As I said in my previous post, disrespect the government all you want. But you must show respect to the individual soldier.
There's a lot of war movies today. I've already watched two Cary Grant war movies. One where he was a fighter pilot in WWI and another where he was the captain of a submarine in WWII. There's a good John Wayne one where he's a tough Marine sergeant but I've seen that one many times before so I skipped it. I'm doing okay and my wife is doing better. She was very ill but she's been gradually getting over it until it's nearly gone. We missed church because she was very tired and I let her oversleep which means we won't get to Lovejoy Bakery. I now know right where it's at. We traveled down N.W. 23rd yesterday without seeing it. I double checked it on the computer and it's in the Uptown Shopping Center right next to where Baskin Robbin used to be and is now replaced by Ben and Jerry's. I walked by there every school day when I was in high school. I think we're gonna head out to get a free Veteran hair cut in downtown Lake Oswego at Great Clips on State street.
Happy to hear she is feeling better now. Dad and I are to going to watch Humphrey Bogart in "Sahara" and maybe a John Wayne movie, "They Were Expendable" or "Operation Pacific."
The military does provide some protection, but they are heavily compensated for doing so and a large amount of this military is concerned more than being hired guns for special interests. It's pretty sad how the government abuses citizens who enlist, before, during and after their service.
There's no compensation that's worth the loss of your life or terrific injury or spending half your life in the hospital like I do. I wouldn't choose to endure this for Billions of dollars, how are you going to compensate me well? Imagine what the families of service connected deceased Veterans go through. I'll bet they'd rather have their loved ones back than anything anyone of any wealth could offer. Rereading your post, I may have misread it. Correct me where I'm wrong.
IMO, its stupid to join the services for most. The government has to resort to high pressure recruiting of poor, uneducated and brown people. Making it sound noble and patriotic, when its all a scam. Some people join because they really don't have other choices.
I had to join or go to prison. Had to go to war or either go to Canada or go to prison. Chose to do my duty. Easy choice to make. Besides, if I didn't go, somebody else would have to take my place.
Peter Jackson has just released a WWI Documentary called They Shall Not Grow Old to commemorate the centennial of the war. It's a film that gathers old and never before seen footage of WWI and convert to it color and 3D film. Narrated by WWI Soldiers and with added sound effects.... makes it almost like you are watching current footage. I got an advance copy and it's truly an amazing piece of work. So make sure you see it in the theater when it arrives in December.
I’ve tried to stay out of this conversation but........you’re entitled to your views but please get your facts straight. Today’s military (regardless of how you might feel about their existence) is far better educated and technically capable than our military has probably ever been. They no longer take just anyone (like they did back in at the end of the Vietnam War....and going forward for more than a few years). The weapons and equipment are so much more sophisticated, complicated and advanced than they were in past generations. So they recruit people who have the intelligence/potential to operate those systems. The dregs of society no longer need to apply. Seems to me you’re insulting the shit out of poor “brown people”, accusing them of being uneducated (or stupid) for simply trying to make a better life for themselves. And please define “high pressure recruiting” that forces young people to enlist. You might (foolishly) believe there is no need for a military but unfortunately it isn’t going away anytime soon. And it provides a perfectly adequate option for those who either want to learn a useful trade, or who can’t afford to go to college and are looking for a way to fund an education going forward. In 64 years I have yet to meet anyone who joined the military because they had “no other choices” (unless they were drafted or or judge gave them a choice between the military or jail for criminal activities....and even then, that’s a choice). You exercised your American given right to avoid military service and more power to you. But please don’t disrespect those who served....for whatever reason and under whatever circumstances.
When I went in the Army in 1967 we had a guy in my platoon that was so fresh from surgery to his head from an auto accident that he was the only one who didn't need a new recruit haircut. He had a steel plate implanted. He would pass out in formation. Another guy was brought in in handcuffs. They had to let him get a medical discharge when they found he had TB. We had another guy who's dad was a General. They treated him just as shitty as the rest of us. One other guy couldn't read or write. He called a bear a bar. Grew up in the woods of Northern California. They took every one. Actually, I think the draft is the best way to go. Why should those with money escape deadly combat? Okay, you lose a little when you get guys with a low IQ or a low education but almost everyone has the same chance of coming home in a pine box. Everyone in my training platoon and in the only other platoon in our Company, except for three guys who re-upped for 4 years and me who was drafted and served two years, got orders for advanced training at Ft. Polk, Louisiana which prepared them for serving in Vietnam's delta. I got the same 7 months of electronics training that the other three guys got because my test scores were beyond outstanding. My math score was 154, 100 is average. My electronics score was above 150 and my IQ was 147. That too, may have saved my life. Guys in the delta were stepping on land mines and getting killed. Some were going home minus limbs. Again, why should only volunteers have to face that? I think society decays when we are all not faced with that kind of horror. It also makes us a lot more cognizant of what going to War really means. This enables us to cast a better vote.
