Would you be proud of your son or daughter if they Joined the Army?

[katerkat]

It was not always easy but in the end I think it made me a better person.

I got to travel and experience places and people that I would never have otherwise.

Obviously, Russ is far too young to answer this (and technically he's only lived in Washington so far) but I agree! In our first two years of marriage, we lived in four different places. Two I loved, one I liked, one I disliked - but all have enriched my life in ways that could have never happened if DH wasn't military. I mean, there's no way I ever would have considered living in Mississippi if it weren't for him, but I consider that a powerful experience for my writing skills seeing race relations so very, well, black and white. I absolutely love living in Washington State and again, never would have moved this far if it weren't for the military. And I wouldn't have an extreme coffee addiction.

Right now, we've been told that if we get an assignment, it'll be to England. At times I think but then - what an incredible opportunity to travel with Russ. I told DH we'd blow our monthly house savings on travel, since we wouldn't be buying a house for another couple of years.

DH has had some amazing opportunities in travel as well, being deployed to several different places. He was on an island in the Indian Ocean during the tsunami and flew support missions for that. He's been to Dubai. He's gotten to fly in the Himalayas. He's been to Peru and refueled, ah, important planes. He's been to England, Crete, Spain, Guam, Japan, Greece... All on the military's dime. (Heck, we even get paid for him to go places!)

 

[Tybug]

Sorry guys...I answered the question the OP posted as honestly as I could. My opinion on the matter. Maybe the Army needs a better PR firm.

And I was not posting on professionals - I am aware of the many in the service. I took the question to be "would you be proud of your child if they came home and said they were joining the Army". Period. Not they wanted to go to med school and then work as a surgeon, not they want to build bridges as an engineer. Simply that they wanted to go into the Army as a private.

I know no one in my workplace, family, or friends who was or is in the military. My high school forbade recruiters from coming on campus. My parents made it clear I was not to join the services when I was an engineering student and ROTC wanted me.

Its a little ironic that almost any other profession can be poked at and their supporters do not spew diatribe.

If anyone wants to join the service, great for them. They deserve better pay, and certainly better health care. They deserve not to have their tours extended, or be stop-lossed. No one in the military should be on food stamps.

But I would still be appalled if that was my childs choice. Love them yes, wish they had chosen differently, of course.

I don't think what you have addressed in this latest post was what made everyone so angry. You may want to reread your original post(I'd quote it but am not certain about multi-quotes)... I think it had much more to do with being all high and mighty. Saying that only other kids should serve because that is the only path in life that they will actually make something of themselves. You know, the poor... uneducated... those without drive...

I won't get into the detailed debate as the others before me said it very well. I'll just state what a pitiful try at an "I'm sorry" that was...

 

[rparmfamily]

As far as I can tell, my children aren't damaged yet by their dad being in the military. It actually enriches their life. (as it does mine!)

My children have lived on the coast of Maine in a small New England town, the coast of Florida and now in Hawaii. Don't you feel bad for them? Exposing them to different cultures? Traveling all the time? I feel bad for myself!! (HAHA!) We are hoping for either Washington State next or overseas, such as Italy or Japan. That will seal the deal on how messed up they are then!!

 

[MrsPete]

I just wouldn't wish the military life on my worst enemy. We are saying goodbye to our military (Army) neighbors this Saturday, as they are reporting to their next duty station. I wonder what kind of a life that is for their kids. They have no stability. They've lived in I don't even know how many different places, changed schools repeatedly, and watched dad get deployed repeatedly.

Yeah, my poor husband had such a difficult time growing up military. His dad was able to take his family overseas with him, and those poor kids were forced to do things like ski the Alps on a regular basis, drive over to Paris for long weekends, and fly cheaply to places like Hawaii and Madrid. Furthermore, he was forced to go to Department of Defense Schools, which have higher ratings than our American public schools, and those schools had the audacity to take their sports teams all over Europe to play other military schools. And would you believe that in all that time he was subjected to living with a stay-at-home mom who was actually part of his life. Everywhere he went, he was forced to make new friends; he reports that little boys bonded over comic books, baseball, and football, and every base had an active scout troop for the military brats. Horror of horrors, he's still in contact with a number of them via email. The poor little fellow -- I don't know how he grew up so well.

The really bad part: He became so confused that he wanted the same life for his children (so did his sister), but a minor disability prevented him from joining the Army like his dad.

 

[rparmfamily]

Exactly MrsPete!! I feel very bad for your husband!

 

[hydster]

The bolded parts are the ones *I* personally had issues with!

I would not be proud. I would be appalled. It is expected in my family to go to college. You can be anything you want - artist, actor, accountant, but you will not be a soldier.

No one in immediate or extended family is in or was in the military (unless drafted). It would be looked down upon, I consider the service as something that other kids do ... those without the desire for college, without money, without other options. (How many kids of US senators, representatives, CEOs etc are in the services?)

I am grateful to all who serve.

Sorry guys...I answered the question the OP posted as honestly as I could. My opinion on the matter. Maybe the Army needs a better PR firm.

And I was not posting on professionals - I am aware of the many in the service. I took the question to be "would you be proud of your child if they came home and said they were joining the Army". Period. Not they wanted to go to med school and then work as a surgeon, not they want to build bridges as an engineer. Simply that they wanted to go into the Army as a private.

I know no one in my workplace, family, or friends who was or is in the military. My high school forbade recruiters from coming on campus. My parents made it clear I was not to join the services when I was an engineering student and ROTC wanted me.

Its a little ironic that almost any other profession can be poked at and their supporters do not spew diatribe.

If anyone wants to join the service, great for them. They deserve better pay, and certainly better health care. They deserve not to have their tours extended, or be stop-lossed. No one in the military should be on food stamps.

But I would still be appalled if that was my childs choice. Love them yes, wish they had chosen differently, of course.

You can TRY to spin it any way you want but your first post spoke volumes! No amount of "backtracking" can undo your first comments and even this post you still sound condescending which are the parts I bolded. And except for police/fireman there aren't very many professions that you DIE or have the consequence of dying while in service of your job! I mean actors don't die while acting unless you are like John Candy or Belushi, Lawyers don't die in the process of taking on a case, Doctors don't die trying to save a life generally. There is a reason why they don't...........they aren't put in harms way every single day like the police/fire force or the ARMED FORCES serving to keep your butt safe!

No joke!
I'm in shock that there are people here who hold ACTORS in higher esteem than soldiers.

I wish I could say I agree but sadly I'm not so shocked. Appalled yes.....shocked no!

I don't think what you have addressed in this latest post was what made everyone so angry. You may want to reread your original post(I'd quote it but am not certain about multi-quotes)... I think it had much more to do with being all high and mighty. Saying that only other kids should serve because that is the only path in life that they will actually make something of themselves. You know, the poor... uneducated... those without drive...

I won't get into the detailed debate as the others before me said it very well. I'll just state what a pitiful try at an "I'm sorry" that was...

Hopefully I did it justice here!

 

[MrsPete]

I would not be proud. I would be appalled. It is expected in my family to go to college. You can be anything you want - artist, actor, accountant, but you will not be a soldier.

No one in immediate or extended family is in or was in the military (unless drafted). It would be looked down upon, I consider the service as something that other kids do ... those without the desire for college, without money, without other options. (How many kids of US senators, representatives, CEOs etc are in the services?)

I am grateful to all who serve.

Grateful in the same way you're glad that the great unwashed come to pick up your trash every Friday, etc.? You don't sound grateful at all -- you sound elitist and poorly informed.

As I look over my high school seniors who'll graduate next week, the ones who are going into the military ARE driven and have desires to better themselves. NONE of them are slackards who have no options.

Looking back over my family tree, I see accountants, artists, teachers, business people, police officers . . . and military men. Many of them started out in the military, then went on to other jobs later. Some of them found a leg-up to another career in the military; a few made it a career. You're very foolish to look down upon our military -- both enlisted and officers.

 

[kribit]

Posts like this really infuriate me. I'm having a hard time understanding that people can be this utterly ignorant and elitist. Please say it isn't so. So what some of the other posters are saying is that because a person doesn't spend 4 or 6 years of their life going to college and decides to fight for my family (and THEIRS) makes them less of a person? Perhaps "those posters" should go back and read some history books. My first choice would be to read up on George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. If you want something more current, why not take a gander over to the UK and research the young Prince William or Harry. I'm sure Princess Diana is "rolling in her grave."

 

[MrsPete]

And except for police/fireman there aren't very many professions that you DIE or have the consequence of dying while in service of your job! I mean actors don't die while acting unless you are like John Candy or Belushi, Lawyers don't die in the process of taking on a case, Doctors don't die trying to save a life generally. There is a reason why they don't...........they aren't put in harms way every single day like the police/fire force or the ARMED FORCES serving to keep your butt safe!

Are you sure? We've all heard of teachers who've been killed in the process of school shootings -- most recently at Virgina Tech. A couple years ago we had a rash of real estate agents killed while they where showing houses. Constuction workers are often in harm's way. Driving is one of the most dangerous things any of us do in the course of our day-to-day lives, yet does anyone say, "Oh, honey, don't become a truck driver -- I couldn't bear to think of you having a wreck." Health care workers must take extreme measures to prevent being exposed to HIV and other diseases. It isn't all that uncommon to hear of a store clerk being robbed at gunpoint or locked up in his own store; wasn't that Wendy's manager shot just last week? My husband doesn't really have people who want to hurt him at work, but he does go into nuclear power plants on a regular basis; how many other workers are exposed to dangerous chemicals of some type on a daily basis?

The point: LOTS of us are put into harm's way in the course of a day's work.

 

[hydster]

I'm sure Princess Diana is "rolling in her grave."

No but I'm sure she's appalled at the thought of her son's degrading themselves to be a *gasp* soldier!

 

[BMNABrinx]

You bet I'd be proud! DH was in the USAF when we first married. He seperated from the military and many times we have wished that we would have stayed in and retired. There are many reasons for feeling the sense of pride that some people can not understand because they have not been there. DH tried to enlist in the AF reserves following 9-11 but a medical condition kept him from it. I supported him with his decision then and if one of my girls, or both, decided to join the military I would encourage them to do it. We are a family of faith and believe that God has a plan for our lives and our days are already numbered. My SIL pitched a fit when her only child (a son) expressed an interest in enlisting and my DH was furious! It wasn't really her objection just the words she used.

 

[hydster]

Are you sure? We've all heard of teachers who've been killed in the process of school shootings -- most recently at Virgina Tech. A couple years ago we had a rash of real estate agents killed while they where showing houses. Constuction workers are often in harm's way. Driving is one of the most dangerous things any of us do in the course of our day-to-day lives, yet does anyone say, "Oh, honey, don't become a truck driver -- I couldn't bear to think of you having a wreck." Health care workers must take extreme measures to prevent being exposed to HIV and other diseases. It isn't all that uncommon to hear of a store clerk being robbed at gunpoint or locked up in his own store; wasn't that Wendy's manager shot just last week? My husband doesn't really have people who want to hurt him at work, but he does go into nuclear power plants on a regular basis; how many other workers are exposed to dangerous chemicals of some type on a daily basis?

The point: LOTS of us are put into harm's way in the course of a day's work.

True but the OP of that post said

"Its a little ironic that almost any other profession can be poked at and their supporters do not spew diatribe."

And those were the first ones that came to mind. There are others but for most professions they aren't always in harms way and that was my point. MY DH does IT stuff for a living...he isn't in harms way. My brother works in accounting at a trucking company he isn't really in "harms way". My mother in law sells real estate and she isn't in harms way. It's a matter of perspective but I found the statement of supporters spewing diatribe for other professions highly offensive!

Obviously living puts everyone in harms way but I was saying it in response to the quote above!

 

[MrsPete]

In February, the Baltimore Sun wrote that there was "a significant increase in the number of recruits with what the Army terms 'serious criminal misconduct' in their background"

I don't know about that, but I know that journalistic ethics have decreased in the last decade, and I don't really believe much of what I read in the papers -- it's all just sensationalism.

 

[LakeAriel]

Posts like this really infuriate me. I'm having a hard time understanding that people can be this utterly ignorant and elitist. Please say it isn't so. So what some of the other posters are saying is that because a person doesn't spend 4 or 6 years of their life going to college and decides to fight for my family (and THEIRS) makes them less of a person? Perhaps "those posters" should go back and read some history books. My first choice would be to read up on George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. If you want something more current, why not take a gander over to the UK and research the young Prince William or Harry. I'm sure Princess Diana is "rolling in her grave."

Harry nor William will be put in harms way..even though Tony Blair along with George Bush were the invaders. It will be our children in harms way..Not Harry, nor Charles, nor Barbara Jr nor Jenna...

 

[hydster]

I don't know about that, but I know that journalistic ethics have decreased in the last decade, and I don't really believe much of what I read in the papers -- it's all just sensationalism.

 

[MrsPete]

No but I'm sure she's appalled at the thought of her son's degrading themselves to be a *gasp* soldier!

Actually, there's a long tradition of British royalty serving in the military -- and throughout British history, being a military officer has always been considered quite a gentleman's profession.

Prince Charles did actual military service (in addition to being given numerous honorary titles), so it probably wouldn't be much of a surprise to Diana.

 

[sha_lyn]

Anyone find it ironic that we have one poster saying the military is beneath anyone with $$,influence, goals or a college education, while another is complaining that people with those assets aren't "in harms way"

 

[doxdogy]

You are dead wrong in what you are saying. The military IS NOT and I repeat IS NOT for people with no desire for college or any other options. For your information, in order to be an officer in the Army, you have to have a college degree. Then you have to go before a board, to be selected for OCS school. Also, not all kids have the luxury of parents that can AFFORD to send them to college. This is a way for them to get the money sorely needed for college. You make it sound like that someone that joins the military can not get a good job anyplace else. There are some highly intelligent people serving in our armed forces. So not only do you insult the men and women that are serving or who have served. You try to make better by stating you are grateful.

I would not be proud. I would be appalled. It is expected in my family to go to college. You can be anything you want - artist, actor, accountant, but you will not be a soldier.

No one in immediate or extended family is in or was in the military (unless drafted). It would be looked down upon, I consider the service as something that other kids do ... those without the desire for college, without money, without other options. (How many kids of US senators, representatives, CEOs etc are in the services?)

I am grateful to all who serve.

 

[hydster]

Anyone find it ironic that we have one poster saying the military is beneath anyone with $$,influence, goals or a college education, while another is complaining that people with those assets aren't "in harms way"

If you are talking about me save it! I think those that are in the military and those who are in the police force/firemen have a higher rate of chances of death than my 60 yr old mother in law that sells real estate or my 47 year old accountant brother for a catholic hospital in Colorado.

I also think it is highly ignorant to assume that those who go into the military are uneducated, unmotivated and lack the ability to think for themselves.

Honestly I was trying to stand up for those who are in the military who are being looked down upon by certain posters. I found the remarks highly elitest and ignorant and that's it.

If you want to imply that I said those that aren't in the military lack those assets and aren't in harms way knock yourself out. I was making a statement that MOST jobs honestly don't carry the same risk of death as those in the military on the front lines, those in police enforcement, DEA, Firemen and women and nothing more.

LIVING requires a risk every single day but I think there are those who have a greater risk of death than others and THAT was my point.

If you weren't implying me and my post then my apologies!

I'm done on this thread as I WILL get myself points or banned! Have a great week!

 

[mickeyfan2]

If you are talking about me save it! I think those that are in the military and those who are in the police force/firemen have a higher rate of chances of death than my 60 yr old mother in law that sells real estate or my 47 year old accountant brother for a catholic hospital in Colorado.

I also think it is highly ignorant to assume that those who go into the military are uneducated, unmotivated and lack the ability to think for themselves.

Honestly I was trying to stand up for those who are in the military who are being looked down upon by certain posters. I found the remarks highly elitest and ignorant and that's it.

If you want to imply that I said those that aren't in the military lack those assets and aren't in harms way knock yourself out. I was making a statement that MOST jobs honestly don't carry the same risk of death as those in the military on the front lines, those in police enforcement, DEA, Firemen and women and nothing more.

LIVING requires a risk every single day but I think there are those who have a greater risk of death than others and THAT was my point.

If you weren't implying me and my post then my apologies!

I'm done on this thread as I WILL get myself points or banned! Have a great week!

I believe she was talking about our Chicago and Lake Ariel.