Poll: I do not feel more respect or admiration for military personnel than I do for anyone else.
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I don't like war. However, anyone prepared to join up and fight for their country is great and worthy of our respect. There's always going to be a war somewhere, so we'll always need the military, and that isn't the soldiers' faults. I hate it when here in the UK I read in the paper about servicemen and women home on leave, walking around in uniform, as they have every right to do, and being taunted and abused in the street by heartless bastards who have absolutely no idea of any of the horrors of war. Have these wankers seen their friends die or be maimed in battle, spent days hiding from enemy soldiers looking for them to kill them? Have they ever had to live with the fact that they've killed another human being (actually, given it's Broken Britain, don't answer that last one). Soldiers are heroes and worthy of our respect.
I remember when in Florida on holiday last year with my family, we each had a two week pass for all the Universal parks and Anheuser-Busch parks there. When we went to Busch Gardens in the first week, we noticed that at the entrance US military personnel and their families were given free or discounted entry and were basically treated with the respect they deserve. Plenty of perks and all this because the company respected them and felt they were great people who risked life and limb to do their jobs. When we went to Seaworld, owned by the same company, we saw the Shamu show and at the start and end the staff gave a huge dedication and thank you to not only US military personnel, but also to UK, ANZAC and all Allied troops fighting in Iraq, Afgahnistan and everywhere else, and again, gave those people and their families free entry and perks as a gesture of goodwill and thanks to the Armed Forces. Note this wasn't restricted to US troops either, but British and ANZAC forces and allied troops too. In America people care about their soldiers, their heroes. Here in Britain, they're abused and taunted in the street and there's just no need. The military are heroes, and although people don't like what they do, someone has to. I don't like war, but the people who make it aren't the soldiers, but the generals and the governments.
I remember when in Florida on holiday last year with my family, we each had a two week pass for all the Universal parks and Anheuser-Busch parks there. When we went to Busch Gardens in the first week, we noticed that at the entrance US military personnel and their families were given free or discounted entry and were basically treated with the respect they deserve. Plenty of perks and all this because the company respected them and felt they were great people who risked life and limb to do their jobs. When we went to Seaworld, owned by the same company, we saw the Shamu show and at the start and end the staff gave a huge dedication and thank you to not only US military personnel, but also to UK, ANZAC and all Allied troops fighting in Iraq, Afgahnistan and everywhere else, and again, gave those people and their families free entry and perks as a gesture of goodwill and thanks to the Armed Forces. Note this wasn't restricted to US troops either, but British and ANZAC forces and allied troops too. In America people care about their soldiers, their heroes. Here in Britain, they're abused and taunted in the street and there's just no need. The military are heroes, and although people don't like what they do, someone has to. I don't like war, but the people who make it aren't the soldiers, but the generals and the governments.
The first thought coming to mind when I read your statement...Are you on Crack?CaptainEgypt said:
I'm not delusional to assume all governments motives are forthright for waging war, but I sure as heck don't think our troops are "hired thugs." I think they are doing a shit job that no one else wants to do or has the gumption to do.
I live north of the US border and am extremely honoured to see our Canadian troops standing proud representing my country.
Thats my gut check.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Oe-g2cWpvU&NR=1
I don't respect them but I understand why people would respect them or at least demand that people respect them.
What about all the soldiers who join up just because they want to "kill ragheads?" I know quite a few myself. That particular brand of solider, I can't even view as people.chimmers said:
And the ones who are "defending the homeland," sure, they may all think that, but the reasons why we're in these two particular wars (Iraq and Afghanistan) really don't have anything to do with defense at all. The administration that pulled us into those wars still hasn't actually given us a concrete reason as to why and the current administration isn't doing much other than perpetuating it and trying to look like they're doing the opposite.
Since when did you own the country, nobody told me.egglad said:
But seriously I agree with you completely; anyone who's JOB involves risking there life deserves your respect. And I always get annoyed when anti-war protesters aim it at soldiers and not politicians.
Why shouldn't they? Today's military requires any member to make a conscious decision to join. Obviously anyone who joins the military today is on the other end of the moral spectrum from me; they're okay with killing people on demand as their government asks and I think they're brainwashed idiots. *shrug*messy said:
Oh, well. Can't win them all, can we?
Well when they join I imagine you're under the idea that you'll be killing people who are a threat to your country, of freedom etc. And I'd also argue that some people need to be killed but I personally could never do it so I'm "glad" that some people are availableCaptainEgypt said:
I tend to perceive people joining the military as a bit naive and I don't respect them any more than other people unless they engage in humanitarian aid or conflict mediation for the UN (wait, that's a very bad example considering the enormous Dutch fuckup in Sebrenica that caused the deaths of hundreds of innocent people).
I don't believe that killing people is right or wrong but I imagine it's fun. I'm serious by the way.
Pretty much every man that has been in my family has been in the military except for my uncle who lives it up in Vegas. So that hurts a bit. But anyway if you don't have a military, who is going to protect you if suddenly you are attacked. Plus they do kinda keep riots under control with sheer intimidation sometimes going a bit further, see the anti war protests for Vietnam.
Agreed. I'm actually a little concerned that people support the fact that some kids want to grow up to murder other human beings.
uh-huh...
ummm...
So now I guess that patriotism is just another casualty of the post-modern era.
ummm...
So now I guess that patriotism is just another casualty of the post-modern era.
The Canadian Military is different from the American Military... basically it's not often viewed as a "last resort career" like it is for some people in The States, and we also don't often get the type of people who "want to star in their own personal war movie" since our military is primarily a Peace Keeping Force.
So yes, I guess I do "respect" those who "serve the country" by joining the military, mostly because I don't view them as "hired thugs" of the government.
Basically I respect Soldiers as much as I respect most other Public Servants in Canada, they have a rather thankless, low paying government job that is important to the country and for that I respect them.
So yes, I guess I do "respect" those who "serve the country" by joining the military, mostly because I don't view them as "hired thugs" of the government.
Basically I respect Soldiers as much as I respect most other Public Servants in Canada, they have a rather thankless, low paying government job that is important to the country and for that I respect them.
You're right, the administration is screwed up, but that doesn't mean that the soldiers are, and for every racist halfwit there are countless soldiers who are quite happy to go in and rid a nation of a dictator. Said soldiers then go on to be rather pleasant to the local populace. Believe it or not that crap you see on youtube is either the scum from the bttom of the bucket, not the majority, or just a bunch of guys in a shithole having a good time with the resources available.CaptainEgypt said:
As for your little idea about most folk hating the US for its military, where did you get that idea? Most arguments against your nation stem from a butchery of the English language, a happy go lucky attitude towards finite resources and far too many examples of arrogance where WW2's concerned. You know, WW2? That other war which happened less than a century ago? Sure, something of that scale is far less likely to happen now though, right? I'll give ya a hint, look at Africa's nations. Nations where ID cards were used to cull an "Inferior" tribe by the government. It's folk like you who are preventing peace enforcement in nations like that, complaining that we should have simply sat back and leave Saddam to his slaughter. Are things in Iraq going well? Not great, but was it worth it to be rid of a murderer? Yeah, I'd sure as hell think so. It's reached the point where we civilised western nations have to go in and sort things out for these places. Does saying this make me an arrogant supremist? No, it makes me someone who wants to see the world united and the military seems like a great way of doing it when there are, loath to admit it, some folk who simply can't be reasoned with.
The military's a job, just like a teacher or a pawnbroker, it doesn't deserve any more respect than that. I have respect for people who regularly do a job, but I won't play favourites with what the job is.