OT Have you ever served your country........

[THE HCP]

Yes, No, Why?
Sure seems like everybody is very patriotic lately, just got me thinking........

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Nope, got money.

 

[Natebishop3]

I joined the Navy back in 2001, I got to bootcamp in August, but I've got issues with my meniscus and it got worse in there after about a month. They gave me a medical discharge a week before 9/11. I was pretty upset. I wanted to go back in, but I'm never going to be able to serve again with my knees.

I wanted to get involved in one way or another, so I ended up learning how to do close quarters combat back in the mid 2000's and I did some training with the Oregon National Guard as OpFor (the bad guys). It was really awesome getting to help train up the guys before they deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. Providing feedback to the Sergeants and Junior officers. Helping teach them what I know. It was some of the most satisfying work I have ever done. It was tough as hell though. We'd start at 5 am and we wouldn't stop until 8 pm. Totally worth it. I miss doing that stuff, but my life went a different way.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

I'm never going to be able to serve again with my knees.

#FAKENEWS

 

[Further]

No, at least not in the military.

 

[theprunetang]

Yes. I challenged the United States of America to a dance battle and won. Therefore, the country got served. By me. I served the country.

 

[Natebishop3]

Yes. I challenged the United States of America to a dance battle and won. Therefore, the country got served. By me. I served the country.

Come on man.... you know the Carlton isn't going to serve anyone.

 

[BlazerWookee]

Yep. 7 years active Army, and 4 in the National Guard.

 

[BrianFromWA]

 

[bodyman5000 and 1]

No.

Gramps was in Army in WW2. He never talked about it and I was basically told never to ask about it.

Uncle was in Vietnam and he was literally a crazy person when I was growing up.

Dad was in the Army after Vietnam and he was a loser who couldn't keep a job when I was growing up.

I never had a single thought of joining.

The last 20 years of idiotic wars we've been fighting has made me happy I didn't.

 

[JfizzleBlazer]

Tried to. Applied to the Air Force ROTC program, but was denied. They didn't like my asthma history. Or vision.

They wanted people badly that were going into engineering. I was never that interested in engineering.

 

[dviss1]

I nor my son will never serve in a military that sends poor people to other countries to kill other poor people for the rich's desire for resources. We will be working class heroes.

I do have a cousin in Afghanistan and another in Kuwait. We continue to hope for their safety and that they will one day return home.

 

[e_blazer]

Yep. Missile launch officer in the USAF.

 

[BLAZINGGIANTS]

No. My parents freaked out on me when I told them I was thinking of going into the Navy. UCD served in the Navy, though.

#doasisaynotasido

 

[DaLincolnJones]

Yep. Four and four. It is an honor to serve ones country. Pretty much a family tradition.

 

[THE HCP]

Yep. Missile launch officer in the USAF.

What does this job intail? Learning to push a big red shiny button?

 

[e_blazer]

What does this job intail? Learning to push a big red shiny button?

In your case, it would more likely be important to teach you NOT to push the big red shiny button accidentally.

Here' a recent article I read that pretty much describes what's involved:

http://www.marieclaire.com/politics/a29275/air-force-nuclear-missileers/

We didn't have any female crewmembers in my day, but the duty's still about the same. Eighty feet underground in a steel capsule that's sealed with a bank vault style blast door, the whole thing hanging from huge shock absorbers. You feel pretty safe down there until they tell you that a ground burst from a nuke leaves a crater about a quarter mile deep.

 

[dviss1]

What does this job intail? Learning to push a big red shiny button?

C'mon now... first it's Entail...

And as much as I or my son are not going to, it's honorable to serve. It takes a special type of person. Don't belittle it.

I'm sure he had to know trajectories and other types of math to do that job.

 

[e_blazer]

I'm sure he had to know trajectories and other types of math to do that job.

Not really. All of that stuff is programmed. It's really more about monitoring the status of 10 ICBM's that you're directly responsible for, running security cops out to the silos each time a jack rabbit sets off the motion sensors, keeping track of maintenance crews, decoding messages, etc. There's a lot of training involved because you have a lot of equipment to monitor.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

I tried to join the VFW, imagine my embarrassment when I found out it was Foreign Wars, not Forum Wars.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

No. My parents freaked out on me when I told them I was thinking of going into the Navy. UCD served in the Navy, though.

#doasisaynotasido

#wealth

 

[Chris Craig]

C'mon now... first it's Entail...

And as much as I or my son are not going to, it's honorable to serve. It takes a special type of person. Don't belittle it.

I'm sure he had to know trajectories and other types of math to do that job.

Capitalization of the E is unnecess....oh

 

[Chris Craig]

I have not served in the military. I respect those who have and do. My father and grandpa were in the military. My dad was a helicopter mechanic in the vietnam war.

 

[THE HCP]

C'mon now... first it's Entail...

And as much as I or my son are not going to, it's honorable to serve. It takes a special type of person. Don't belittle it.

I'm sure he had to know trajectories and other types of math to do that job.

I was wondering about how to spell that. My spell check didn't catch that. And I was joking with him.
I served my country for 8 years, in no way would I belittle anybody that served no matter what their job was.

 

[UncleCliffy'sDaddy]

#wealth

Nope. That was reserved for the rich kids of my draft era generation. Missus UCD and I were just a pair of low level public employees who wanted little BG to have a college education without him getting his ass shot off. And BG only threw out the Navy enlistment idea because it was just after 9/11 and everyone thought the draft was going to be reinstated. After serving during the Vietnam War era, along with living during all that has gone on with this country and our government these past 40+ years, I made it very clear to both my sons that I would see them in prison before I see them off to fight in another phony foreign war that is none of America's business......that said, I honor those who choose to pursue their own convictions and appreciate their sacrifices.

 

[DaLincolnJones]

What does this job intail? Learning to push a big red shiny button?

Okay, this cracked me up

 

[barfo]

No, after my four college deferments I developed bone spurs in my heels.

barfo

 

[Natebishop3]

No.

Gramps was in Army in WW2. He never talked about it and I was basically told never to ask about it.

Uncle was in Vietnam and he was literally a crazy person when I was growing up.

Dad was in the Army after Vietnam and he was a loser who couldn't keep a job when I was growing up.

I never had a single thought of joining.

The last 20 years of idiotic wars we've been fighting has made me happy I didn't.

My grandpa was a Naval Aviator back in WWII. He flew fighter planes off of carriers. Like your gramps, he doesn't talk about it. Warfare in the Pacific was so different than warfare in the European theater. I get the impression he did a lot of strafing... which I think he has a hard time dealing with.

He flew one of these bad boys. (This is a great video by the way)

 

[DaLincolnJones]

Funny that you would ask this question.

My Father sold his house up here and is going to live in his AZ home full time. The Pods are in route, escrow is final, and he is wrapping up a few lose ends.

So, he just stopped by and gave me his Fathers hat, flag and medals. It is hard to describe how touched I am to be entrusted with these historical items that honor a true hero. A twenty year Navy man that retired as a CWO4. Served aboard many of the vaunted ships including The South Dakota, before, during and after it gained the designation "Battleship X". Received many commendations, most notably for bringing steering, guns and propulsion back on line after receiving severe damage taking her out of combat, in the action preceding being designated Battleship X.

I could go on and on. Most of what I know of his war time record I had to find for my self. Lots of research, lots of after action reports. Every time I would find something, I would send copy to my Father and most of it he was never aware of. Typical of his generation, he seldom spoke of his service unless it was of the ships he was on.

 

[bodyman5000 and 1]

My grandpa was a Naval Aviator back in WWII. He flew fighter planes off of carriers. Like your gramps, he doesn't talk about it. Warfare in the Pacific was so different than warfare in the European theater. I get the impression he did a lot of strafing... which I think he has a hard time dealing with.

He flew one of these bad boys. (This is a great video by the way)

I don't even know what he did. He could have been a cook on an Army base or one of the guys trying to rescue people trapped in ships at Pearl Harbor.