Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The american media loves to use the word hero very often and they apply it automatically to anyone in the armed forces, police officers and fire fighters. In fact the american public embraces the military, calling all of them heros and worshiping the flag, pledging allegiance and all of this mindless behavior.
Dont get me wrong, I love the military and I am an Iraq vet.
So the question you should ask is, what is a hero?
A hero is someone who acts outside of their element, outside their comfort zone. Not someone that gets trained for years and gets paid to do a dangerous job or a job that involves saving lives. An ambulance driver for example is not a hero, because they are getting paid to do a job. A soldier going to war is not a hero, they should only be hailed as a hero & get recognition if they actually do somethign above and beyond their call of duty. Just because you wear a uniform or joined the army to get college tuition does not make you a hero, period.
A teacher shielding a student from harm is a hero. A carpenter saving someone's life doing CPR is a hero. Get the point?
A uniform does not make you a hero. Hero's cannot be trained.
The american media loves to use the word hero very often and they apply it automatically to anyone in the armed forces, police officers and fire fighters. In fact the american public embraces the military, calling all of them heros and worshiping the flag, pledging allegiance and all of this mindless behavior.
Dont get me wrong, I love the military and I am an Iraq vet.
So the question you should ask is, what is a hero?
A hero is someone who acts outside of their element, outside their comfort zone. Not someone that gets trained for years and gets paid to do a dangerous job or a job that involves saving lives. An ambulance driver for example is not a hero, because they are getting paid to do a job. A soldier going to war is not a hero, they should only be hailed as a hero & get recognition if they actually do somethign above and beyond their call of duty. Just because you wear a uniform or joined the army to get college tuition does not make you a hero, period.
A teacher shielding a student from harm is a hero. A carpenter saving someone's life doing CPR is a hero. Get the point?
A uniform does not make you a hero. Hero's cannot be trained.
Good for you. About time someone gave this perspective.
An outsider's view: This came about as early as during WWII when it was discovered that getting the necessary numbers to foment war required glorifying it. Hence the awarding of Purple Hearts etc., for falling off the back of a truck or dropping a crate on your foot while anywhere near a combat area.
This has morphed into over-the-top glorification to keep the draft at bay and stimulate volunteerism, otherwise you'd have riots in the streets and draft card burning all over again before any troops would get onto a C-5 to get their butts carted off to a chit-hole like Afghanistan to lose a leg or worse.
I was overheard chatting at the magazine rack in a local supermarket in Florida and a lady thanked me for my service as a veteran. She was flummoxed when I told her I was a Canadian and we do not consider ourselves veteran's for merely having performed military service. My father was a veteran and his father before him but they were the real deal and calling anyone and everyone who ever put on a uniform either a "hero" or a "veteran" only serves to denigrate the real deal who saw action under fire.
In my view, an action can be heroic, therefore the person who performed the action is a hero.
I agree with the OP that merely wearing a uniform does not make the person a hero. In fact, many who wear a uniform are worthless human beings.
Here's more on my perspective:
Quote:
In Boston (and numerous other situations), the police and rescue personnel were held to a higher esteem than they should have been. For what exactly? Doing what they are trained and paid to do??
The logic is simple:
If a person willfully engages in public service that involves certain levels of danger, and those persons take a paycheck and benefits to engage in that danger, then they shouldn't be held up as heroes.
In fact, if those persons refused to act or refused to show up in a time of need while getting paid, then most people would demand they be held accountable for their inaction. After all, they're getting paid and failed to perform their duties, right?
While we can and should appreciate that people choose these paid professions, its ridiculous to hold them up as heroes for doing their JOB.
Notice how many bleeding-heart liberals in that thread can't bring themselves to admit what I, and the OP here, make clear. It's not in their DNA, nor their political agenda, to be bold and honest about the farce that is derived over men/women in uniform.
The american media loves to use the word hero very often and they apply it automatically to anyone in the armed forces, police officers and fire fighters. In fact the american public embraces the military, calling all of them heros and worshiping the flag, pledging allegiance and all of this mindless behavior.
Dont get me wrong, I love the military and I am an Iraq vet.
So the question you should ask is, what is a hero?
A hero is someone who acts outside of their element, outside their comfort zone. Not someone that gets trained for years and gets paid to do a dangerous job or a job that involves saving lives. An ambulance driver for example is not a hero, because they are getting paid to do a job. A soldier going to war is not a hero, they should only be hailed as a hero & get recognition if they actually do somethign above and beyond their call of duty. Just because you wear a uniform or joined the army to get college tuition does not make you a hero, period.
A teacher shielding a student from harm is a hero. A carpenter saving someone's life doing CPR is a hero. Get the point?
A uniform does not make you a hero. Hero's cannot be trained.
I don't know. Someone being willing to put their life in the line, if need be, for others IS a hero.
I get paid to do a job, but my life is not hanging in the balance every second.
But hey - it's a free country. You can define hero however makes you feel good.
Why do only the wounded veterans get honored as "heros" and called out for recognition? How about giving some recognition to the guy who killed 20 terrorists instead?
I don't think there is anything wrong with honoring people who willingly put themselves in harm's way.
It's better than sports star and celebrity worship.
This. Nothing drives me nuttier than hearing sports announcers talking about some athlete being paid multi-million dollar salary a hero. Talented, impressive, effective, good role model? Yes. Hero? No.
However, I do agree that wearing a military uniform does not automatically make one a hero. It's what they do in that uniform.
The american media loves to use the word hero very often and they apply it automatically to anyone in the armed forces, police officers and fire fighters. In fact the american public embraces the military, calling all of them heros and worshiping the flag, pledging allegiance and all of this mindless behavior.
Dont get me wrong, I love the military and I am an Iraq vet.
So the question you should ask is, what is a hero?
A hero is someone who acts outside of their element, outside their comfort zone. Not someone that gets trained for years and gets paid to do a dangerous job or a job that involves saving lives. An ambulance driver for example is not a hero, because they are getting paid to do a job. A soldier going to war is not a hero, they should only be hailed as a hero & get recognition if they actually do somethign above and beyond their call of duty. Just because you wear a uniform or joined the army to get college tuition does not make you a hero, period.
A teacher shielding a student from harm is a hero. A carpenter saving someone's life doing CPR is a hero. Get the point?
A uniform does not make you a hero. Hero's cannot be trained.
It's called recognizing people for belonging to a group. It's done out of respect for what the group has been called upon to do, and for the obligations and hardships they may to endure in the future.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
