#military

The Army's new pitch was simple. Good pay, good benefits, a manageable amount of adventure... but don't worry, we're not looking to pick fights these days. For a country that had paid so dear a price for its recent military buccaneering, the message was comforting. We still had the largest and most technologically advanced standing army in the world, the most nuclear weapons, the best and most powerful conventional weapons systems, the biggest navy. At the same time, to the average recruit the promise wasn't some imminent and dangerous combat deployment; it was 288 bucks a month (every month), training, travel, and experience. Selling the post-Vietnam military as a career choice meant selling the idea of peacetime service. It meant selling the idea of peacetime. Barf. ↗

— Rachel Maddow

#military #peace #propaganda #reagan #war

Combat is fast, unfair, cruel, and dirty. It is meant to be that way so that the terrible experience is branded into the memory of those who are fortunate enough to survive. It is up to those survivors to ensure that the experience is recorded and passed along to those who just might want to try it. ↗

— Bruce H. Norton

#foce-recon #marines #military-history #vietnam #vietnam-war

I don't want unnecessary violence, sergeant," said Blouse. "Right you are, sir!" said the sergeant. "Carborundum! First man comes through that door runnin', I want him nailed to the wall!" He caught the lieutenant's eye, and added: "But not too hard! ↗

— Terry Pratchett

#military #violence #humor

We're like America's little pit bull. They beat it, starve it, mistreat it, and once in a while they let it out to attack somebody. ↗

— Evan Wright

#military #humor

An honorable leader must demonstrate a willingness to reveal his or her ‘inner self’ to their team. It builds trust and trust is essential. It’s also a sign of strength and authenticity, and people are attracted to those who are ‘real’ and authentic. ↗

— Lee Ellis

#leadership #military #business

I was inspired to write Countdown 'til Daddy Comes Home when I searched for books to help my 4 year daughter cope with her father deploying to Afghanistan and found nothing that quite fit our situation. My book is not only a great story for kids it has real suggestions for parents on how to keep you family connected during deployments or frequent business travel. ↗

— Kristin Ayyar

#deployment #military-family #military-kids #miss-daddy #traveling-parent

Professional accountability is a good thing. Without it, excellence is merely a pipe dream and even average performance isn’t a realistic expectation. ↗

— Lee Ellis

#leadership #military #business

where the Army we loved sold us out for careerist brass, a war-porn-fixated media and military-industrial-complex corporate greed; where the only honor and integrity seemed to exist among the troops on the line. ↗

— Luis Carlos Montalván

#betrayal #honor #integrity #military #love

If I didn't have a scholarship to go to the University of Florida or any school, I probably would have considered the military because my family could not afford to send me to college. ↗

— Emmitt Smith

#any #because #college #considered #could

American foreign policy and military might have opened an opportunity for the Gospel in the land of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ↗

— Charles Stanley

#american #american foreign policy #foreign #foreign policy #gospel