A Tale of Two Captains

This is a story of two Captains, each fought in Vietnam. One was a blowhard and got his rifle company chopped to bits because of lousy tactics and won the Medal of Honor. We'll call him Captain Coyote. The other Captain showed great personal valor by hanging from a bridge under enemy fire to place charges under the bridge and slow an enemy advance. For his actions he was awarded the Navy Cross, which is under the Medal Of Honor in precedence. His name was Ripley.

Both of the Captains advanced to the rank of Colonel in the Marines. The main difference was in Ripley's humility and Coyote's lack of humility. As the Colonel's aged, Ripley fell ill and needed a liver transplant and the Commandant of the Marine Corps sent a section of helos to get the liver. Later on, the Marine Corps Battle Colors were posted at Ripley's hospital bed. Many individuals spoke of their service with Ripley. No one came forward and spoke of their service with Colonel Coyote. Colonel Coyote's peers ranked him low and he never picked up General, a rank that he coveted. Maybe there is such a thing as Karma.