What do you REALLY think about the military?

Question

I'm interested to hear. My husband is a Marine and while browsing on here while he supports our freedom I've come across several comments about the military being for ignorant, uneducated people who can't get a better job. Do some people really think that or are they just seeking attention? I find that really upsetting if true.

Let me explain, my husband isn't ignorant at all. He is actually really smart. He was in the top 5% of his graduating high school class, but signed a contract with the USMC when he was a Junior in high school. The only way he describes it is very casual. He wanted to defend our country. He thought it was a duty - he never looked at it as an option. (thank God it is) I admire him for that. He WANTED to go to war. WANTED. I understand that the military isn't for everyone. (some ppl can't endure it) The LEAST they could do is respect those who do join.

I'm just curious and looking for answers. This is upsetting as first an AMERICAN and second a military wife

Answer 1

First of all I would like to express thanks and gratitude to you, your husband, and your family for the sacrifices that all of you are making, with him in the service.



I feel that the vast majority of the country shares my beliefs, that the people who serve in the military are honorable, brave, intelligent and very highly respected by civilians.



There are however a small but vocal group who will regurgitate idiotic defamatory comments towards our military. Most of the people who do this, do it out of a lack of objective reason, and a hatred for our government. The very fringe left will do anything to undermine the current Presidential administration. Unfortunately that has resulted in them even being willing to defame those who protect their rights. Many of those who have gotten involved in this are not doing it out of rational thought, but simply because organizations such as moveon.org push their propaganda, and people accept it at face value, without looking at things objectively.



Please do not allow these lemmings to discourage you, or your family. When your husband became a marine, he vowed to protect and defend our country. He is serving a noble cause, though a noble means. In the end, he and his fellow servicemen will be viewed as heroes. Those who defame him will fade into obscurity and eventually forgotten.

Answer 2

Ignorant and uneducated we are not. I have a Master's in Computer Science with MCP, and CCN. I also am a Certified Executive Chef. The military that we have is the most educated, brightest, and best that there is in the world. We have soldiers with PhD's, and are willing to come into the military to do a job that many don't want. I'm here (and have been for 23 yrs) to do the same as your husband, "defend against all enimies foreign and domestic".

Those that make such comment either don't understand what the military is about or just don't care. The don't understand that it is the military that gives them the freedoms that they have. Yes we have the only constitution that guarantees freedoms, but it has to be defended by those that hold it dear for all Americans, regardles of race, creed, religon or ethinic origin.

As far as getting a better job... well, I was going to retire and "stop loss stop move" put an end to that. I had and $87k a year job waiting for when it was lifted. I decided to stay. So have many others, and for amounts that far exceed what I was offered. It all matters not, as I am in the military(I speak only for myself) to do a my job, and do it the very best I can everyday.

--SGM

Answer 3

One of my brother's best friends went into the military. He went thru school in the gifted and talented program. He's a US Army Sergeant. He's going to college to enable himself to advance to officer status within the next year or two. He's already had one Iraq deployment and said WE should not be there. He said we cannot shoot the enemy after dark to avoid friendly fire and thats when most of the bombs are going off. The roadside bombs are frightening. Many of his friends are dead.



This is a guy who is one of the best and brightest. He is an achiever. Anyone questioning our military or spewing insults are people who know nothing. These opinions are not qualified and require no further dissection. They don't count.



What counts is that the country cares more about the troops than the government does. We respect that they are serving because they want to. But the war is unpopular because enough soldiers have come back saying we should end this.



The American people are getting much news from Iraq from its fighting men, not the media and not the government. The best thing you can do is do what you're doing as a supportive military wife.

Answer 4

No matter what subject, especially on this website, there are people who have nothing better to do, then to get on people's nerves. Either for a joke, to feel important, to start an argument, or just to do it. Then there is the armchair warrior, you know, the guy who says that he wants to go in and fight the war all by himself, and win, but then goes back to his video game, the guy or gal, who can't get into the service because of their police record, or flat feet, or the fact that they didn't graduate from high school.

If you really want to know what Americans think of their military, just go to any American Legion, VFW, any parade, where a unit of the military is represented, or any of the thousands of services that are held on Memorial Day or Veterans Day.

Just keep in mind that this is the land of the free. Your husband is doing what he is doing, so that some idiot can come along and make those remarks to get other people annoyed.

Another source for information, to show you how much people in America respect the military, just go to the website for the "Patriot Guard".



Oh, yes, I'm a Retired Air Force Master Sergeant. I have a college degree from the University of Pittsburgh and I ride a Harley.

Answer 5

I love and respect the military. In fact, I signed my papers to join the Marines last month.



Some people on here are ignorant and know nothing about what the military really is. I am not stupid; I scored really high on the ASVAB, got a good score on the ACT, and I am one of the top students in my class. There are many people that are really intelligent that decide to join the military.



Some people, unfortunately, do believe all of that crap (about the military being a bunch of ignorant fools)- just blow it off. That is about all you can do.

Answer 6

I totally agree with you. My husband is in the Army with a college degree, so basically he could have almost any job he wanted, but this is what he wanted to do for now.

Just like the Civilain world you have your ignorant people, just like a lot of civilians think that all military wives sleep around when their husbands are gone. Yeah some do, so do some civilians, we are just a smaller community of people so it stands out more, I guess.

But I totally agree with you. The guys do deserve respect, the ones that say those disrespectful type of comments are the ones that wouldn't lay down their life for their country.

Answer 7

As a fellow service member, I feel your pain. This place can be a little hostile. Okay, a lot. Like your husband, I joined while I was in high school too. I did it because I always wanted to serve, but I also wanted to go to college. After two weeks I realized I had more in common with soldiers than a bunch of long-haired dope smokers, so I quit and went active. I think the reason that people are so nasty here is that the news is filled with stories of our brave men and women, and they can't help but hold themselves a little cheaper for sitting at home and watching American Idol. That, and they can't separate those who serve and those who lead, who are their real targets for abuse.

Answer 8

I am a disabled vet and am currently enrolled in college to achieve a degree in nursing. Military personell are not ignorant nor are we stupid. We are the ones who stand up and put our lives on the line so all the tree hugging hippies can have the right to ***** about our government. We are some of the strongest people in the world. We leave our families and our lives behind us to try and give people in another country better lives (whether we agree with it or not, we respect our flag and our superiors and just do it). We live in the worst conditions, sometimes unable to eat for days, unable to shower for weeks or months. We endure bullets and bombs and bloodshed. We hold our best friends in our arms as they die and tell them that they are going to be fine ...even when we know they wont be. We use our pain as motivation to get our job done. And even though we are put through so much and have seen so much turmoil, we are still able to return home with a smile and open arms for our loved ones. We are still able to come back and wrap our arms around our spouses and children ... because of course... they are the ones who get us through it all.

The ones who like to sit back in their sports cars and ***** about how soldiers are stupid, drive around protesting, enjoying every second of the freedom we give them, are the ones who make me believe that everyone over the age of 18 should spend a minimum of 2 years in some branch of the service.

Answer 9

People who think military personnel are stupid are ignorant themselves!!!!

I was in the Navy for 4 wonderful years. LOVED it! I went from a shy, timid girl to a mature, ballsy woman. The military is very black and white; very few shades of gray. Also, military travel all over the world!!! We support our country but also ourselves - we are our own technicians, cooks, communicators, programmers, nuclear scientists, doctors - you name it!!!

Unfortunately, the military is also a place where pretty much everyone who can read and write, walk and talk, can go to get away from their small town or whatever. Many people see them and don't see the professionals and people who have degrees in all sorts of vocations.

Too bad for them. They'll never know. But your husband, you, and I, know what it means to serve a country that is sometimes very ungrateful. But, I WOULD DO IT AGAIN WITH PLEASURE.

Answer 10

Yeah...for some reason a lot of people that post on here say that people in the military are stupid and are pretty much white trash. I actually had someone tell me that the men and woman serving were poor and lower class. It really upset me and i reported them.



My husband is in the army so...yes...marine vs. army. haha i veiw all military wives on the same level though. So i know the feeling and why it upsets you. my husband is FAR from stupid...hes amazing and had a very VERY VERY high score on his ASVAB and could get ANY job he wanted in the army.

I know how you feel..im sorry you have to read crap on here about people badmouthing the military. they suck.

Answer 11

You'll see this type of comments all over the place; specially on the internet. Trust me, most of us are highly educate. Right now I'm in medical school. I was a Navy Corpsman and after graduating with a degree in Biology I got out after 6 years. Don't pay attention to them all it is propaganda. They will never understand, how life is in the military.

Answer 12

...thank you madame, and your husband for serving this country...



..In years past, before the All volunteer Army, sometimes the Military was thought to be a career of last resort for people who had no other options......that is NOT true today, and with the all volunteer Military we have the Most Finest and the Best Military we could only wish for.....

...so some people, for example, John Carey are still stuck in the past.



....But as to your husband, you are the true testimony that our Armed Services are now the Finest in the World...God Bless!

Answer 13

Thank God for the Marine Corps! With out it we would be living in a much different country conquered by other nations.

Freedom isn't free



Semper Fi

Answer 14

I'm seldom troubled by the opinions expressed by the truly ignorant and that's what you're hearing from those who denigrate the military. They don't know or understand military life, we operate under a whole different set of motivations and ethical standards. Like many ignorant people, they fear what they don't understand and need to attack it to feel better about themselves. It's a waste of time to engage them over it though, they really don't want to know better.

Answer 15

I too am an American Soldier that shares your husbands beliefs. I have also served in Iraq and would fight and die for the same people who curse us back in the US. (Freedom doesn't come Free) If it were not for soldiers like he and I that put our lives on the line every day for our Country, family and friends ,we would be pressing #1 for Japanese and #2 for German. SSG USARMY (Engineer)

Answer 16

i agree

i know that the military is not for me

that gives me so much more respect for them

they are willing to go to war (which is not pleasent) to protect us

and our military has some of the best men in not only in battle, but also in the mind and in courage



and we need to thank God every day for people like your husband

Answer 17

the real question is: why do we have to fight each other for freedom. especially now, i'm a canadian and we have canadian soldiers going into battle for what? for america's freedom? america's war? first of all i think our government made a bad decision on allowing our commrades to help out in this crazy "war". Secondly Bush is an idiot. the fact that when this whole thing began with 9/11 they were looking for the perpetrators behind this, Osama Bin Laden, but than everything started to diminish into the death of Saddam Hussein than the well being of the citizens of Iraq. Bush, to me, wants to be in power of Iraq he wants to think he can change that when he can't and he's not accomplishing anything and american soldiers are doing this thinking their fighting for their freedom when their just fighting for nothing.

Why don't soldiers see this? Why do they go into battle and not realize what their getting into? Their not fighting anymore for freedom their fighting for empowerment.

Answer 18

I know alot of young men that joined themilitary. It's sad, but i'm glad that they can stand up, and be a man, and fight for our country, even though i dont know anything about the war. it takes a man to do that. thats what i think.

Answer 19

militia Veteran: skill i'm a veteran of militia service. Self-Proclaimed militia: skill you have proclaimed your self to be what you're no longer. And that may get you in to real problem. try proclaiming your self to be a police officer, or President of the U. S. and you will see what I propose.

Answer 20

thank god for our military they are the best and the most patriotic they should be given raises and more benefits after serving...anyone killed in the military if they have kids , their kids should be taken care of education wise and financially until they are 21...and widows should be honored as much as their spouses for making the ultimate sacrifice...we cant thank them enough....

Answer 21

I think they are the main group of people in this country in which we should be extremely proud of! To devote their lives to their country for whatever reason is admirable.

Answer 22

Many people think that the volunteer military is made up mostly of people who have no education beyond high school, and do not want to work at Burger King.



That is pretty harsh, but not entirely incorrect.

Answer 23

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