Thread: Wounded  Veterans

BennyQ said I would also like to point out that Im Canadian. We have different views and perspectives concerning our military. We were never a prestige power like America or enjoy a current status as the worlds only superpower. We mostly participate in world affairs as mediators and peacekeepers. Since our soldiers were rarely aggressors and our nation does not possess an extensive military history tradition, Ill admit my perspective on this matter might be a little limited. But were all entitled to opinions right? Click to expand... Okay, so for starters, I'm going to address the above. First off, I am also a Canadian. Benny, I'm going disagree with a whole bunch of what you're saying in this. So of it is right! We do have a very different view on our military. No, we never were a large prestige power, nor are we something of a damaged shell of a superpower. And yes, we do a lot of mediating. And peacekeeping. But I have family in the military. And they've done more than a little peackeeping in their time. Now, fun fact of a lot of peacekeeping missions? They involve a lot of peacekeepers being shot at. And a lot of people being shot BY those peacekeepers. It's not well advertised, and doens't have constant news coverage like the more public wars that go on, but there is a hell of a lot of fighting going on. We were certainly not aggressors! But Canada has possessed a very proud military tradition for a very long time. As late as Afghanistan, Canadians held some damnedly hard contested regions, and they did so damned well. We were the only group to acheive our objective in the time frame during D-Day. In the first World War, we were given assignments that other allied forces believed to be impossible to capture, adn we took them, almost as a matter of course. Earlier than that, we foguht the US to a standstill in the War of 1812, capturing the city of Detroit without firing a single shot. The military is not a central portion of our culture, and nor should it be. It's not what we as a country want to be identified as. Our military is not extensive, nor is it the finest equipped in the land. But it does produce some of the best soliders around. Canada does in fact have a very long, and proud warrior tradition, and I find it a travesty that most Canadians so not take the time to even notice this. So, now that I've got that out of my system, I'll address the main point of this thread. I apologize for derailing the thread slightly. Vic, I have got to say, your analogies are terrible. Smoking and joining the military are the same in your eyes. Really? So by that logic, taking up drinking, and joining the police force as a SWAT officer are the same. Shooting up heroin, and becoming a bodyguard are the same. Joining the military is to swear an oath to stand guard for your country against all threats to it's security. Foreign, or domestic. To put your life in jepordy for the good of people that you will likely never really meet, and who likely will never know your name. And all of that is the same as lighting a smoke to you? One may kill you via a wasting disease. The other may kill you in pursuit of the oath you swear, dying for a cause that most of those who serve see as greater than themselves. From what your posts are saying, it essentially boils down to you saying that because you are not a vet yourself, so it is not your problem, so you just don't give a crap about them. And if that's your opinion, then fine, you're entitled to it. But for some of us with some background in the military, I hope you can see why we might disagree, or even have something of a problem with with the statement. Based on this, I have to ask, does anyone, who is not in your particular situation, or directly connected to you, do any of these people earn any kind of sympthy from you? I'm not trying to be jerk, I'm honestly asking you this. I actually do want to know. If the answer is no, then...okay, now I get why you feel the way you do. But if the answer is yes...then why do these veterans, these people who likely gave up a lot in fulfilling their oaths to their country, why do they specifically earn your disinterest and dismissal?