De oppresso liber is the motto of the United States Army Special Forces.
“The turbulent have to be corrected,
The faint-hearted cheered up,
The weak supported;
The Gospel’s opponents need to be refuted,
Its insidious enemies guarded against;
The unlearned need to be taught,
The indolent stirred up,
The argumentative checked;
The proud must be put in their place,
The desperate set on their feet,
Those engaged in quarrels reconciled;
The needy have to be helped,
The oppressed to be liberated,
The good to be encouraged,
The bad to be tolerated;
All must be loved.
Corripiendi sunt inquieti,
pusillanimes consolandi,
infirmi suscipiendi,
contradicentes redarguendi,
insidiantes cavendi,
imperiti docendi,
desidiosi excitandi,
contentiosi cohibendi,
superbientes reprimendi,
desperantes erigendi,
litigantes pacandi,
inopes adiuvandi,
oppressi liberandi,
boni approbandi,
mali tolerandi,
omnes amandi.”
~ Augustine of Hippo (November 13, 354 – August 28, 430)
Too bad the guy at the top isn’t special forces. He’s an air force senior airman. Look at the patch on his arm. Seriously?
Thanks Tyler for pointing this out.