I don't say this often enough, when I see soldiers... Thank you. I live in a military town. Hampton Roads has the largest concentration of military bases and facilities in the country. DoD supports 80% of the economy here. Thank you for your service. This extends out to non-US military members too. You sacrifice as well. Thank you.
I went to college down in Savannah and lived under the approach for the strip at Hunter Army Airfield (home of the 3rd Infantry Division's air assets). Nothing like having a C-5 or a C-17 try to suck the shingles off your roof. Oddly though Savannah seemed to me to have a very small military presence. Granted Ft. Stewart is like 25 miles away, I guess they are all there. Oh and thanks fellas.
Military tradition is and will be important for mankind's survival. Even if not all our military conflicts make sense, they do highlight the need to maintain a military and punish those who let go of their military tradition. Besides, the new weapons need to be tested and tactics & strategy don't evolve on their own. My view is that we are now in little leage, prepping ourselves for the big games. When we meet alien life, that will be the big boys league where a defeat often means extinction or species wide slavery, if we get lucky. The move towards mechanized army is painfully slow but ongoing. This is in no way disrespectful. I have but the highest respect to soldiers, good soldiers who sacrifice their best years to military drill and their everything in defense of their country, their people or their ideal. We are passionate creatures of many beliefs and in a way this and the sacrifices of soldiers everywhere ensures that our kind will be militarily prepared, even if not optimally against an attack from space it is still a lot better than some fruitcake global community without any serious military.
