Salute to soldiers...

[MacArther]

I salute all you soldiers past and present, who have served to make your countries and the world a better and safer place to live in. Thank you for serving in the place of others, and for willingly protecting all the rights that are sometimes taken for granted. I will try to keep the troops everywhere in my prayers.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Well as a veteran I say thankyou.

 

[evangilder]

ditto. Welcome to veteran-hood, Chris. Now you can be a grumpy old b*stard too.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Im still pretty young, but I feel like a grumpy old *******.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

By the way, I joined the VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) the other day.

 

[evangilder]

Glad to hear it. Many of the VFW posts are closing due to lack of membership. Sad to see all that historic stuff go up on e-bay.

 

[k9kiwi]

who have served to make your countries and the world a better and safer place to live in

Soldiers don't do that.

They serve their Country and its "Leaders" of the day, for whatever their reasons are.

Yours is not to reason why, just to do it, and keep doing it longer than the other mongrel.

Sort the mess out later when you and your head has time, if you can be bothered with anything past, I got out.

 

[MacArther]

Soldiers don't do that.

Yeahhhhhhh, I'm sure that all the forces in Afganistan are just there to appease the government, and it has nothing to do with keeping America and other countries safe, as well as getting rid of a major terrorist organisation.

 

[k9kiwi]

Those are part of the political and moral reasons for a campaign.

The Grunt on the ground follows orders.

Trust me, when you are slogging your ring out on the fourth day with p!ss all sleep, those reasons are the furthest thing from your mind.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I beg your pardon. I do not feel that way k9kiwi. I feel I served my country and made it a better and safer place.

Dont speak for all veterans because you dont know **** about how every veteran thinks about there service.

 

[k9kiwi]

Agreed Adler.

I am proud of my Military service in the past.

Just as I am proud of the 7 years I have currently put into the New Zealnd Fire Service as a Voli Firefighter.

In both cases protecting my fellow country men and women.

In some cases whether they wanted me too or not.

I do believe I have contributed to make my country a safer and better place, as for the world?

I would not be so presumtious as to think every single person in every single country appreciated my efforts.

Moscow Embassy Guard Duty in 87 springs to mind as a country that sure as heck did not appreciate my work.

Peacekeeping in Palestine / Israel border would be another shinning example.

Extricating a Drunk from a car wreck? Trust me at the time a LOT of them are really unhappy campers that want you to go away.

And do NOT try and reason with his 3 drunk friends when you are cutting the family they hit out of their car first, because they are the worst injured.

Or having someone try to refuse you entry to their property to get at the neighbours (wrong race apparently) to put the house fire out. Bloody Plonkers did not realise we go where we want by law when at a fire, but there were still punches thrown.

PS. Never hit a Fireman in full protective gear, you WILL come off worse.

Have I made a difference to the world?

Pobably not.

Have I made a difference to my country?

Probably not.

I have made a difference to some peoples lives. The most important being my wife and son.

I can live with that.

 

[evangilder]

I am with you Chris. I know for a fact that some of the ops I did in my time did indeed make the world a safer place.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I have to agree with Eric. Sorry Kiwi.

I am not talking about the whole damn world here but a fraction of it and that is eneogh for me.

Lets see:

10 month Peace Keeping Duty to Kosovo: Seeing children able to go to school and not be shot at, bombs not falling on peoples houses anymore and catching war criminals who put thousands of people into mass graves.

Watching the children come out to the aircraft and thank us for making there world a bit safer.

Yeah I felt good for that one...

14 months in Iraq, doing Air Assaults against Al Zarqawi network camps. building schools for children and seeing them smile. Fighting the punks in there own sandbox instead of in my back yard. Helping take down one of the tyrinacal rulers of all times. Yeah I think I did this for my country and made it a better place. Will the world agree with me, no, but **** them, I dont give a damn what the world thinks...

 

[k9kiwi]

Now THAT is the attitude I was talking about,

Kia Kaha Adler,
Kia Kaha.