I almost never post here..long time member but seldom poster. I had to reply to this thread because it's unbelievable to me how some people perceive the military and people's reasons for joining.
I'm an Air Force nurse currently deployed to somewhere in Afghanistan. Obeying the orders of those appointed over me. I've been in the military for over 8 years and of the hundreds of people I serve with here and the thousands I've had the pleasure of serving with during my time, I've never met a single person who wants to kill innocent people in a distant land.
" Hanging out in a Muslem desert shithole. Killing innocent people all day. The sergeant yelling in your face. Barely any personal freedom."
The fact that BFRS has this opinion and is willing to post it on a forum is pathetic and unbelievably misinformed. It's insulting to the millions of military members and veterans to have anyone honestly think this is what we do. Does every police officer look for an opportunity to shoot an unarmed citizen? I doubt anyone thinks that way.
The fact is that many don't support the mission here in Afghanistan. I don't agree with it entirely myself but I took an oath. I agreed to do something bigger than myself and it had nothing to do with a paycheck or getting to shoot a gun. Almost every day someone gets the knock on their door and opens it to the sight of a military member in service dress getting ready to give them the news that a loved one has been lost. I've been on the team that gives that news. It's horrific and rips your heart out to see the reaction. I know that could be my wife answering the door. But if nobody stepped up...honestly what kind of country would we be. If nobody stepped up to patrol our streets, put their life on the line to stop the drunk driver careening down our neighborhood streets, what if the firefighters decided putting their life on the line to put out an your apartment fire just wasn't worth it anymore. Every day we in America enjoy the life we live and it's because of people, past and present, who have decided our ideals, principles and beliefs are worth sacrificing for.
We make a decent to good living in the military. But my experience has been that most people don't join for the money. They don't join because they're complete losers and can't do anything but bag groceries. We have those but they're the exception not the rule. The military members I interact with on a daily basis like what they do, understand they're involved in something bigger than themselves, feel a sense of pride in what they do and want to make things better for themselves, their families and the people around them. They're not blood-thirsty soldiers looking for an opportunity to kill an innocent person.
As far as David Henry goes, I wish him a safe deployment. While he is a professional BB, he's no different than the over 100,000 military members who are currently deployed here. Everyone leaves loved ones, everyone sacrifices something that is important to them and everyone here is in harms way. David Henry is just another military member who raised his hand and swore an oath to protect and defend the constitution of the United States and obey the orders of those appointed over him, like millions before him.
For those who bash the hell out of the military and disagree with the policies that we're forced to support...disagree all you want. But inform yourself before labeling us "killers of innocent people". We're the ones standing guard on foreign soil, on the shores of the US, we're putting up sandbag walls when a town floods, we're the ones called to help when a riot breaks out. These, and thousands of other things, are what the military does and the sacrifices we all make shouldn't be labeled or categorized in the way BFRS did in his post. It's disappointing to me as a military member and a citizen of the US.
That's my rant. Damnit, disagree with the war, disagree with the policies and hate whoever you want. But at least be respectful of the people who, past, present and future, support, defend and protect your right to live as Americans.
