[Spktyr]

A lot of that has to do with the young people playing accurate simulation games and the rise of technology. The first twenty minutes of SPR didn't hurt, either.

The previous generation saw the soldiers life in boring documentary snippets and dusty old books (and were told that the military wasn't important, only losers served in the military - you know, the usual post-60's liberal BS). The difference is that today, someone can go to the store, buy something like Battlefield: Vietnam or Medal Of Honor, or rent Saving Private Ryan or The Patriot, and actually get a teeny tiny small taste of what combat is really like and the sacrifices our soldiers make and have made since 1775.

A lot of people my age had the general impression that the Normandy landings were "sort of hard, weren't they?". SPR changed their minds about that, and the Omaha Beach stage in MOH (as well as other similar simulations in other games) beat it out of most of the rest of them. There is nothing like seeing something for yourself (as it were) to make you appreciate someone's actions. And I think that's why a lot of the younger generation aren't real interested in people who mistreat our military. They've seen some tiny part of what the military *really* does.

[CzarChasm]

A lot of that has to do with the young people playing accurate simulation games...

I agree

<confession>
Omaha Beach in Medal of Honor was awesomely intense - i must have died 50 times before i made it to the beach, another dozen deaths on the beach before i made it to the wall, and another half-dozen deaths trying to clear the Nazi fortress - and that was on the Easy difficulty setting! The opening scene of the battle is straight out the front of a troopship, just like in the WWII footage. Spooky, and scary, and stirring - that game level left a lasting impression on me; a permanent elevated level of appreciation and admiration for the Greatest Generation

in Call of Duty - or maybe it was MoH - Pacific Assault, the first real mission is Pearl Harbor. You start at the naval base, being given a tour as this is your first assignment after basic training, when the Zeros fly over and let loose. I found - much to my surprise, as I am not an emotional kind of guy - that I was screaming at the animated planes [i shot down a dozen with a tommy-gun, though that is probably not realistic it was certainly satisfying] while running to my boat, and had tears on my face by the time the level finally ended. I have never been so affected by a game before or since.
</confession>

These effects are permanent - though I always respected the military, this boosted that respect sky-high. I now make a point of thanking every member of the military that I meet. Whenever possible, I look them in the eye and say "Thank you", and shake their hand. I never have to explain why; they know.