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86 of 101 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
RICK SHAQ GOLDSTEIN SAYS: "HELL WEEK IS WAR.. AND WAR IS HELL!!", July 9, 2007
Right before I bought this book, I heard all the promotional "buzz" and "word of mouth" associated with it. When I started reading it, after the first 60-70 pages, which were kind of boring, I was saying to myself, "woe, were they really talking about this book, it's kind of boring!" Then we got to Navy Seal training. Ladies and Gentlemen, (Future readers.) I recommend you fasten your seat belts, fasten your chest harness, and it probably is good advice, to put a pillow behind your neck to protect you from whiplash! This story, then rockets non-stop for the next 320 pages. I'm a U.S. Veteran, and I thought my basic training was pretty tough. But after reading this book, I realize, I probably wasn't in basic training, I was on some kind of holiday, and instead of cussing out my drill instructor every night, I should have been sending him candy and flowers. Basic Seal training is tough, but they're just getting warmed up with some basics, such as: "they just bound our ankles together and then bound our wrists together behind our backs and shoved us into the deep end (Of the pool). This caused a certain amount of panic, but our instructions were clear: Take a huge gulp of air and drop to the bottom of the pool in the standing position. Hold it there for at least a minute, bob up for new air, then drop back down for another minute, or more if you could." All along the way, the instructors are declaring that most of the potential Seals won't be here at graduation, they'll either be thrown out, or quit. (Note: Only 30 of the original 180 made it!) A number of these highly motivated seamen dropped out during basic Seal training, and now.. And now... we get to "HELL WEEK"! I will attempt to briefly summarize "Hell Week" for you. What these cream of the crop, young American men, are put through, is hard to fathom. It is past inhumane. I'm surprised some politically correct ACLU representative isn't present, suing the Navy, but this is the only way to train the "best of the best"! And it's this training, that probably saved Marcus's life, in his ordeal in Afghanistan. 0500. "Give me 20 pushups! Go run into the freezing ocean in combat boots and fatigues. Get out of the ocean and roll around in the sand. (This will be referred to from here on out as getting "wet and sandy"!) Give me 20 more pushups. Now go on a multi-mile run down the beach, in soft or wet sand, with a million sand particles in your combat boots, and stuck in every crevice of your body, thereby acting like the most abrasive sand paper you'll ever have administered to your body. Oh you want to eat breakfast, well jump back in the freezing ocean, get out of the ocean, roll around in the sand (Getting "wet and sandy") run the couple of miles back (all in an accepted maximum time, or you're out of the Seals!) Give me 20 pushups! Now you can eat. Now pickup a log the size of a telephone pole. Run into the same aforementioned ocean (While still carrying the log!) Come out of the ocean. Get "wet and sandy". Give me 20 pushups. Do it again. Now pick up a boat and run down the beach. Put the boat in the water, turn it over and fill it with water, bring it back to shore. Get "wet and sandy"! Give me 20 pushups. Now get in the boat with your teammates and row backwards through the waves. Then turn around and paddle backwards through the waves. Hit the beach and get "wet and sandy"! Now I'll fast forward to diving drills in the pool. Wearing full diving gear, with heavy air tanks, jump in the pool, but your feet cannot touch bottom. If they touch bottom you're out of the Seals! To keep you company under water, there are friendly Seal instructors, pulling your masks off, pushing down on your back, and other assorted friendly, efforts to assist you in drowning. But here's my favorite from this exercise. An instructor will rip your air hose off and tie it in a knot. You have to reach over your back, since you can't see the hose, and try to untie the knot without drowning. If you can't make it, you're kicked out of the Seals. There are so many more tortuous tasks, that literally go beyond human endurance. These young men, are dedicated, and committed to the United States of America, and go where people don't want to go, and do what must be done! My favorite quote from this book, that will live with me forever, was by the infamous instructor Reno, during training: "THE BODY CAN TAKE DAMN NEAR ANYTHING. IT'S THE MIND THAT NEEDS TRAINING!" I could go on and on, about this book, and I haven't even gotten to the indescribable battle for "Murphy's Ridge". Even though, to some people, the battle, and the deaths of Marcus's teammates, and Marcus's survival, is probably the most discussed part of this book. I will never forget, the dedication, desire, guts, pride, and total, (And I mean total!) commitment, and their stretching the envelope of human endurance, by these amazing young American's! As a U.S. veteran, I salute, and remain in unending awe, of these unique, gifted, dedicated, American heroes! "God Bless America!"
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