[log in to unmask] wrote:

>     *Interesting. I can see where little Jarheads and those types of
>     guys are hot to kick ass, but I should think that people like this
>     nurse are disgusted by this.*
>
Marines come in different flavors... until I got irritated I had
forgotten that I spent about 6 mnths in DC working on the subway in
Montgomery County without a whole lot to do most of the time but having
to be on the job regardless because I had a First Aid card and my
standing around bullshitting and telling stories buddy was an ex-Marine
who had been in the Tet Offensive. His internal body, and his life, were
screwed up something terrible. He had two young boys and a wife that
kept trying to commit suicide.

The myth is that the Jarheads are ready to roll, and they are -- the
underlying reality as I see it is that even they have sense enough to
try diplomacy first. (The online ARMY game places an emphasis on not the
crazed screaming warrior but the sheltering & cooperative thinking
soldier trained to kill and survive themselves and for their team
members.) It is not possible for Marines to spend their time thinking
about death, or experiencing the death of their friends, without their
gaining an appreciation for life the likes of which I assume we
'citizens' don't get to experience too often. When you are facing death
straight on then you need a hell of a good story, a strong mythology, a
culture and tradition for support. I don't mind this one bit, but what I
do mind is when the mythology is manipulated if and for political gain.
As I said to my young friend, we are in a war of progaganda and we are
the target. I don't want him coming back home and looking around and
thinking we are his target. Interesting, though, on the other hand, the
tactics of social and cultural isolation that the Marine Corp exhibits
towards developing career officers.

][<en

--
To terminate puerile preservation prattling among pals and the
uncoffee-ed, or to change your settings, go to:
<http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/bullamanka-pinheads.html>