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I have long wondered why we often say that we thank the troops for our freedom in America. I am not trying to be disrespectful and I realize that the troops have no say in the decisions made by politicians but I really do not see how any of the military engagements that we have been involved in since WWII have protected our freedoms as Americans.
If anything, our freedoms as Americans are diminished far more by politicians and organizations like the NSA than they are by anyone in Iraq or Afghanistan.
I may be cynical but I feel we enter wars and military actions in order to justify and/or enrich the military-industrial complex and politicians tell us that the reason is to fight for our freedom which is more palatable to the American voting public.
Yes we need the military. Yes we need a STRONG military. Yes we should be grateful to the young men and women willing to sacrifice and serve their country often at great cost.
I just think that pretending a military effort is a fight for American freedom only ensures more needless wars and military engagements.
Whoa! Stand by for the fallout. What type of compensation does it take to make a Coast Guardsman jump out of a helicopter in a hurricane to save someone who's life is in danger? Or, have a soldier replace one who was just killed by a roadside bomb? The college or insurance is just a perk. There is no monetary value to what the military does. They aren't protecting our freedoms only. The U.S. is a superpower and because it can, it protects the world during disasters, either politically or environmentally. Isn't that worth any price? I've never heard anyone considering military service dwell on how much it pays. Check out the military forum here. It is very rare that any of them are debating the pay and benefits.
The OP does have a point. It's one thing to thank veterans for their service, for their sacrifice, for volunteering, for acceding to the reduction of their own freedoms (military life being less free than civilian life) for a large and broad cause. But this isn't necessarily a reason to conclude that the veterans' sacrifice directly enables the freedoms of Americans in the 21st century. Surely there is SOME connection, however tenuous. But the connection isn't direct and is rife with controversial exogenous attributes.
The point is that the nobility of voluntary military service should not be conflated with a necessary act on which our freedoms are contingent.
As far as VET's are concerned, I see them as blue collar workers, just the same as I see a framer or a roofer at a construction site. The true hero is the one who prevents conflicts, not the one who engages in them. Although they do get a little respect in my opinion. But I think the pride of being a soldier is one of the reasons people join the forces though.
The OP makes some valid points. However, it seems that we thank Veterans for their service, not for securing our freedoms, those are two different things. One can disagree with the politics that are the cause of needing a military while at the same time thanking those who service for their choice to do so.
For example, one can thank those who served in Iraq but at the same time question the results and purpose of engaging in a war there. We need only to open our eyes to see what while we went into Iraq and drove it practically into the stone age, we ignored Iran which is now and was then, a much larger problem and one that could directly affect our countries security. not to mention that of the rest of the world.
Those who serve do so knowing that they are instruments of political and civilian control and the philosophies of the politicians and civilian can change yet the person who serves can't simply decide that those changes allow them not to serve, they are duty and oath bound to do so. They deserve thanks because not everyone is willing to do that yet we require and need those who will or this country would cease to exist.
Unfortunately, what has happened over the years is that support for those who serve has been linked to support for the politics and when that happened the mess started. A President decides to enter into a military campaign in another country? Dare to say anything except yes and you are seen as not supporting the troops. Nonsense.
We thank the troops not because we must agree with what they do as an instrument of our civilian leaders but as individuals who accept the call of their nation to serve without regard to their personal sacrifices.
We thank the troops not because we think the military secures our freedoms but because they represent a country where the majority of it's citizens would do the same in time of need and it is that which secures out freedoms.
I think the whole "Support the Troops" movement is used to distract us from the reasons soliders have been sent overseas in the first place. Sure, I can empathize with a family who is uncertain their loved one will come home alive and uninjured, but otherwise I feel that whole support/thank the troops business is a smoke-screen engineered by politicians using them for their own gain.
How about we thank veterans by supporting them with jobs and health care instead? Senate GOP Blocks Veterans Benefits Bill - ABC News
I think it's a sad day when people aren't able to see the sacrifices that others make for our country. People like the OP and Rocco Barbosa are the type of people that are bringing our country down. The ones who are self centered. How can you keep a straight face and not have anything less than a great deal of respect for someone who is risking their life for our country. I'd never want to do what they do, but they're doing and and allowing me to live my life free as an American.
Our troops absolutely are the ones protecting our freedom. If our freedom was ever put at risk by another country, our troops would step in and protect us with their lives on the line. The only reason that we're not attacked is because of our military and strength. No country in the world can touch us. Yes, we should be thanking our troops.
It's not a good topic at all, to be honest I find it pathetic that something like this was even brought up.
Nobody is really thankful to the troops, just look at the hundreds of thousands of homeless and jobless vets. However, mandatory "thank you vets" rhetoric and uniform worship are key elements of something bigger than fake gratitude. The ruling elites got to whip millions of isolated individuals into cohesive mass they could put to work or to fight. Military and general uniform worship are tricks aggressive and/or warring elites use for crowd control. You can't get goosestepping jingoism going without uniform worship. You can't have aggressive wars without jingoism. Besides, simple compliant and non-questioning populace that can be governed using simple conditioning tricks, similar to the ones professor Pavlov used on his dogs, is very useful for the ruling class.
I don't think people who enlist (i.e. give their free will and consciousness in the hands of politicians and people those politicians serve) do so out of their above average altruism and desire to serve. There are much more mundane explanations why people, who should know recent history btw, enlist. Reason #1 people enlist - survival chances are very good (compared to civilian life), volunteer armies can't fight bloody wars for too long. So it's just another job, a necessary job, but there are many dangerous civilian jobs that are crucial for our "freedom". Maybe it's a coping mechanism for them to buy into freedom rhetoric, I don't care, all I know that people who take freedom rhetoric seriously can't be argued rationally, it's an emotional thing. Even a homeless bum wraps himself in a flag of service, it's the only illusion of belonging he has.
I think it's a sad day when people aren't able to see the sacrifices that others make for our country. People like the OP and Rocco Barbosa are the type of people that are bringing our country down. The ones who are self centered. How can you keep a straight face and not have anything less than a great deal of respect for someone who is risking their life for our country. I'd never want to do what they do, but they're doing and and allowing me to live my life free as an American.
Our troops absolutely are the ones protecting our freedom. If our freedom was ever put at risk by another country, our troops would step in and protect us with their lives on the line. The only reason that we're not attacked is because of our military and strength. No country in the world can touch us. Yes, we should be thanking our troops.
It's not a good topic at all, to be honest I find it pathetic that something like this was even brought up.
I really would love to know how the troops in their current engagements are allowing you to live your life as a free American. That was the question in my original post. I truly do not understand that thought process.
I do not seek to disrespect the troops or diminish the fact that they are willing to sacrifice so much for the greater good of their country but I just fail to see how any engagement of our military since WWII has protected our freedoms as Americans.
Consider this. If you are being attacked a US troop is sworn to protect you with their life if need be. Walk tall and carry a big stick.
The protection comes from you mess with the USA and it can cost a world of hurt. I'm sure there are and were threats to the US that the public has no clue about. The responsibility didn't really hit me until one day I looked at my uniform and read U.S. Air Force.
I had taken an oath to defend the country. Here's a secret. Most if not all who have served would answer the call again if need be. In the military the real world becomes real. People can complain or question all they want but even in this economy many people want to come to the USA.
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