Ray Kimball at the Huffington Post has a remarkably fair and very interesting perspective on the future of the young men and women who are currently fighting in our country’s military (specifically the Army).
The fairness most likely comes from the fact that Kimball himself is a Major in the US Army. The remarkable part comes from the fact that this is in the Huffington Post.
Major Kimball predicts how the current generation of Soldiers will view things when they come home:
- They’ll be tough to scare — “Men and women who have run the alleyways of Sadr City, gone house-to-house in Fallujah, or stood lonely watch in the Korengal Valley aren’t likely to fear much else.”
- They won’t be impressed by rank — They’ll be more impressed by what a man has actually done, than by the rank he held.
- They’re going to be far more family-oriented — From my experience, this has always been a hallmark of Soldiers, at least compared to the civilian population. Perhaps more so once you return home safely to them after years away fighting for them.
- They will not view the Army as a career — I’m not sure I agree with the Major on this point. I think that the number of Soldiers who view the Army as a career will remain consistent. Many will stay. Many will go. It’s always been this way.
- They will be heavily isolated from the society they serve — “The current generation will hold equal parts of scorn for politicians of both parties and media outlets of all stripes. Fairly or unfairly, they’ll hold similar contempt for citizens of a nation who went shopping while the soldiers went to war. They’ll turn inward, seeking the trust and understanding of their fellow veterans over the company of those unknowns outside the front gate.”
This is true, but I think it’s also always been true of Soldiers who have served in combat. Most of the Vietnam Vets I know are this way. Most of the Desert Storm Vets I know are this way. Most of the returning Iraq War vets I know are already this way.
I’m this way already. I don’t have many friends who are not Veterans. I just don’t hold men who have not served in the same regard as those who have. Fairly or unfairly, that’s just the way I feel.
I don’t think serving in a time of war is a requirement for feeling this way.
Left by gnduke on April 28th, 2008 at 5:00 pm