Brian Amberg
Aug 8, 2017 · 5 min read

“If you don’t have a combat patch on your shoulder, you are no better than a civilian talking about what you earned.”

I see. So when you get wounded do you tell the medic to fuck the hell off? When food arrives at your bivouac do you tell the truck driver he/she is “not a real soldier”? What about drill sergeants? Are they “fake” soldiers who should be so ashamed of their service that they should never mention it to anyone? You remind me of the Marine who throws slurs at “bilge rats” because they get dirty performing their job; a guy who is too stupid to know that if not for those bilge rats he’d be shitting himself to death with dysentery.

Also, by your words you are insulting the civilians you took an oath to protect. Real classy. But you keep up with your attitude about being “better than civilians”. Guess you weren’t in the military to protect civilians, you must have had some other reason…

Frankly, I wouldn’t have been very good in the infantry. You wouldn’t have wanted me in your foxhole. I was 5'6" and 110 lbs when I enlisted. I almost failed basic training because I was a lousy shot with a rifle (I was damn good with hand grenades though, so good they had me demonstrate for 3,000 recruits in how to do it right; but as you should know, there is more to being infantry than skill with grenades).

But I scored in the 99th percentile on the entrance exam and they told me I could have any job I wanted. The recruiter did not steer me toward infantry because the policymakers in the military, unlike you, recognize that the Army is more than just the finger pulling the trigger.

You can call me a “remf” and a “coward” or a “pog” or whatever slur you want to call me. That does not change the fact that I turned down a full-ride creative-writing scholarship in order to serve my country during the run-up to a war. Most of my peers instead went to college or joined the workforce. And you want to pretend I made zero sacrifice for this country. You are out of line and an obstacle to military readiness. I was a credit to my unit. You insult most people who have ever served in a stupid effort to create some kind of “elite” status for yourself. That status already exists and is not dependent upon you insulting fellow veterans (or upon you insulting the civilians you swore to protect).

“When I see soldiers like you, I want to step on your throat because you make all of us look bad.” By making that statement you could create the impression that infantry are a bunch of stupid thugs so full of themselves that nobody with half a brain would want to join you. You make the military look bad, not me. Unlike you I would never step on the throat of a fellow soldier or employ the language of violence against them. I have respect for soldiers, you only have respect for the infantry.

“You millennials will be will be the death of my Army and this country.”

I’m probably older than you, dumbass. I signed up for Gulf War One. You know, the only war in 20 years that we didn’t get lied into.

“Remember, “Dear Leader” is your boss, at least for the next 3 and half years.”

Trump is not my boss. I will never answer to him. Not only does he have no direct authority over me, he’s a puppet of Russia, a traitor to America, and has been in violation of the constitution since day one. How the hell can you insult me when we BOTH swore an oath to protect the constitution? You aren’t protecting the constitution, you’re protecting your right-wing interests. Do you honor the oath you swore? Do you give a damn about this constitution of ours? Or do you only care about your right-wing ideology?

“Especially you white guilt assholes.”

Not sure what you mean by that. The fact that I recognize that white privilege exists does not mean I want you to feel guilty, it means that I am worldly and wise enough to recognize something so obvious you have to be a Nazi to not see it. Here’s a glaring example of white privilege you might not be aware of: if you are white, and armed, and pointing your gun in a cop’s face they will try to talk you down instead of just shooting you on sight. If you are black, and have a candy bar in your pocket or a “waistband” or inform an officer that you have a legal weapon and that you are getting the license proving that you are a legal gun owner, you get shot on sight. The 2nd Amendment is a white privilege. It might have once been a “right” but when the govt murders you for being armed while black it is no longer a “right” it is a “privilege”. I don’t want you to feel guilty for something out of your control. White privilege is not my fault OR your fault. It is a systemic problem that neither of us have any control over. The point isn’t to make you feel guilty, the point is for you to grow some EMPATHY and maybe, just MAYBE to stop hating people because you don’t like their skin color. I don’t know if you hate people of color. I’m not accusing you of that. But if you think mentioning white privilege means I’m trying to make you feel guilty, then that says something about unprocessed guilt in your own soul or that you think you are obligated to feel guilt that you do not believe belongs to you. The guilt does not belong to you unless you are a hater. But the RESPONSIBILITY to create an America that lives up to its promise is my responsibility and your responsibility. If you won’t even try, then perhaps you do deserve some of that guilt. But pointing out that white privilege exists is not an attempt to make you feel guilty, its to make you feel empathy. You’re not the bad guy, unless you are, in fact, the bad guy.

“How the fuck did you get past basic training? Oh yea, kinder and gentler. You pogs get phone privileges and stress cards.”

I have no idea what you’re talking about. I was allowed to stand in line for four hours to call home during *reception battalion*. I was not allowed such privileges in basic training. I don’t even know what a stress card is. That must be something new. I served from 90–93. I answered the call when my generation’s war was brewing and got out when I was no longer needed. You have a problem with that or do you also hate people who didn’t make a career out of it?

“Remember, everyone not combat arms is support for combat arms, the real soldiers.”

You’re missing the point of even HAVING a military. The job of the military is to protect the country, not to create hierarchies about which job is the most important job. Do you also insult generals? So you know, most generals never set foot on a battlefield either, but without their planning and ability to maximize the benefits of whatever resources are available the infantry can’t even do its job and they die en masse when they try.

So you go ahead and keep insulting the vast majority of everyone who has ever served in the military. Just keep it up. But so you know, you’re making yourself look stupid and you are disgracing the entire military and especially the infantry. This goes triple if you are still in uniform while disparaging fellow soldiers.

    Brian Amberg

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