Quote:
Originally Posted by SeattleUte
The no votes just don't get it, don't get war's vital relation to civilization. You're supposed to feel guilty or you're messed up.
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I almost signed back up after 9/11. I decided against it, I don't feel guilty. I miss the cameraderie of the service. I miss the NCO corps, so much easier to get things done than the civilian world. I don't miss the political correctness movement facilitating an atmosphere where I spent more time in consideration for others training than I spent actually maneuvering my Scout platoon. I guess I was a bit bitter that there was not the money to ensure that the units were adequately trained for their wartime missions, IMO the American people owe that to those who volunteer to put their lives on the line for ma and apple pie. I am sure there is plenty of money now.
Many of the soldiers were really good kids, often with less than desirable pasts, just trying to improve their lives. Similar to serving a mission it made me grateful for the blessings of my upbringing and solidified my conviction to the temporal blessings of a healthy, wholesome and spiritual life as advocated by LDS doctrine. It made me aware that others with issues have reasons and challenges/baggage that I luckily might never understand. It helped me to not be so egocentrical or judgemental. The NCOs were the best. Most of mine had been complete wasters/high school dropouts/druggies who found some discipline in the service and developed into some of the best pure leaders of men I ever had the pleasure of knowing. They were profane, vile and pretty damn offensive. However, in their own way they had a genuine love of their troopers, very much true charity in my opinion. They would work like mad to make sure their men were trained for whatever contingency would come and I believed most of them would have laid their life on the line for each other. I was proud to have served with them. My professional life has never been as fun or fulfilling since I gave up my platoon in November, 1998.
To those who wonder the reason I got out was this. I wasn't overly attracted to the power. I liked the adrenaline rushes of blowing shit up and maneuvering units. I loved the tactics and the team building. I loved the idealism of genuinely believing what I did mattered. I loved being around the soldiers, doing PT and screaming ridiculous cadences. I didn't get my jollies off being saluted, called "Sir" or everyone standing up when I came around. I think most career officers have to have some attraction to the power or else it is not worth it to put up with the bullshit that you spend 90% of your garrison (day to day on post operations; i.e. not out in the field playing GI Joe) time doing. IMO the Army only looked fun for an officer as a Platoon Leader and a commander. The rest of the jobs are not a great deal different than what one does in the civilian world. It did not look worth it to me to put 20 years in to actually enjoy yourself for 4 of them, two as a PL and two as a Commander. So I got out and moved amongst the rednecks.