Why is anyone in the military a "hero" and why do we "thank them for their service"? It's a job. They get a paycheck and since WWII what military conflict has improved anything? My point isn't to blame military personal for the results of conflicts that their civilian leaders involve them in only to point out that they are paid for that job (as is everyone else) and that military service hasn't turned out to be a very useful endeavor. Most conflicts in the Middle East wouldn't concern the U.S. were it not for oil and most terrorists from that part of the world would stay in that part of the world were it not for U.S. meddling in that part of the world.
The main reason is that you can not pay for what the soldiers offer. The soldier's life and health are on the line and whilst money may compensate for hardship, time, effort, inconvenience it can never compensate for injury or death. If he loses an arm what's it worth really? No money in the world is going to replace that arm with the original... This is why we thank them for their "priceless" contribution. What compensation can a USA Government offer a dead soldier? You can't pay for courage in battle either... except with the currency of gratitude, love, respect, sympathy and compassion.
What is your opinion as to whether there have been any military conflicts since WWII that were worthwhile? Do you consider that every soldier is "hero" simply by joining the military? Is their "service" different from anyone else going to their job everyday if there was no loss of life or limb?
No I don't, some people join the military with no real or realistic expectation of ever being in danger..a sort of deluded state of "it wont happen" or "it can't happen to me." However some do join the military knowing full well that they may lose a limb, a few buddies or their life and spend the rest of their lives probably homeless living on the streets suffering PTSD. Of course, that is if they live at all. Yes they are the hero's. I'll post a relevant image file: to explain what I mean: Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Service beyond self can not be bought or paid for. Something the Trump and his son Baron, who provoked the above response, have absolutely no idea about...
this is not a question to ask a hero! This is a question to ask history when looking back with hindsight. It is a political question and one that can never be answered properly If the USA falls because of Trumps insanity then all conflicts that occurred to get to that fall would be considered as worthless. The sacrifices made, the value of such, during all those terrible wars and conflicts are flushed down the toilet. If the USA manages to pull it self from the brink of self-destruction and manages to heal over time then one could say that if not for the history, sacrifice, courage and ultimate success shown in the past the USA would not have been able to achieve success today.
I agree, except I would qualify it by adding that all nations evolve. There use of power evolves and matures over time. When having these sorts of discussions I often refer to what I call "The doctor and a bag syndrome" Basically the doctor with his bag(USA) is standing on a train platform (world)and a passenger falls when getting off the train the doctor has to get in to leave the station. He is tired after doing 12 hours straight at his Emergency ward so tired he can barely see straight. The passenger falls badly and appears to be seriously hurt. No one else is able to help him. The doctor has a choice... Does he catch his train and pretend he didn't see or does he offer to help the injured passenger and miss his train? He decides to stay and help, after all it is the right thing to do he thinks, but as he is helping he makes a critical mistake due to fatigue and the outcome of which, cripples the fallen passenger for life. The judge at the trial determining the passenger vs doctor lawsuit has to decide whether to penalize the doctor or not. What can his verdict be other than "Damned if you do and damned if you don't, you gotta do what you gotta do any way" The USA get's itself in hot water in it's attempt to do what it thinks is the right thing to do and so far it has been a little over zealous about it. Obama made an effort to pull back on being overly enmeshed in other nations business and paid a political price for doing so but he earned the respect of the many that count. The rescue of the Yazidi trapped on the mountain with ISIL holding siege was the first time I had actually witnessed the USA use it's military power properly. IMO it certainly earned my respect...and I thought Wow finally the USA is starting to to get a handle on all those nukes shoved up their butts.
It is the only job in the world where the rival companies are trying to kill them. While not quite as dangerous, firefighters and police officers are held in similar esteem. Just for clarity, though, to be thanked, you just have to be doing the job. To be a hero you have to do something heroic. Some of the current attitude is also reparations for past wrongs, particularly during the Vietnam War. Soldier/veterans, most of whom were drafted, were treated like garbage. What do you think that has to do with your question? Seems like a totally different issue to me.
Anyone in the military is not a hero. Heroes come from all professions and all walks of life. I am thankful for anyone who does a dangerous job protecting me - military, police, firefighters and rescue workers.
Water and electric utility workers have some potentially very dangerous jobs as well. Animal control, construction workers... The list goes on.
If you feel that they are putting their lives on the line to protect you in the same way, then by all means, extend the same thanks to them.
I do. My son worked as a water operator, both in collection and distribution. Trench repairs are seriously dangerous, and wastewater treatment can be deadly. Chlorine leaks, slip-and-fall accidents into one of the tanks, and many more things along those lines. I've been blown off my feet by 440v because of a "mistake" made by an electrician once, been blown off the top plate by the wind when setting joists and rafters, almost been killed by plumbers swinging pipe around as well. Stories upon stories...
After some thought I feel your main concern can be summed up with the issue of "power and the abuse of such" A common joke here that does the rounds every now and then is to ask: "Why do Yanks talk so loud?" Answer: "Because they have a nuke shoved up their arse" It ( the joke) is not a denigration btw but more a humorous observation that when a nation acquires enormous power due to technology, in this case nuclear, it struggles with how to use that power. The USA has been trying to get a handle on it's own Power of Influence for ages ( even pre-ww2) and slowly it seems to be getting there... until now of course what with Trump waving his big nuke around like the Alpha male he is.... Maybe he is just compensating for something about his uhmmm.... reality... Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
OK. Skydiving instructors would fall into that category as well I imagine. Seriously dangerous, and they save lives. Cool! I'm somebody now! But skydiving instructors, water operators, electricians, plumbers etc do not intentionally put themselves in harm's way to protect other people. (Indeed, if they do, they are making a mistake, and they get castigated by their supervisors and told to do better next time.) That's the distinction I make. You can make a different one; that's fine.
Thank you. I recall being on-scene when a 12" main blew. The geyser was 150' high, and the scour near the hole was expanding very quickly, endangering the emergency responders. My son's boss was the one who went up close and scary to work the valve. He could have been killed at any moment, and that was to protect the residents nearby and the firefighters who were the first on-scene. We were called from the disc golf course by the ball golf head groundskeeper. We got there in minutes and the firefighters were standing around waiting for command. Mark grabbed a valve key from his truck, stepped past the taped-off area and put down the flood.
We have learned that the military takes young idiots and turns them into men and that the young idiots joined because of high minded ideals. We have learned that it's self serving for one job holder to congratulate the other job holder so that they will be congratulated in return. We have learned that many jobs are dangerous. We know that many military jobs aren't. Going to Vietnam during the draft deserves a "thank you for your service". No arguments there. No one should be treated with disrespect for being in the military (Vietnam) for sure. Otherwise, it's a choice and it's usually the best choice for that particular person so compliments probably aren't necessary. Switching subjects slightly, I don't see our meddling (military) as doing anything good on balance since WWII. The humanitarian missions are usually caused by the other missions as in helping children that lost their parents in the conflict that we started in the first place. We are banning those from Iraq even though Iraqi citizens had no hate for us (only for Saddam) before we blew up their country. What did we do for the Vietnamese or the world for that matter? Kuwait was stupid. It is mentioned positively only because it was successful and allowed us to try out all of our weapons and feel all patriotic. Iraq was stupid. Afghanistan was stupid in terms of the longevity of that conflict. China is concerned about situations close to home as is Russia. We don't like that but we do the same with Cuba and Central America. All countries do that. We are the only bully at the moment. Sometimes well intentioned and often stupid. Nixon was the last guy who cared about diplomacy. Now we are thinking about Syria, Iran, the stupidity goes on and on. We would treat the Middle East the way we treat Africa were it not for the oil.
You must be a die hard soldier . At the present a soldier is a volunteer , he makes his choice to expose his body. If the soldier would be drafted I might share some of your view. Now day the soldier get very well compensated.
If memory serves, as an e5 I got ≈ 5.4c/mo or ≈ 6.5k/yr. now ≈ 2.2k/mo. or 27k/yr. Don't forget to factor in the retirement, another 19k/yr, or ≈ 24k/yr if you stay in for 30. During nam, a bullet cost about 6 cents. (and you never hear the one that gets you, ≈ 2%chance) back in 68 a corvette cost ≈ 4.6k. , now 55.4k It would seem that military pay inflation ain't kept pace with the corvette's.
