Slightly Sarcastic

Kids Make You Think Way Too Much

Posted on04 Jan 2010

I have two boys who love playing video games. Some of their favorites are the military war shoot the bad guys type. My youngest came up to me the other day and told me that when he finished college he was going to join the Army. My first impression was, “great – help protect your country, that’s awesome” . I’m a Navy brat, my dad is a retired Navy Captain. I have a lot of respect for the military and for military families. But the military isn’t the same as it was when my dad was in it. He joined in 1969 and never had to go to war. He was lucky. The guys (I’m saying guys for guys and girls) that join today are signing up for a reality that I can’t even comprehend and I’m almost positive that they can’t either. I read an article about the suicide rate among soldiers is higher than it has been in 30 years.

“in another first, suicides among US soldiers have hit a post-Vietnam War high for the fifth year in a row.Though the record suicide rate cannot be traced to a single causal factor, specialists cite the psychological trauma of killing, an American culture of denial, financial difficulties, failed relationships, substance abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder as main contributors to the trend.”

Read Whole Article Here

It makes me mad to realize that there are so many kids fighting in the worst possible conditions, seeing the most horrible catastrophes and worst of all having to live with the lives they have taken. These guys come back to a country filled with people who aren’t even aware of what they have had to live with and experience while fighting for our country. What makes me even more furious is the tactics the military uses to sign up these young impressionable people to fight a war that never should have been started. Did you know that the Army has spent millions on a new recruiting technique – Video Games – they have a free game that kids can go online and play called Americas Army. The only difference is – IT’S A GAME!!!! But boy is helping sign up these naive new recruits.Americas Army Website

I really don’t know what I’m trying to say in this post. I have a few years to go before my kids could even think about signing up for the military, and I would be proud of them if they did, BUT, I’m not to happy with the direction my country has taken this past decade. I think these brave young kids are fighting a war that shouldn’t have been. Too many dead.

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http://mjgolch.blogspot.com mike golch

That is one sobering photo.
http://travelingsuitcase.blogspot.com/ sandy

I agree our young men and women are fighting a war that shouldn’t have been. I wonder when we’ll see the end of it? I fear it’s too much like Vietnam, one that can’t be won; one that will go on and on. Yes things today are different. My Dad a Veteran WWII (I’m obviously alot older than you), re-read recently the 200+ letters he and Mom sent to each other while he was in the service. He too was in The Navy. Weeks would go without men getting mail because the distances were so much farther than. Military men didn’t have cell phones to call home, they didn’t have email to communicate. When mail wasn’t received at either side, people didn’t know who was alive or dead sometimes for quite awhile. I think many today have forgotten being in the military has never been easy. It’s a huge sacrifice. I can’t imagine being a young bride, or mother of a wee one who’s Daddy was overseas who knows where. I think that was harder in previous generations than it is now. Partially because communication is so far superior now, and partially because women back then had no means of financial support; most didn’t work.

A very different time. War is never good, and never easy. I hope by the time your young son’s are old enough, we have peace. Think maybe I’d want to find them a different game to play.

Sandy
http://annssnapeditscrap.blogspot.com ann

I know I haven’t been by here much lately but it’s funny that I should see your post today. My son joined the army and I was so incredibly proud of him. He did a 15 month tour in Iraq. He’s since been discharged and is now living back home. While I’m still proud of him for what he did I now know that the stories one hears about what these boys are facing when they come home is very true. My son has been diagnosed with Post traumatic stress disorder. He is also self medicating with alcohol. The worst of it is that he won’t seek the help that is out there for him. My heart is breaking for him and all the others that are in the same situation as he is.
Joining the military is still in my opinion a very brave and noble thing to do. However I wish that the recruiting would give them more realistic information before they sign on the dotted line.
http://zheist.blogspot.com wngl

The sharp escalation of suicide and domestic violence rates among military personnel is truly alarming, and is directly attributable to mass deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Kids don’t realize that when they enlist, their time off may actually be far less than advertised. A friend who counsels battered Army wives points to shortened furloughs as the main thing that drives soldiers to the brink. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be on the front lines, but spending a year out with only a few months off before you have to return must eat your soul.