Anyone else in (or have been in) the Military?

TheClaw

Hello peoples. TheClaw here. Long time lurker, third time poster. So I was wondering if anyone else has any experience with the Military (i.e. Which Branch?, How long?) and what their opinion was (i.e. Did you enjoy/hate it?, Why?). I'm in the Air Force, been in eight years.

I've been wanting to start a thread and since my job has been on my mind a lot lately I figured, why not this. My opinion of my job has become progressivly more jaded the longer I've stayed in. I've already reenlisted up to twelve but I'm regretting it. The more I think about it, the only reason I reenlisted is because giving up a steady job isn't a smart thing to do currently. I'm just honestly starting to wonder if it's worth sticking with it. My primary complaint could probably just be summed up with it's not for me or I don't fit in.

*In my experience*
- The rank intensive atmosphere. (What's "right" or "correct" is altered on the fly to suit whomever is making the calls, regardless of regulations, standards, or common sense/decency)
- The system of collusion. (Most often violations of the above are ignored in the interest of self promotion - the good old boy system)
- The rampant fraud, bigotry, and hypocrisy. (The conversation going on in the public eye about spending is laughable when you watch commanders blow millions of dollars on new desks, tvs, etc because they don't want their budget to decrease next year. Also with "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" being close to being repealed, the level of ignorance that comes out of people's mouths is staggering.)
- The constant insistence to conform. (Yes, yes I know it's the military but it goes beyond that. I have no problem with shaving, keeping my hair short, and wearing a uniform. I do have a problem with someone telling me my opinion is wrong because "you're in the military and you need to be part of the team".)

My complaints are largely irrelevant and are based on just my experience, but I added them for context. I'm mainly curious about other people's opinions. Even if you haven't been in the military, what do you think about it?

That Dave Fella

The budget thing you brought up happens everywhere. Departments spending money cause if they don't it'll be seen that they were given too much money and it'll be cut!

Are you deployed currently?

L|ama

i dont think i could deal with being in the military

my philosophical leaning towards pacifism would be a bad start but more importantly I stopped accepting the "this is right because I said so" thing when I entered my teens

doing something that seems dumb to me and would risk my life just because im outranked by the dumb guy is not appealing at all

TrueHereticX

I am not in the military but two of my best mates are in the Australian Army.

They are cool dudes, but some of the stories they tell are :shock:

MadEddy

That is actually the smart thing to do for your budget; the system may be broken, but you can't really blame local commanders for it.

I did five years in the US Army. I loved it. I mean, I knew idiots, and I knew tools, and there are things that are not perfect about it, but I would do it again. I was going to re-enlist and probably do 20 until the docs told me I couldn't ever be deployable again.

I know pretty well how a bad unit or even just a shithead or two in the command structure can sour someone on the whole military, though. Maybe PCS or do an on-post transfer if you can? I mean, I don't know your life, but if it's the people making you miserable, and it sounds like it is, maybe a new unit would do wonders for your job satisfaction.

L|ama

military people I personally know:
this one guy that was my friend's brother's friend from high school & played bf42 is in the air force i dont really know him
uhh my dad was in the reserves for about 2 weeks judging from the stories hes told

yep thats it

ah, new zealand

L|ama

heres something i dont get: people who voluntarily join the military when they oppose the wars it's involved in, and claim that act is somehow not contradictory to their beliefs

if you join up with the knowledge that you will most likely go help fight that war you are supporting that war, i don't see how you can not be

Fiendishrabbit

Look. The entire US airforce can't be that corrupt, and it sounds like the classical signs of corrupted workplace ethics.
Unless you've been around and seen this behavior in multiple units and on multiple airbases I'd agree with MadEddy and recommend just requesting a transfer to another division/regiment.

L|ama

also steal some of the stuff and return it to the taxpayer its your duty as an american citizen (I am a lawyer)

Legba

I was in the Norwegian army for a year. It's the kind of thing that I wasn't glad to do, but I'm glad to have done it.

Mr Fuzzbutt

I did cadets at school and they tried to make joining the military seem cool but it really wasn't.

Beasteh

my dad wants me to join the royal air force

i have the commitment and motivation of something that is neither

Beasteh

well apparently i am committed to ruining my life

godmode

Active USMC '07-'11, deployed to Iraq January '09-December '09, comm field, rifle expert, NCO, currently inactive reserves looking at switching to active reserves, now working as a contractor for the USAF

Pros:
Best friends I've ever had, and will ever have

Cons:
Was treated like a child (for the things other people did wrong, literally every single time)

Other:
Glad I did it, don't regret anything, miss it enough that I might want to go back part-time.

Beasteh

being treated like i am a being of lesser intellect by someone who actually has less intellect than me

would make me very very very very very upset

godmode

Yes, it can be very frustrating to work for the rank instead of for the legitimately right person. I was very fortunate with some of my superiors, and very UNfortunate with most of the rest.

godmode

Our entire squadron was grounded for a weekend, once. We weren't allowed to leave the barracks, the people that didn't live on base weren't allowed to leave their homes (higher ranks actually drove around constantly to ensure everyone was staying put), there were inspections every two hours, firewatch was quadrupled, many things were cleaned and re-cleaned, all because some morons got DUIs.

Yes, yes, I know operating motor vehicles while drunk or high is wrong/stupid/etc (Remember the Ryan Dunn thread), but they should've punished the idiots that did it, not all of us that had no idea it was going on.

The kicker: this happened shortly before I left active service.

MadEddy

L|ama wrote:

heres something i dont get: people who voluntarily join the military when they oppose the wars it's involved in, and claim that act is somehow not contradictory to their beliefs

if you join up with the knowledge that you will most likely go help fight that war you are supporting that war, i don't see how you can not be

Well, I joined in late '03. I didn't, and still don't, believe that we should have gone into Iraq, but the fact was we did. We destabilized that country and I felt we as a nation had an obligation to fix the mess we'd made. It's like, the politicians make the bed, and the military and the local people have to lie in it.

MadEddy

godmode wrote:

Yes, it can be very frustrating to work for the rank instead of for the legitimately right person. I was very fortunate with some of my superiors, and very UNfortunate with most of the rest.

Yes, this. On the plus side, I developed valuable skills in getting things accomplished despite my superiors.

godmode

MadEddy wrote:

L|ama wrote:

heres something i dont get: people who voluntarily join the military when they oppose the wars it's involved in, and claim that act is somehow not contradictory to their beliefs

if you join up with the knowledge that you will most likely go help fight that war you are supporting that war, i don't see how you can not be

Well, I joined in late '03. I didn't, and still don't, believe that we should have gone into Iraq, but the fact was we did. We destabilized that country and I felt we as a nation had an obligation to fix the mess we'd made. It's like, the politicians make the bed, and the military and the local people have to lie in it.

Which is why the American military is still there today: if we were to leave Iraq or Afghanistan, they would collapse.

MadEddy

godmode wrote:

MadEddy wrote:

L|ama wrote:

heres something i dont get: people who voluntarily join the military when they oppose the wars it's involved in, and claim that act is somehow not contradictory to their beliefs

if you join up with the knowledge that you will most likely go help fight that war you are supporting that war, i don't see how you can not be

Well, I joined in late '03. I didn't, and still don't, believe that we should have gone into Iraq, but the fact was we did. We destabilized that country and I felt we as a nation had an obligation to fix the mess we'd made. It's like, the politicians make the bed, and the military and the local people have to lie in it.

Which is why the American military is still there today: if we were to leave Iraq or Afghanistan, they would collapse.

Yep.

godmode

Also (and sorry, I know I've been posting excessively in this thread already), thanks to all the other veterans and service folks out there. You all deserve some appreciation.

Indie Winter

been in the army, was a POG because of Circumstances (probably the family status, i.e. no dad, mom with some health issues and two younger sisters). Did my three years, saw zero action, was a pretty good TOC commander, and got my honorable discharge as a first sergeant.

despite the fact that I hated large parts of it due to a despairing amount of, essentially, office politics, military service pretty much made me into the man I am today, i.e. a relatively normal individual instead of a completely introverted shut-in geek. So, I owe it that.

Umaro

MMFN in the Navy, here. All your issues with the Air Force are just as valid over here. Being at the bottom of the totem pole in an extremely work-intensive engineering environment in a high-deployment ship, I typically spend 12-16 hours a day cleaning, fetching and delivering things and taking equipment readings in a 100+ degree machinery space. The last watch I stood lasted from 5pm yesterday to 11:30am today with no relief and little to eat... the heat, lack of sleep and lack of food is all constant and pretty demoralizing. Take one look at my division and it'll be clear that we're a very pissed off and beaten-down group of people, myself not so much as the others (being relatively new here). Throw in a handful of really lazy and selfish individuals and the regular chain of command woes and it's just barely tolerable most days.

Yeah, there are some really terrifyingly ignorant people here, and with the DoDT repeal around the corner it's more evident than ever.

STATE OF THE ART ROBOT

I am currently deployed. The base I am at is actually not bad. No hostile fire here and we have some ammenities, like a swimming pool and a subway 5 minutes away from my room. Working 6 days a week and 12 hour workdays is a bitch though. The workload is not bad. When it is not busy we can play games, watch TV, Etc. Nothing like being back at home station.

Matey

What up military peeps

Umaro wrote:

MMFN in the Navy, here. All your issues with the Air Force are just as valid over here. Being at the bottom of the totem pole in an extremely work-intensive engineering environment in a high-deployment ship, I typically spend 12-16 hours a day cleaning, fetching and delivering things and taking equipment readings in a 100+ degree machinery space. The last watch I stood lasted from 5pm yesterday to 11:30am today with no relief and little to eat... the heat, lack of sleep and lack of food is all constant and pretty demoralizing. Take one look at my division and it'll be clear that we're a very pissed off and beaten-down group of people, myself not so much as the others (being relatively new here). Throw in a handful of really lazy and selfish individuals and the regular chain of command woes and it's just barely tolerable most days.

Yeah, there are some really terrifyingly ignorant people here, and with the DoDT repeal around the corner it's more evident than ever.

this is all engineers

TheClaw

Cool posts, all. I'm glad to see that there are some people who have enjoyed their time in the service. I don't hate the military, I fully realize that people are the problem, not necessarily the institution. And yeah, my current assignment is a major part of my issue. The Air Force has done some good things and I've met some kick ass people.

Like I said, I've been in for eight years. My first assignment was Nellis (Las Vegas, NV), second was Osan (Korea), third and current is Ramstein (Germany). I've been deployed once (STATE OF THE ART ROBOT I have a feeling it's where you are since I'm not sure how many deployed locations have a swimming pool and a Subway. Is there still a Dunkin Donuts there?). Nellis was terrible because of the squadron, but Las Vegas was hella nice (for a young man ). Osan was a pretty good assignment all around despite the exercises. Ramstein so far has sucked balls from start to finish (and gotten increasinly worse as time has gone on) with a sprinkling of good times every once in awhile. I've gotten to see a lot of the world (including Africa which I never even considered a possibility). I'm PSC'ing next year back to Osan (to the very squadron I came here from) so there's a light at the end of the tunnel. There's been good, but when it gets drowned out by three years of bad, it's hard to see it.

I think when it comes down to it, I like the idea of the military. Politics aside, I enjoy a job that has meaning (weight, ya know?) and the military definately has that in spades. But when my job changed from what I was trained to do to babysitter (I've struggled to find another word for what I do currently and that is what fits. My job is to make sure grown adults are "taken care of and get whatever they want" lest they throw a hissy fit) and I get no back up what so ever because my leadership all has their eyes on the prize (i.e. promotion), I begin to wonder why I do what I do.

Lol, sorry for the negativity. I'm just venting. I will endeavor to make my next post/thread more upbeat.

TOGSolid

I got booted from the Air Force during basic training thanks to my appendix secretly receiving instructions from the Taliban and suicide bombing my guts.

Then I found out that my buddy Dustin who also went Air Force ended up having to walk around in a sandy shithole with a bulletproof vest and an M16 due to, yanno, bullets and explosions and shit even though he was supposed to be in the rear with the gear and my wonderfully tuned sense of self-preservation went "NEVER MIND!" and I didn't take my option to reenlist.

On the plus side, apparently the massive fallout from how the surgeon handled my case caused my name to become infamous in Elmendorf and I got a sweet challenge coin from the Chief Master Sergeant for my troubles so whatever. A little notoriety is always fun!

HallowedFaith

STATE OF THE ART ROBOT wrote:

I am currently deployed. The base I am at is actually not bad. No hostile fire here and we have some ammenities, like a swimming pool and a subway 5 minutes away from my room. Working 6 days a week and 12 hour workdays is a bitch though. The workload is not bad. When it is not busy we can play games, watch TV, Etc. Nothing like being back at home station.

You must be Air Force attached or in the 380th, am I correct?

@TheClaw I have a long standing military career that just finished up. I understand where you're coming from. Truth is, not a lot of venting options are available to anyone outside of your unit who would understand or isn't sitting there nodding their head going "uh huh? OH boy thats terrible..." (You know what i'm talking about) You're 100% correct when you say it's the people not the institution.

Sad part is, the institution is broke and hiring a bunch of full fledged morons to maintain its grounds because everyone is rushing to find ANY job. I don't blame them, but man, Service isn't for everyone, or hell even half that are already there, lol.

Good luck on your adventures troop.

MadEddy

@TheClaw High-five on your upcoming PCS, then.

HallowedFaith

Indie Winter wrote:

been in the army, was a POG because of Circumstances (probably the family status, i.e. no dad, mom with some health issues and two younger sisters). Did my three years, saw zero action, was a pretty good TOC commander, and got my honorable discharge as a first sergeant.

despite the fact that I hated large parts of it due to a despairing amount of, essentially, office politics, military service pretty much made me into the man I am today, i.e. a relatively normal individual instead of a completely introverted shut-in geek. So, I owe it that.

I gotta be honest, nothing here you said makes sense. How did you become an Officer while holding a 1SG rank only 3 years into the Army? That is quite impossible.
-Edit Came off a bit ruder than I intended AND I assumed you're in the US Army.

Indie Winter

HallowedFaith wrote:

Indie Winter wrote:

been in the army, was a POG because of Circumstances (probably the family status, i.e. no dad, mom with some health issues and two younger sisters). Did my three years, saw zero action, was a pretty good TOC commander, and got my honorable discharge as a first sergeant.

despite the fact that I hated large parts of it due to a despairing amount of, essentially, office politics, military service pretty much made me into the man I am today, i.e. a relatively normal individual instead of a completely introverted shut-in geek. So, I owe it that.

I gotta be honest, nothing here you said makes sense. How did you become an Officer while holding a 1SG rank only 3 years into the Army? That is quite impossible.

in the US army, sure, all of that's impossible. Never said I was in it, though. And I wasn't an officer, I was a commander. We had an officer above us who we all reported to.

MadEddy

Probably a different country's military, dude. And a TOC commander could be an NCO, I suppose. It's a position, not a rank.

Edit: I are slow. What he said.

HallowedFaith

Indie Winter wrote:

HallowedFaith wrote:

Indie Winter wrote:

been in the army, was a POG because of Circumstances (probably the family status, i.e. no dad, mom with some health issues and two younger sisters). Did my three years, saw zero action, was a pretty good TOC commander, and got my honorable discharge as a first sergeant.

despite the fact that I hated large parts of it due to a despairing amount of, essentially, office politics, military service pretty much made me into the man I am today, i.e. a relatively normal individual instead of a completely introverted shut-in geek. So, I owe it that.

I gotta be honest, nothing here you said makes sense. How did you become an Officer while holding a 1SG rank only 3 years into the Army? That is quite impossible.

in the US army, sure, all of that's impossible. Never said I was in it, though. And I wasn't an officer, I was a commander. We had an officer above us who we all reported to.

My apologies, within the context of the thread I naturally assumed it was Army based on the description. What service were you in, I am curious to see the ranking system now!

SoaL

you signed up for it, dummy

think of it as punishment for supporting the military industrial complex!

Fiendishrabbit

HallowedFaith wrote:

in the US army, sure, all of that's impossible. Never said I was in it, though. And I wasn't an officer, I was a commander. We had an officer above us who we all reported to.

My apologies, within the context of the thread I naturally assumed it was Army based on the description. What service were you in, I am curious to see the ranking system now!

I'm guessing... Singapore?

TheClaw

Thanks HallowedFaith and MadEddy on the well wishes. Korea was a lot of fun last time and since I already know my way around the culture, I think things will be pretty sweet. If I'm lucky afterward I'll get Japan.

UnbrokenEva

Fiendishrabbit wrote:

HallowedFaith wrote:

in the US army, sure, all of that's impossible. Never said I was in it, though. And I wasn't an officer, I was a commander. We had an officer above us who we all reported to.

My apologies, within the context of the thread I naturally assumed it was Army based on the description. What service were you in, I am curious to see the ranking system now!

I'm guessing... Singapore?

I think Indie Winter is Israeli actually

Absalon

Was in the Swedish military one year.

Hated everyone and everything after a while.

Meaningless tasks, meaningless chores, meaningless lack of sleep, meaningless prattle from officers, meaningless discomfort, meaningless exercises and field ops, almost exclusively meaningless people all around me. It was an utter waste of everyone's resources and caused me at least three or four nervous breakdowns simply because I could feel my life and willpower being drained. It wasn't really physically exhausting, it was just so soulless and free of professionalism or self-awareness that it shocked me. It existed because it had to exist, and everything was done out of legal obligation, both on my part and on the entire institution's.

Fuck the Swedish military. Apart from my good sergeant buddy that joined after me at a different camp. THAT motherfucker had a nice time and met nice people. Asshole. Fuck him too!

Ruby Rhod

Air Force for 5 years, until my back went out. Now I'm a pot smokin college student again. But honestly, I had a good time in the military, it helped me get over some personal problems and I hate to think where I would have ended up in my life if I hadn't enlisted. There was plenty of bullshit I had to put up with sure, but overall I'm glad I joined.

STATE OF THE ART ROBOT

Yes I am in the Air Force @HallowedFaith

@TheClaw, there might be one on the army side of the base but I have not seen one here.