Outlaw Platoon Quotes

“It is easy to be judged a success when luck runs with the fortunate son. But when adversity strikes, the true measure of a man percolates to the surface.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“You cannot lead men who are unwilling to be led. You must inspire them to give you the power to do so. That power comes only from their minds, their hearts, not from discipline or devotion to army regulations.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Sir, it smells like bananna's...maybe you should get that looked at. Quiet down soldier....get your shit together and prepare for attack.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“It is easy to be a virtuous man in good times. It is easy to be judged a success when luck runs with the fortunate son. But when adversity strikes, the true measure of a man percolates to the surface. That is why combat became the great sifter--it tested our mettle. Not once but again and again...”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“In combat, those who are willing to fight follow only those who are willing to lead, and lead competently. When bullets fly, rank does not matter.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Heroes. I'll never see them that way again. I've seen who real heroes are. And they don't wear cleats on game day.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Men do not do well when tender emotions exist between them. They can be there. They can even be tangentially recognized. But to acknowledge them directly would have violated the structure of our relationships and turned the moment awkward. I went quiet rather than run that risk...

Left unsaid: "Love's the only thing that will see us through this. If that love fails, or if we let circumstance and friction grind it down, we will surely die.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Courage is a fleeting commodity and can be crushed effortlessly by a single fond memory of home. A backyard barbecue, a fragmented flashback to a moonlit dance with a beautiful girl--those are psychological bullets in combat. One glimpse of what has been makes a soldier yearn for what can be again. That yearning can be as caustic as acid. It burns away the resolve you need to get the job done.

One stray thought can paralyze just as effectively as a bullet in the spine.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“The sight of every man rising to the occasion generated a wave of pure love in me. A good leader is supposed to inspire his men. But great men inspire their leader.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“The infantryman's way of life has a knack for distilling a man's character down to its most essential elements. If he measures up, nothing else matters.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“It is easy to be a virtuous man in good times. It is easy to be judged a success when luck runs with the fortunate son. But when adversity strikes, the true measure of a man percolates to the surface”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“be a disaster and Shaw usually went out with Delta. I’d once asked Yusef why he made a point of rolling with us. “ ’Cause I like you Outlaws, Commander Sean.” He said that in a sincere tone. True enough, he spent a lot of time with the men. I’d even found him shooting the breeze outside the barracks with them between missions. I’d meant to talk to the squad leaders about it so they could put an end to that level of fraternization,”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Men do not do well when tender emotions exist between them. They can be there. They can even be tangentially recognized. But to acknowledge them directly would have violated the structure of our relationships and turned the moment awkward. I went quiet rather than run that risk... No matter. Spoken of not, we all knew it to be our central truth.

Left unsaid: "Love's the only thing that will see us through this. If that love fails, or if we let circumstance and friction grind it down, we will surely die.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Some men are born warriors. Their spirit and their character are forged for the fight...Others pick up arms because they see no other solution. They wield their swords to protect those they love, spurred by their sense of purpose and idealism but taking no pleasure in it. When the threat is defeated, they return to their homes, shed their uniforms, and return to their lives...Together, they formed the yin and yang of my platoon: the born soldier and the born citizen soldier.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“didn’t know there were any female A-10 pilots. My”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“dark-skinned, so he could not be an Afghan. Dimly, I wondered if he could be Chechen.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Heroes. I’ll never see them that way again. I’ve seen who real heroes are. And they don’t wear cleats on game day.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“he would have been shot in the head . . . again.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“It is easy to be a virtuous man in good times. It is easy to be judged a success when luck runs with the fortunate son. But when adversity strikes, the true measure of a man percolates to the surface.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“A king does not require service of those he leads but provides it to them. He serves them, not they him.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“You cannot lead men who are unwilling to be led. You must inspire them to give you the power to do so. That power comes only from their minds, their hearts, not from discipline or devotion to army regulations. When death lurks, nothing else matters but that bond of trust, or lack thereof, between soldier and leader.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“Combat deployments make men incredibly vulnerable. Back in the States, it is all too easy to hide behind facades and defenses, pretensions and rank. But on the field of battle, the threat of death boils all of those things away. What remains is the true measure of a man’s character. Some conduct themselves with honor. Some do not. But everyone who serves knows who is who, and that establishes dividing lines that lifetimes of effort can never bridge.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan

“It is easy to be a virtuous man in good times. It is easy to be judged a success when luck runs with the fortunate son. But when adversity strikes, the true measure of a man percolates to the surface. That is why combat became the great sifter—it tested our mettle.”
― Sean Parnell, Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan