military service is no "better" than any other service

So in your fairy tale history the US military was ready to go at the beginning of WWII?:whistle:

 

Well said on the last sentence. Its great to be the most powerfull nation in the world, and have brave soldiers ready to go to war if neccessary. But do we constantly have to go to war, and have someone to call an enemy? Are the deaths of these kids really neccessary? I'm independent politically, but the one thing I will NEVER understand about conservatives is the fact that they somehow find comfort just in the concept of having enemies that need to be killed.

 

All I have to say on this subject is that until you have walked a mile in my USMC Boots, bleed my USMC Blood, pulled the trigger on my USMC enemy, then and only then will you ever understand what Military Service really is.

Until then..keep your pie hole shut you puke!!


RickieB (E5) 0311 Ground Pounding Grunt- United State Marine Corps 1971 thru 1975
1st Battalion 9th Marines, "The Walking Dead"

 

So I guess you were fighting for freedom of speech then?

 

Danr is quite correct when he says that after WWI the American Millitary was run down, it was. most of the R & D on tanks was put in the freezer but you did retain a standing army, here is a potted history LOL
Formed for WW1 the National Army reached over two million men at its high water mark. The National Army was disbanded in 1920 and all personnel who had held ranks in the National Army were reverted to Regular Army status, or were demobalized.
During the 1920s and 30s, the Regular Army was badly under-funded and ranked 16th in the world, WWII brought about the formation of the Army Of the United States and of course the Draft, which swelled the ranks. In 1946 the Army Of the United States was demobalized and the US reverted to the Regular Army but with a Army Reserve attached.


:kewl:

 

Don't worry, RickieB was only voicing his right to Freedom of Speech.

Mighty Merle Haggard has a song which applies to this situation from the top of the thread to it's end, wherever that may be. It was pretty popular once in bars and night-clubs. I'm sure you know what it's title and lyrics are...

 

jwevansv, you see the world in black and white, and are intellectually unable to comprehend or discuss nuances of any type. This is why nobody respects your views. You have, again, missed the point regarding military preparedness. But when you post something, how could it be any other way?

 

Here are the respective military Oaths for Enlistment and Commission. They certainly have the potential to expose you to more danger and therefore more glory than say a "Meter Reader" or a "Dog Catcher." I do like the "So help me God" part.

Enlisted:
"I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."

Commissioned:
"I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the _____ of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

http://www.army.mil/CMH/faq/oaths.htm

 

He cannot. He p!ss pants and trip fall before walk kilometre in your boots. He not have blood, and shot self of embarrassment before he find enemy.

 

Seems somebody should move to another country if they are so UNHAPPY with the one in which they live now. I for the life of me can not figure out how anyone can ridicule something they have no idea about. I have to wonder if somewhere in the recent past a cerain somebody has had a lobotomy.

No names mentioned, figure it out.

To RickieB - Amen to what you posted.

 

The interesting part is that officers swear to support and defend the Consitution, but not necessarily obey the orders of the President. The message is that they are expected to exercise a little judgement when choosing to follow orders.

 

This is a very sensible precaution to guard against the rise of someone like Hitler, whomever constructed that oath was IMHO very far sighted. At the end of WWII so many Nazi's declaired that they were only following orders and this argument led directly to one man Hitler.
So unless you change your constitution soldiers have a option, I should also point out that following something that is percieved as a illigal order from a superior officer can be classed as a International crime For example orders to open fire on civilians or a red cross post.

 

Now, you're getting into the UCMJ and all that muggamaroo about Illegal and Immoral orders which are up the discretion of anyone to ignore... The Meli Massacre was an example of an Immoral order being issued. The sergeants, corporals, and privates were expected to ignore it and arrest the officer (Lt. Kalley) who issued it... Sadly, they did not and became implicated.

 

Well, Danr said go read a book! I don' t need to read any book, as I lived through this period of time and can vouch for what Cloudy has written and what his father told him was 100% true.
What you have to remember however, is that this country was going through a depression and simply didn't have enough of anything. FDR came out with what the Liberals called their 'New Deal" and had a saying.......butter not bullets. So is it any wonder that the U.S. Military was under staffed and under trained?
Not until we declaired war on Japan did the couontry shift gears and go into full production. It wasn't all that hard to do as everyone was out of work and ready to produce what was needed. It took time but it got done, thanks to the brave men like Cloudy's father who bought the time needed to arm the military. These were the true hero's during and after WWII. And don't you forget it!

 

Dan can I ask if the Oath you took on enlistment was the same as the one Ben posted or has it alterd since your day? I am just wondering how far back it goes.

 

everybody you named serves a useful purpose. a few differences between the people you mentioned and servicemembers, are that civilians aren't expected to live in tents for months at a time, crawl through mud, be separated from their families for up to a year and a half on a regular basis, maintain two different job proficiencies under constant stress, leave their friends every few years and start over again in a new country, take showers using water bottles, routinely punish their bodies on a daily basis, or fulfill as many roles outside of their general job description. there's plenty other differences, but i kept it short.

plenty of people serve the country in different ways, but military personnel gets it done while giving up plenty of their own freedoms and by putting up with constant hardships. we're expected to "suck it up and drive on" and ask for more. servicemembers know what military life is like, and can immediately identify with others who've served.

in the army, everybody has a primary "civilian" job and is also a soldier. (marines are all soldiers, who just happen to also have a "civilian job"). we're so short on manpower, we also have to fulfill other roles. myself for example, my primary job is in satellite communications. i also have to track helicopters, coordinate information between every helipad in central iraq, act as a liason between army flights and marine flights, manage a flight terminal and address problems brought up by passengers/KBR employees/military employees, plan schedules, maintain vehicles/generators/flood lamps, teach new employees, inventory/issue supplies, etc. then comes the soldiering. weapons proficiency, self-defense, basic infantry skills, rules of engagement, squad leadership, developmental counseling, etc. point being...servicemembers are jacks-of-all-trades.

regarding the original post...don't forget that there are military nurses, military instructors, military police, and military firefighters.

 

here's my favorite quote:

"We the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible, for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little. We are now qualified to do anything with nothing."

it was made by mother teresa, but it describes military life perfectly.

 

San Magoo, Where have you been?

 

This statement is 100% BS!! We DID have a military since at least 1775! For an idiot to say otherwise is just plain idiotic.

Again, I am not debating whether or not we were ready, I am responding to your dumbass statement saying we had no military at that time! Get it right, and read what I say not what you think I say.

I could care less if you respect my views edited IF you can follow my responses in confronting Danr with some facts then you would be trying to inform Danr and not me.

 

in the military:
Fort Jackson, SC; Camp McCrady, SC; Fort Gordon, GA
Camp Carroll, Waegwan; Camp Walker, Taegu
Fort Bliss, TX; Fort Hood, TX
Camp Virginia, Kuwait; Camp New York, Kuwait; Camp New Jersey, Kuwait; Camp Udairi, Kuwait
Camp Anaconda, Iraq; Camp middle-of-nowhere & surrounded by concertina wire, Iraq

as a brat:
ASU Bahrain, NAS Sigonella, NCS Port Hueneme, NWS Point Mugu, Yongsan Garrison, NAS Atsugi, Yokosuka, San Diego