Why "Philology without Mercy"?

In case you're wondering about the strange name for this blog, let me explain. When I was at Army bootcamp, the Drill Sergeant would ask the company, "Delta Company, what makes the green grass grow?" Our reply was: "Blood, blood, blood makes the green grass grow!"

When we entered into the bayonet phase of our basic combat training, the Drill Sergeant would then ask the question: "Delta Company, what's the spirit of the bayonet?" Our reply in one accord was, "Kill, kill, kill without mercy! Hooah!!" It was almost like being at a football rally in high school in which everyone cheered in unison, "We've got spirit, yes we do; we've got spirit, how about you?" Yes, soldier's yell stuff like cheerleaders to keep themselves motivated through all the grunt work of combat training.

After bootcamp, I headed off to the Armed Forces School of Music to study trumpet performance in preparation for my MOS as a bandsman. There one of the saxophone instructors had a sign on his office door with a unique twist: "Jazz without mercy!"

I have since adopted this concept into my syllabus for a Greek course I teach at Master's College to define my philosophy of education: "Greek without mercy!" Furthermore, it is now the name of my blog.