The Air Force is really just the Chair Force, everyone in the Army wishes they were a Marine, the Marines are all jarheads, who knows what the Navy even does and the Coast Guard isn’t even a branch. Did I get that right?
The stereotypes between branches are as old and ridiculous as your grandmother’s hairstyle, yet everyone seems to join an unofficial team based on their branch affiliation. Though these teams don’t gather for practice, they give their all during pointless social media military spouse and service member brawls.
Also showing up to the pointless online drama boxing ring, is the MOS (Military Occupational Specialty, or in layman’s terms, a service member’s job) debate. CLEARLY no one that sits behind a desk is as amazing as a service member who is infantry. I mean, after all, when insurgents invade a FOB or a COP takes incoming, desks become bomb proof life protectants and save everyone who sits behind one. Right. Then there are those guys on the front line who are too stupid to be trusted with anything besides blowing things up. Obviously only the stupidest of people could be trusted with massive weaponry. (Where is the sarcasm font, my friends?)
Old news, right? Let’s move on to more current events.
Most recently, our community has started degrading each other based on veteran status. Now you might think, ‘that’s ridiculous, they’re all veterans’, but as I learned on Facebook the other day, being a veteran apparently just isn’t enough. It is far inferior to being a combat veteran, thus making a service member who has never deployed not worthy of thanks.
Folks, my mind is blown.
Now maybe I don’t get it because I personally didn’t have the nerve to serve, or maybe it’s because I think anyone who is willing to risk breaking a nail to PT every morning is admirable, but I am confused.
Didn’t all the men and women who serve or have served in the Armed Forces take the exact same oath? Haven’t they all sworn to uphold and defend the constitution of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic? Didn’t each and EVERY one of them, regardless of their branch, MOS or rank, vow to do whatever was asked of them in order to protect our nation and everything it stands for???
Forgive me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think that someone’s service to our country should be demeaned solely because their card was not drawn after they threw it in the volunteer hat. It is absolutely insane that anyone would be willing to make a determination of someone’s service based on factors that the government itself doesn’t even utilize.
Besides, it takes an entire military to win wars… not just the service members on the front lines. Ask those who are shooting the guns if receiving more bullets from supply is important. Ask them if having water, food, and basic necessities matters. Ask them if the men and women sitting behind a desk ordering air support are vital to the mission. Ask them if the medics that are waiting for the injured in a hospital, far away from combat, make a difference. I guarantee THEY think that all of those jobs are important.
Now don’t get me wrong, I am in no way trying to take away from those men and women who have so selflessly given their lives, those that have been injured or those that have witnessed things that can’t be unseen. I am simply saying that if a hand grenade landed in the middle of a group of service members on a daily basis, I am confident that there would be someone in uniform who would, without hesitation, jump on it to save their battle buddies each and every time.
They are all veterans… and deserve our respect. There is no debate.
photo credit: <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/dvids/6093195839/”>DVIDSHUB</a> via <a href=”https://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/”>cc</a>
