Monday, February 10, 2014 Monday, February 10, 2014 at 1:43 PM Civilization’s Fear Now, one might think just from the title that this is going to be an Article about the end of civilization. Quite the contrary. It’s actually about the greatest “threat” to our comfortable Illusion of a Utopian Society: The Combat Veteran. How am I and my fellow Combat Veterans a threat to our society? We don’t plot to take over if that’s what you fear. We don’t desire global war, or death and mayhem all the time. Maybe on that asshole who cut us off, but we hold it in (most of the time). In fact, being next to an Infantryman is possibly the safest place you can be. We are a threat because we remind this society, every day, that the Utopian image we have surrounded ourselves with is an illusion. A safety blanket pulled over your eyes when the boogie monster creeps out of the closet. But we are the guard dogs who sleep on the floor waiting for that boogie man. You can pretend he’s not there, and that’s fine, but we’ll still send him back to the depths of whatever hole he crawled out of regardless. Because without us, you would be his next victim. Even when the sun is up and his threat is no more, we still stay by your side, a constant guardian to anything that might threaten your existence. Whether it be a bully or kidnapper, we’re the deterrent to their misdeed. Even if you can’t see them, they can see us. And they fear us just as much as you fear them. But why do you fear us? For one, you don’t understand us. All the media shows you is what they want you to see. When was the last time you saw a news story about a veteran that came home and enjoyed the rest of his life? Not once, because it’s a typical story, and the media doesnt like typical. They like gruesome, horrible and its opposite, heroic and glorious. In truth, most veterans you may know do not necessarily understand what it truly means to sacrifice for your country. They think they do, but in all honesty, that’s just Basic Training programming kicking in. Before I became an Infantryman, I was, for lack of a better word, a P.O.G. (Persons Other-than Grunt). A Rear-echelon Soldier. If I had not decided to switch over, I probably would only think Afghanistan was Bagram or Kandahar –peaceful and quiet for 99% of the time. I remember well the programming they instilled at Fort Jackson. We were taught that we were better than any civilian because we had “sacrificed our time and freedom for them”. I, like so many others, bought into the bullshit that was basic military programming. I deserved respect because I was serving my country where others would or could not. It wasnt until I joined the Infantry that I actually learned how much of a lie that was. The Infantryman is the epitome of a conventional Soldier. He doesnt train to do office work, or dish out supplies, he is what everyone thinks of when they think “Soldier” and “Army”. The Infantryman, is the Warrior. And this applies to Marine Infantryman as well as Army. Granted, our training is completely different and produces two different types of Infantrymen, we are still bred for the same purpose: To fight our Nation’s enemies across the globe, up close and personal. In a nut shell, we are trained killers. There’s no soft way of putting it. Every pacifist would say that having a weapon only invites violence. This is untrue. NOT having a weapon invites a person with a weapon to do violence on to you. This is why gun control doesn’t work. If you take guns away from all the good people, only bad guys will be armed. So we are needed. And this is why Americans fear us. Not because we might do violence onto them, but because someday we might be needed to protect them. Every Utopian Society has a dark Dystopian underbelly hidden away somewhere. Usually far from where the residents can see them, but they can still see us. Success breeds jealousy, envy and hatred from those without it. Ignorance of this has led to the downfall of every major society in history. The Romans and the Visigoths. Byzantines and the Turks. Arabs and the Mongols. The Mayans and their neighboring tribes. Aztecs and Conquistadors (Although, technology did play a serious edge there…). The list goes on. Ignoring or appeasing the threat does not make it go away or like you more. It breeds more envy, and greed, and eventually, destruction. The Germanic Tribes bled Rome until it had nothing more to give, then they destroyed the city anyway. All of their bribes only bought them more time. And when the enemy does have a face, you fear him more than us once more. But when the face is too far away to see, we are your primary concern. Though we maybe a lesser form of evil, evil we still are (At least to the Utopian Society). Our presence is a constant reminder that your house is built out of cards. All it takes is another wolf to come your way, and once you see the only thing standing between certain death or enslavement is a bigger, meaner wolf, you’ll love us once more. At least for a time.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 20:57:49 +0000
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