Thursday, November 10, 2011

Staff Sgt. Ret.





VETERANS DAY.
On Veterans Day, services usually highlight our elder Veterans, showing old soldiers in uniform, with our flag prominently displayed. That is wonderful, and I look forward to attending a local service.
As a peacetime Veteran myself, I know that my service was important, but is lesser-those who serve during wartime deserve greater honor.
For this post I decided to go a different direct: I searched for photos of "Staff Sgt" and made a graphic of just a few of the results.
Those serving as a Staff Sargent are usually career soldiers-it is nearly impossible to attain that rank in a single term of service.
Look at those faces, friends. We don't know their stories, but after their career service, after they add "Ret." to their rank...I daresay that they will for the rest of their lives honor their country and their comrades in arms by attending both Memorial Day and Veterans Day observances.
I encourage you to do the same.

3 comments:

Doug said...

I was a Cpo-not a Star Wars droid, but a third class petty officer when I left the service. I had no interest in staying in-four years was enough for me.
My Dad served during the Korean conflict, though the only action he saw was guarding Geromino's cell in Fort Sill, Ok.
My grandfather served in the Army Air Corps which preceded the Air Force, all the way back in 1921. He once told me of his time in service in the Philippines. Going waaaaaay back in my family tree I have an ancestor who helped create our country-Thomas Stone,who signed our Declaration of Independence.
Off topic, but I enjoy "Brad Meltzer's Decoded" on the history Channel, which looked into the background of the Declaration-check it out.

James said...

So what is your opinion of the lifting of DADT, as someone who's served? Surely, you've served with others who don't share your faith. Would it be much different to serve with those who may be in a relationship you also don't approve of?

Doug said...

"So what is your opinion of the lifting of DADT, as someone who's served? Surely, you've served with others who don't share your faith."

Hello James. I serve God, and what He calls sin I call sin. This includes homosexuality. Sin.
I served in the Coast Guard before DADT, and was only a Christian for the second half of my enlistment.
I'm ambivalent about DADT-I thought it was stupid when Clinton signed it into law.