back with him.

FWIW, I read in the USO magazine "On Patrol" that later this year an (?) HBO miniseries will be coming out about the war in the Pacific. It will follow 3 particular Marines, and I believe Basilone is one of them.
TraCoun