FODPLod
What's wrong with enjoying your job? Last year there were over 1,000 fatalities in aircraft accidents worldwide and over 200,000 deaths and injuries on British roads. Does that mean no one should be allowed to enjoy flying or driving?
Absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying your job and I don't see the point of your accident examples in this context. My statement was more aimed at the poster seeming to enjoy the fighting which took place and wishing for it to happen again. Why would anyone in a civilised society want war if other means have not been fully exhausted ? I am not sure that the millions of brave servicemen and women maimed and killed defending our country and our freedoms over the centuries would say that they got enjoyment out of becoming a casualty or suffering the horrors of war. A sense of honour, pride, bravery, righteousness, gratitude .... yes, they could claim all those things, and rightly so with my absolute full support, but enjoyment ? I think not, and anyone who claims so I think is being flippant and disrespectful to those who have made the sacrifices to our people and our nation, even if they were involved themselves. Others have freedom to not agree with me of course, thanks precisely to those who gave their lives.
A close family friend served in the Falklands in command of a Type 42 destroyer, subsequently commanding a Royal Navy mobile airfield and retiring as the crab equivalent of an AVM. When he talks of the conflict, he doesn't talk of enjoyment ... ever. He talks of pride in his crew and our armed forces who faced all sorts of adversity and challenges. He talks of the fear of being potentially attacked 24 hours a day by the enemy in high stress situations with equipment which did not always do what it was supposed to. He talks of the horror of losing colleagues and ships in his fleet and the helplessness he felt at times to prevent those losses. He talks of the deep regret and sadness at his ship downing an AAC Gazelle and killing 4 of our own servicemen in the fog of war, with a visible tear in his eye. He talks modestly of the satisfaction that our forces triumphed and the war was ended as quickly as it could have been with a victory. And he talks more than anything of the relief of coming home to his family and friends, whilst acknowledging that many did not get that chance. He has earned my respect, and he does not find war enjoyable nor glorify it one little bit. His experiences speak volumes for me.
ROG
10W are you really a "Moderator". Better get some real time in if you are.
I'll swing it round if I may. Do you know what Moderator means ?
Some of the meanings are:
1) Presides over a meeting,
FORUM, or debate. (we can tick that box)
2) A person who monitors the conversations in an on-line chatroom or Forum for bad language, inappropriate content, etc. (another box ticked)
3) Someone who mediates disputes and attempts to
avoid violence. (I'd tick the last part in respect of this debate concerning the call for a war put forward by some posters)
An earlier meaning a few centuries ago was that a moderator was a 'controller' or 'ruler' so I guess that's the day job covered too
As for getting some time in, I think you'll find that it's not a requirement for a Moderator on a site run principally (but not exclusively) for civil professional pilots, to have any military service whatsoever. Most Moderators on this site haven't and I am no exception. Some have of course, and they provide a degree of balance against us civvies and blunties no doubt. They bring different skills, philosophies, and ideas to the table. Note that I didn't say better skills, just different ones which complement those which other Mods provide. Entirely appropriate for a democratic 'society' which is not an autocratic military regime I'd say.
SASless
Bit snotty to ask such a question of those who have seen the Dragon don't you think 10W?
Maybe what I see as flippancy is a serviceman's defence mechanism of the horrors they went through. Only those that served will know if that is the case for them as individuals, and they have PPRuNe as at least one channel to enlighten everyone else about it and increase our understanding if indeed it is the case. But if I see it coming across as disrespectful, which is my current opinion and of course up for challenge, then I won't simply keep quiet. I'll ask the question and not be scared of the outcome. It's permitted in the civvy world to challenge and be challenged and the sign of a healthy democracy and freedom.
When folks go to War....some folks die in the process. Those that stay at home safe should take their hat off to those that went and those who were lost protecting other folk's freedom.
Indeed, my hat is permanently off to our servicemen and women, even in those wars whose political motives and subterfuge I disagree with. It is after all ''Older men who declare war, but it is the youth that must fight and die''.
I assume you will be offering an apology for the tone of your post seeing as how you are a Moderator and all. Mod's are supposed to stay out of the fuss so I have heard.....not provoke one.
Never assume. I won't apologise for thinking about the sacrifice made by our young men and women and won't refrain from questioning someone who I interpret or perceive as, in my opinion, making light of war and it's consequences. If they clarify what they really mean and my interpretation is wrong, then I am happy to see their point of view and acknowledge that. We'll accept that we have differing opinions and move on.
Other than my title on the info box left of here, I didn't make any comment as a Moderator, or attempt to provoke anything. I come as a poster who believes that those who gave up their lives should be treated with respect and talk of going to war should be treated with gravitas and careful reflection. I can accept that the Forces have their banter and their sense of humour is black and very different from many of us in the mainstream of society. I just don't find anyone wishing to have a war so they can enjoy themselves very funny, which is how the post reads to me. But each to their own.
Navaleye
We all took the Queen's shilling and we knew the risks. I lost mates, but we would do it again if we had to.
I absolutely have pride and belief in our brave servicemen and women that they would indeed do it all over again. Many of them are doing so today in other theatres, a fact of which you will, I am sure, be only too aware. Your losses, and those of your colleagues, are acknowledged by the vast proportion of the population, with immense gratitude and humility. There is a debt there which can never be repaid. At least 6 members of my family lost their lives in the fields of France and Belgium during WW1, doing exactly what you did in the Falklands conflict, and what the current Armed Forces are doing today. Several of them don't have the comfort of a known grave. Many of them probably didn't even get the King's shilling and probably had no idea of the risks, since they were conscripted, but deep down they are made of exactly the same stuff which epitomises our UK Forces. It is in the nation's DNA.
Regards and thanks.