AIN'T IT COOL? A Tale of Two Cultures

American Digest ^ | April 13, 2004 | Gerard Van der Leun

[Gritty]

Great writing.

I've e-mailed it around my lists.

[archy]

You make a very strong point. I served with a lot of very cool surfer dudes who somehow found their way to the recruiter. But I accept the general point of the article about how the vase majority of today's mall rats could care less about the defense of this nation. They can't even comprehend themselves taking arms to defend America.

Some of those surfer doods were hard-core, indeed. Ever heard the absolutely blistering The Universal Coward that Jan Berry of Jan and Dean released as a solo project, a parody of *Universal Soldier?*

He's the universal coward and he runs from everything,
from a giant, from a human, from an ant.
He runs from Uncle Sam, he runs from Vietnam,
but mostly he's just running from himself".

As for the kids now, I'm largely spoiled, since I get to see some of the cream of the crop. But there are most definately some good ones out there, and they do not at all come out of the same cookie-cutter mold.

[in the Arena]

Thanks for the ping...

[visualops]

The American culture of cool has become a nation apart, an alternate-America that looks to the real America as merely some mechanism set up to deliver the many features and benefits of America to the culture of cool

Edwards is right, there are two Americas, he just doesn't know what they are.

[visualops]

ping

[vanderleun]

Yes, I am guilty of being the person who wrote it out. Where it comes from... I leave that to a higher power.

[Rummyfan]

Great post thanks!

[vanderleun]

I wasn't "targeting" Orange County. I just happened to be there and happened to see what I saw and feel what I felt. Over the next couple of days, as the news continued, and the photographs came in, and my own memories and thoughts intruded, I wrote what I thought and felt.

I know full well how different members of even the same family take different ways through life.

And I did not mean to suggest that there are not some young men and women that, even with immense advantages, seek the paths of duty, God and country. You cannot spend some days with the men and women at Camp Pendelton and not know that.

At the same time, I guess I must plead guilty of taking from the specific and moving to the general. Although I may be wrong, indeed, I will be wrong in terms of specific young men and women, I don't think I am wrong in the general sense of the times.

BTW: It was not Irvine Spectrum. If I'd been there I wouldn't have been able to walk through the Friday night date hordes.

[vanderleun]

You can move from the specific to the general and be wrong about the specific.

You can also move from the general to the specific and be wrong about the general.

[Siamese Princess]

I think they'll find that the gravy train of Big Daddy's coattails will run dry a lot sooner than they think.

Children from wealthy families frequently grow up to be feckless bums. I know people like that. I believe it was Andrew Carnegie who said "From shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations" -- the first generation would make the money, the second would blow it, and the third would have to go back to work.

[tpaine]

One tied to becoming a full voting citizen. -- Call it a boot camp for the franchise. -- No service, no vote.
tpaine


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Read Starship Troopers by Heinlein.
Military service OR a somewhat longer term in social/community service or no franchise.
-tet66-

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Heinlein pointed out a few times that he wasn't quite advocating such a system, he was just saying it could be made to work.

He definitely had contempt for general conscription, believing that a nation that needed it to defend itself didn't deserve to be defended.
It's important to note that all the men and women in Iraq today and at Pendleton volunteered before they had any formal military training.
29 -Eric-


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I'm not advocating general conscription for military training.

I'm saying we should have a voluntary 'basic training' in full citizenship for every person who wants to vote.

We would still have completely independant fully volunteer combat forces structured as they are at present.

[lainde]

Just excellent! Thanks for posting!!!!

[lainde]

i just realized YOU wrote this. It's so eloquent and insightful! Kudos!

[Victoria Delsoul]

Thanks for the ping, Ron.

Bump.

[tpaine]

-- I see a need for a voluntary 'rite of passage' type draft in America.. One tied to becoming a full voting citizen. -- Call it a boot camp for the franchise. -- No service, no vote.
-tpaine-

Extremely bad idea, for four reasons. 1) It puts those who resent being there into the military. There's a reason pretty much every military professional in the US prefers an all-volunteer force.

A voluntary boot camp for the privilege of voting is not a proposed general military draft.

2) It will get those currently apathetic kids interested in politics in a very non-constructive manner.

Why should that be so? The idea is to get them interested in constructive citizenship.

3) It allows politicians to skimp on military pay, military equipment, and military preparedness in order to pay for welfare or pork barrel projects.

That's quite an assumption.. One made on nothing I proposed..

4) It allows politicians to fight half-ast wars of attrition using an endless supply of cannon fodder rather than fighting wars to their conclusion as quickly as possible.

More hyped up assumptions, based on your fancies, not mine.

If you want to play social engineer, don't mess with the military. It's too important.

I didn't propose "messing" with the military. Get a grip.

------------------------------------

E rocc Makes some good points in his reply, and let me add another thought.
If some choose to serve America by their contribution to the economy (our wealth is just as influential as our bullets, if handled properly), or by strengthening our moral characteristics by going into the ministry, or by staying home with the kids instead of sending them off to day care, or basically doing what is right, however that happens to play out, then that individual has a say in society.
The ones who live off the labor of others, complain and subvert the destiny of this nation are the enemy within. They unfortunately have more of a say than they ever should. But nobody can justly project the calling of a soldier onto every individual. I'm much more valuable as a businessman than a soldier.
But don't get me wrong, I'll carry a rifle to defend my country, if it comes to that.
ovrtaxt

I think you've got me wrong. See above.

[onyx]

It's coat hanger. It's airplane hangar.
I know, because I spelled it airplane hanger about 40 times in the first edition of my novel.





LOL!
But it's the first edtion,
personally autographed copy
that will one day fetch a fortune,
but I'll never part with it for any amount of money.
My heirs will, no doubt. :)

[Travis McGee]

Yep, I'm an expert in spelling airplane hanger now.

[nutmeg]

bttt

[NewRomeTacitus]

Yeah, I read this excellent analysis on the current state of California's state of mind. Through all my transformations "cool" meant maintaining as much control over one's personal life as possible. In the 1960's Jim Morrison had it until he let it consume him, Fonzie depicted it in the 70's. There's an organized attempt to bring the rappers into the Islamic fold under the guise of cool that, to the kids' credit, is being totally rebuffed.

There's no bling bling to be had by being down with Allah, and who wants to join the list of premature funerals? Right now I'm looking at footage on CNN of dirt-poor fanatics who are desperate for whatever lies their mullah is selling. Since there are about 6 million of these people over here now I encourage the "homies" to keep their guns handy and clean for when those nuts get out of line. Because they're being encouraged to.

Fun aside, I do hope Americans of all walks of life will have enough gumption to pull when necessary if these nuts ever make a move here. Those guys have been definitely uncool in other countries by picking up children to use as shields.

If they choose to live in a culture of hate they deserve what they reap. Why is Fallujah still on the map at this time? According to their own mindset allowing it to remain equals failure for us. They're begging for an example of power. Failure to follow through will only consign more allied troops to death. Erase the town, put up with media flack and rest easy knowing you did the right thing. The Arab world will see any less as weakness.

What's cool? Accomplishing the mission and knowing you helped steer the world the least little bit righter. Cool is relinquishing decisions to commanders on the ground during this age of instant communications. Cool is learning from mistakes and not repeating them. Sparing a world that barely deserves it from the evil intentions of very uncool people without thanks is about the coolest level one can attain. Thank you, Armed Services. Your cool with me.

[Travis McGee]

Yep, the military is very cool with me too.