I feel much the same way. I know it sounds odd, but I was glad the America was used as a test target.
In my mind’s eye, the vision of her sitting at the bottom of the ocean, always deployed, submerged in her element, rather than being cut up, is a comforting thing to me.
What is it about a ship? Some people would say it is only a big hunk of metal. But in my mind, the one I spent the most time on is more than that. I used to read about ships having a personality and men would cry when they were sunk in battle and they watched them go down.
I didn’t fully understand it. But after being on one, there is something else.
I was an Army dog, and so while I never served aboard a ship, I get it. I've always been a nostalgic guy (some would say overly so). I spent two years as an armor platoon leader before transferring to the MP Corps, and I felt that way about my Abrams. Hell, there have been times in my life I've gotten choked up trading in a used car. It's not so much the chunk of metal, but the memories we associate with it, and what it has come to symbolize for us.
100% Amen.