you wanted an example: here goes..good enough or no? it wasn't millions or fame or adulation he gave up.
Tom Cotton is another soldier who knew what he was doing. When 9/11
occurred, Cotton was in his third year at Harvard Law School. Like most
Americans, he was "shocked, saddened, and angered." Like many on that
day, he made a promise to serve his country.
And Cotton meant it. After fulfilling the commitments he had already
made, including clerking for a federal judge and going to work for a
large Washington law firm, Cotton enlisted in the Army. He jokes that
doing so came with a healthy six-figure pay cut.
Cotton enlisted for one reason: He wanted to lead men into combat. His
recruiter suggested that he use the talents he had spent seven years
developing at Harvard and join the JAG Corps, the Armed Forces' law firm.
Cotton rejected that idea. He instead began 15 months of training that
culminated with his deployment to Iraq as a 2nd lieutenant platoon leader
with the 101st Airborne in Baghdad.
The platoon he led was composed of men who had already been in Baghdad
for five months. Cotton knew that a new platoon leader normally undergoes
a period of testing from his men. Because his platoon was patrolling
"outside the wire" every day, there was no time for Cotton and his men to
have such a spell. He credits what turned out to be a smooth transition
to his platoon's noncommissioned officers, saying, "The troops really
belong to the NCOs." After six months, Cotton and his platoon redeployed
stateside.
While in Iraq, Cotton's platoon was awarded two Purple Hearts, but
suffered no killed in action. His larger unit, however, did suffer a KIA.
When I asked Cotton for his feelings about that soldier's death, the pain
in his voice was evident. After searching for words, he described it as
"sad, frustrating, angry--very hard, very hard on the entire company."
He then added some thoughts. "As painful as it was, the death didn't hurt
morale," he said. "That's something that would have surprised me before I
joined the Army. Everyone in the Infantry has volunteered twice--once for
the Army, once for the Infantry. These are all grown men who all made the
decision to face the enemy on his turf. The least you can do is respect
them and what they're doing."
Now serving in the Army in Virginia, still enjoying his six-figure pay
cut, Tom Cotton says he is "infinitely happy" that he joined the Army and
fought in Iraq. "If I hadn't done it," he says, "I would have regretted
it the rest of my life."
