[Webstral]

I’m not going to weigh in on creating a separate category for OT threads regarding current military events. I doubt my ability to be neutral, so I’m going to recuse myself.

There are times when I feel like we vets are bit too sensitive to seeing our deeds and misdeeds discussed openly. We’re often resentful that much criticism and judgment are heaped upon us by people who are safe and snug in their living rooms, free to enjoy the blessings of plenty and liberty with no other contribution than a grudging payment of taxes. We’re annoyed that the people of nation we serve claim not to like the war but otherwise sit on their hands when it comes to putting pressure on elected officials in any meaningful way. We’re vexed by the often inept strategic leadership, both military and civilian. We’re outraged that the media focuses almost exclusively on negative press. It’s bad enough that every misdeed undoes ten good deeds in-theater; when the media reports only (or very nearly so) on misdeed and misfortunes, the whole world gets the impression that American soldiers are ignorant, raging thugs and that American policy is based on a Roman model. We reach a point at which the mere mention of misdeeds evokes a strong negative reaction in part least because the public in general cannot contextualize said misdeeds.

We have to remember that we swore to uphold the Constitution, which means that we swore to uphold free speech that will often make us unhappy. I strongly dislike the idea that openly racist organizations and individuals can spill their bile such that my children will be exposed to it. In my heart, I feel there’s something wrong when Neo-Nazis have the right to assemble, march, and speak publicly. However, I accept that a free society must tolerate much which disgusts us.

We veterans have to choose how we’re going to wage the never-ending struggle of free speech. Whenever we react with negative emotion, we reinforce certain stereotypes about us. The citizens who are least able to contextualize bad press about us are the ones who need most to be impressed that we are, by and large, an organization of dedicated professionals upholding American ideals to the best of our ability under very trying circumstances. Just as our parent society struggles with criminal behaviors, so our armed forces struggle with behaviors that are responses to the unique stressors of the job we do. Our civilians need to understand this; and we need to be the teachers in this regard.

In our digital age in which there are no more safe havens from the eye of the camera, our every misdeed is going to be reported on. The press is going to run with these stories because they sell copy. The American people soak them up because that’s human nature; for the same reason that gladiatorial events, public hangings, and all manner of cruel spectacles have attracted crowds, the ugly side of war will attract far, far more attention than the operations that go the way they are supposed to. We want good outcomes, but we can’t turn our eyes away from bad ones. We military professionals either can rail against this reality or we can work with it the same way we should adjust our approach to a changing battlefield.

Note: I say "we", but I'm not part of the organization anymore. I'm not even on the IRR roster. Anyone who tells me that I don't have any skin in the game anymore is right. I'm not ever going to deploy to Afghanistan. So my remarks have to be contextualized as those of a well-informed outsider.