31 replies to this topic

[Abivard]

Klappspaten, one major difference, Compulsory conscription, you have it we don't.

We are an all volunteer armed forces, even during the few times when we did have conscription, the Draftees were considered as the dregs of the nation.

Also, most Americans are born, grow up, have children, grow old and die with out ever leaving their sheltered childhood's behind. It is rare as can be that a Veteran still believes fairy tales are real, which is another reason we seek our own, we wish to keep adult company.

[Dano_man]

Amphib sailor here, and if you want to hang with some prior military, check out Murphy's Law...you can search for them on the forums. I'm not in their guild, but have talked with them on occassion and you're right, sometimes it's nice to talk to someone that knows where you're coming from.

[Saint Scarlett Johan]

You can find a lot of vets on www.housesteiner.com

I frequent that TS with vets from all over. I'm a 13B turned 13R in the MSARNG.

[Bulletsponge0]

Sochr000, on 16 April 2014 - 01:54 PM, said:

Former Army here, did 4yrs active duty 31F/25F, then 1yr MNARNG in the "try one" program, or as I like to call it, "Just the tip, just for a second, see how it feels..." lol

Commo huh?

31U20
1Bn 41st FA Reg, 3rd ID(M) DIVARTY Ft Stewart Georgia
'96-'00 here

"Commo: you can talk about us, but can't talk without us!"

[pinsndneedles]

Aces Wild has a bunch of current and ex-military folks in our ranks. Our CO is currently a USAR guy and made up a page on the site to list people: http://the-aces.enji.../servicemembers. We throw together the occasional Army/Air Force vs Navy/Marines matches from time to time, and they're an absolute blast.

88A here by the way!

[Xic]

Army 31B SPC 302nd MP good to see other vets in the game.

For the record I am also with www.militarygamers.com

Edited by Xic, 28 December 2014 - 09:49 PM.

[Scion Koga]

The Kell Hounds have quite a few vets playing with us. I think it's somewhere around 70-80% of our pilots have prior service.

Personally I did five years as a Sonar Technician on a submarine.

STS2/SS

[cacti46]

Hey folks,

You would be surprised how many US military members are out there. The real challenge is getting them organized into a single entity. MilitaryGamers.com has been around since about 2009 give or take. Honestly I can't remember I have been there so long. That and this stupid friggin TBI and PTSD I deal with every day ya know. Anyway one of the reasons I have stuck around as long as I have is because I have been looking for the same thing a lot of you guys have, a bunch of guys who just get it, who know what I personally went through, who can relate to a lot of things I deal with on a daily basis.

I was real skittish when the founder of the site first approached me about signing up, way back in the days of the original ArmA. I was like," Dude, I just spent 8 years in, I have been through some serious ****, I don't need to be hanging out with a pair of dumb marines, an idiot tanker, and some air farce jockey." That's literally all it was at the time. He told me there wouldn't be any kind of rank structure it would just be a vets only/active duty place where us and our family's could hang out and game, relax, tell stories, and get stuff of our chest before we did anything stupid.

Dude was right, I will flat out tell you if it wasn't for some of the dudes there I don't know where I would be. We are a place for vets and active duty first, MWO and various other games second. That's how we are, that's how we always will be. Currently the MWO branch is operating under a Clan wolf contract through Jan 1, with the community voting on where to go next. The members make the community. Not me, Not Wilson0331 the founder. We never tell players how to play the game but we do say if you fly our flag you don't exploit, you don't cheat you don't hack. The reason is simple, you reflect upon us, much like you reflect upon the nation when you wore the uniform.

If this sounds like something you are interested in, swing by http://www.militarygamers.com/

Cacti4-6
Director of Operations
MilitaryGamers.com

[krazzyharry]

12Z Combat Engineer, retired after 20

[Kyone Akashi]

Abivard, on 03 June 2014 - 04:37 PM, said:

Klappspaten, one major difference, Compulsory conscription, you have it we don't.

Not anymore - but it was abolished only a few years ago, so needless to say there are still many people around who only know the military from the (comparatively) short period of mandatory service.

I'd agree that it is a matter of culture. In Germany, the ideal soldier is considered a "Bürger in Uniform" (uniformed citizen), in that they are closely related to the civilian populace, and during their time with the military receive a lot of socio-political education with emphasis on stuff like unlawful orders, obviously to prevent abuse of authority and maintain a positive image the Bundeswehr is still spending a lot of resources to establish.

Meanwhile, in the US there seems to be almost a deep rift between the majority of the civilian populace and military families + members of the armed forces, as if military service was an entirely different culture: Whilst the general attitude of the German populace to its Bundeswehr is simple indifference, in the US it appears to be much more extreme, often embodied by either unrational hatred or nationalistic pride and veneration. And preferential treatment for a random person just because they are wearing a uniform just isn't something you'd see in Germany ever since the Prussian Empire or the Third Reich.

So, veterans of the armed forces who think they've lost their connection with the general populace naturally drift towards "their own" - likeminded people with whom they share military tradition, or at the very least a compatible opinion on the service. In some way, it may also be a deep-seated longing to delve into this peculiar "brotherhood" of a sort like they shared it with their unit members. In limited ways, this also affects some of the units of the Bundeswehr that went on prolonged missions, as can be expected when you have a small company of men and women working together under stress for some time. It is quite literally like a little family, or at least that's the ideal that many vets may be missing.

[Abivard]

Kyone Akashi, on 29 December 2014 - 07:55 AM, said:

Meanwhile, in the US there seems to be almost a deep rift between the majority of the civilian populace and military families + members of the armed forces, as if military service was an entirely different culture: Whilst the general attitude of the German populace to its Bundeswehr is simple indifference, in the US it appears to be much more extreme, often embodied by either unrational hatred or nationalistic pride and veneration. And preferential treatment for a random person just because they are wearing a uniform just isn't something you'd see in Germany ever since the Prussian Empire or the Third Reich.

The esteem or disdain held for the military services in the US is sharply dived by Political Ideology, those to the left despise our Armed forces, those in the middle and to the Right respect or even venerate our Armed forces.

What is presented in the media is often done from a far left view point and therefore is the main source of information for Those outside the US about the US, this is actually a Minority viewpoint. The Majority of US Citizens respect those who are, or have been, serving members of our Armed forces.

[Kyone Akashi]

Abivard, on 29 December 2014 - 12:42 PM, said:

The Majority of US Citizens respect those who are, or have been, serving members of our Armed forces.

That was my impression as well - I was mainly surprised by those extremes being popular at all, not how they are distributed.
Or rather ... no, not surprised, it does make sense if one considers cultural developments and history. Rather, I should say that it's a reception that is very different from how it works in Germany where the military is more or less ignored.

Personally, I'd like to see a happy medium between those two ways, but that's just me.
Basically, respect yes (within limits - say, just like you'd respect a firefighter). Veneration, no. That breeds all sorts of wrong tendencies. There should not be a rift between a nation's people and its soldiers.

Edited by Kyone Akashi, 29 December 2014 - 02:55 PM.