Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for June 02, 2012

Might wanna also skip out on mentioning the wonderful pay, PT tests, the likelihood of having poor quality officers, and people who claim to support you but who really can’t stand you, what you stand for, or what you do.

Orion

Stick to the good parts; guns and blowing stuff up.

Sounds like a recruiter, actually.

IOW, don’t tell these kids the truth, until they’re being scared to death by a drill sergeant.

Messed up, but so accurate.

It is going to be a short presentation.

hope the kids will see through both of them. and ask the right questions….

Tell them is is easier to get 100% service-connected disability if you become a paranoid delusional schizoid than if you have your arms and legs blown off.

He is probably there also. Didn’t he meet her once?

I’m reminded of the college that had a career night for its nursing students. The usual blah-blah-blah, until it was the USAF recruiter’s turn. Instead of going right into nursing opportunities in the air force, recruiter killed the lights and played a USAF promo video full of zooming aircraft and the like. When the lights came up, voice in the back cried, "To hell with nursing! I wanna be a pilot!

I’m glad you all think so highly of military service. Oh, remind me, why aren’t you speaking German?

I think it is important to remember that people who are in the military are just people. Some are great and some maybe not so great. I don’t think it is fair to say that some folks are two faced about the military just because they don’t choose it as a career choice themselves. It is a complex world. My dad was a WWII vet. He was in it because:1. There weren’t a lot of jobs elsewhere at the time.2. He thought that Hitler had to be stopped.3. He was called up after Pearl Harbor.My bro was in Vietnam. He was in it because:1. There weren’t a lot of opportunities for someone who had gotten someone pregnant in his first year of college in 1968.2. Well, there wasn’t a number two. He didn’t really believe that the domino theory of communism was plausible, but he didn’t know where else to go or what else to do. Lots of folks get caught up in their own life circumstances. Both were honorably discharged and both hated being in the military. But they were there, they served. They both came back, thank goodness, and they both ended up getting college degrees and going on with their lives. It is true that many didn’t come back and they should be recognized for their duty. I would never dream of serving in the military. Doesn’t mean that I believe that Dad and Bro are both saints. The world is a little more complex than that.

Mel is the quintescential example of a self-serving lifer – thought she undoubtedly would not see herself in that light. That is why I dislike this character. People like the Mel character does not need us to feel sorry for them – they manage to do that for themselves rather well.

…college campus in springtime – Grass green, fresh plants, everything cleaned up for parents showing up for graduation, long procession of students and capped/gowned faculty trails across the campus, commencement speaker (Isaac Asimov) and University President bringing up the rear of the procession:Asimov (playfully): “By the way – What should I speak about?”President (not missing a beat): “…about 15 minutes!”

Well, must as there are sucky parts – as there are in everything – I’ve LOVED being in the military. I had to chuckle at Dukedoug as i DID become a helicopter maintainer (15U), no PTSD though and I doubt I"ll have it after my next tour when I’m going as a door gunner.

There are sucky parts to EVERY job. The military can be a lot of fun. It’s a lot of hard work, it’s valuable, and it’s wonderful and yes it often sucks. Embrace the suck!

Orion

Thank you.

…and especially don’t mention our supposed allies shooting you in the back every chance they get. Get the h*#L out of Afghanistan now! Didn’t we learn anything from Vietnam?

I gave a talk at a high school after I got home from Vietnam. I told the truth. They didn’t like it.

What I found interesting in working with VA was that it was Reagan, and Especially Bush 41 and Bush 43 who screwed over the troops and veterans, and Clinton who did his best to help them. Now again, it’s the “libs” out to help, and the “cons”, who are complaining about the “cost”.(While they JACK UP payments to CONTRACTORS!)

I’m truly and genuinely sickened every time some right wingnut complains about “libs” shafting the troops.

We should stop just “thanking” the troops by just saying thank you and putting bumper stickers on our cars and instead really thank them by letting go of the military industrial complex. We should try more diplomacy and more embargoes, whatever it takes to avoid war. Find ways to really help them. Not just “thank” them via lip service. Of course, the GI Joes are not the decision makers like the generals. That is true. No one would say otherwise— certainly not me. Didn’t think I had to state the obvious.

I also give Obama a lot of credit for trying to use more of a surgical strike approach. After 9/11 we needed to get Osama Bin Laden. We didn’t need to lose several thousand people in Iraq.

Even though during WWII and Vietnam the guys were dealing with the draft, there was such a thing as a conscientious objector even back then. There were some who did follow that path. Dad never seriously considered it during WWII, but my brother did consider it before going to Vietnam. Just didn’t think it would work out for him under the circumstances.

Q: How can you shoot women and children?A: You don’t lead them as much.