I salute you

I did, once. Operation United Shield, Somalia.

Not directly, but I sure as hell hope I enabled others to do so.

Once, and only once. They found the body, which was kind of a drag.

They still haven't found the head, though.

Honestly, though, while I haven't, I've known like 30 people who have. I don't know why, but in my senior year of high school, tons of people dropped out and joined the Army and came back with some terrifying stories. And a lot of boredom.

That is cool...as a sworn officer. You, as any officer of any country. Must "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's". Eg: Obey the Legal Laws of your Country.

Yet do you not wish that at the top: the Joint Chief's of Staff, that they are righteous? If I was a Big Suit & payed of/bought their elected leaders to get my killing done. Would you be as cool?

Sure, as one of the Ranks, you have no way of knowing? Even if they were to think that you had excellent potential & brought you into their confidence. International affairs are so complex...you might be hardly any wiser...

Still...Big Suits often buy off your boss's boss's. Still...it is not an officer's lookout. Legal orders of questionable nature may harm your country, but how could a soldier know enough to refuse?

Not as an soldier anyways. As a Citizen, it may be another story...

Words/Information/Disinformation that may influence the citizens of one's own country/elected officials/citizens of other countries/foreign governments are tools of diplomacy/defense/aggression. What one hears may be a little or quite different from what "Reality" is. Not a soldier's lookout though.

A soldier is still citizen.With opinions different than those of his superiors sometimes. No? Or do you think that the BS you are supplied needs to be believed by your Citizen Subroutine (or what would you call your Citizen Self as opposed to your Sworn Officer Self in comparing your duty self/citizen self to computer programs?).

Sure: comparing human & machine programs is fuzzy, very fuzzy? Yet, like any "similar" things, one must have a checklist: Applies...Applies...Doesn't Apply...Doesn't apply...Applies 75%...Applies...

Well...like life? Sometimes things are completely congruent...sometimes only partly so. Other times not at all.

>>>I sometimes think it would be funny to take an officer with excellent potential who was expected to advance way up the ladder? To see him get a bit out of line & to get him back in to line, jump him up in his "Need to Know", way up. All those straight-faced senior officers would let him in on "The Straight Goods".

Sure...they might need the medical care after? All the convulsive laughing until they puked at the pale-faced puking/jibbering of the jumped-up junior officer? I do wonder, as a weird mental exercise, how it might be to give such a lesson to a trusted junior? Make him sick with the truth..& get sick yourself with the laughing afterwards with the laughing..."Did you see his face? Wait until the President sees this vid! He won't be able to do official business for three hours after!"

(Only Applies to officers who're considered Amazing...)

Are you saying that you wouldn't freak if you were to know what the most senior officers knew?

I'm not an officer; I work in intel.

so who here has murdered in the name of your country?

Not directly, but I sure as hell hope I enabled others to do so.

Soldiers kill, criminals murder.

I believe that makes you an accessory.

I second this.

Soldiers kill, criminals murder.

I believe that makes you an accessory.

You're right!

Yea, Ive never murdered anything.

I heard they pay more in AMD.

zing!

I hurt somebody's feelings once.

...but was it in the name of your country?

:o

I would like to murder in the name of my country, but my application is still being reviewed.

Rh haven't had a chance to kill anyone yet hopefully soon though.