[68skylark]

I think your comments are whining are misdirected. The press is doing most all the whining -- by finding a few people and blowing their gripes up into something its not. Talk with actual soldiers, without a media filter, and you'll get a far different perspective.

[American_Centurion]

Your statement is dead on.

Most reservists are professionals, who "live for this $h17". Many of the longer service soldiers also spent time supporting the Balkans deployments, and all agree this is much more necessary and satisfying.

A lot of reservists take pay cuts when they're on active duty, some handle it fine, others lives are disrupted immensely by a long mobilization. I've found that most often financial reasons are the primary de-motivator in reservists lives.

As long as they serve, don't desert or go AWOL, they have earned the right to bitch about the impact this has on their lives. Whether they re-enlist or not I'm glad they were there when called on. God bless our troops.