This is my CBOK. There are many like it, but this one is MINE. My CBOK is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. My CBOK without me is useless. Without my CBOK, I am useless. I must fire my rifle of knowledge true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy (the CFAI) who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will… My CBOK and myself know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our bursts, nor the smoke we make. We know it is the hits that count. We will hit… My CBOK is human, even as I, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strengths, its parts, its accessories, its sights, and its evil CFAI trickeries. I will ever guard it against the ravages of weather and damage. I will keep my CBOK clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other. We will… Before God I swear this creed. My CBOK and myself are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life. So be it, until there is no enemy, but PEACE.
adapted from US Marine’s creed (also in full metal jacket) . . . ie this is my rifle . . http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/1110.html