Today is Veterans Day

[xan_racketBOY_fan]

I was stationed in San Diego, part of the Carl Vinson strike group.

I was on the Chuckie V! Years ago though. Which division? I worked V-2 Division, Air Department.

I was actually onboard the USS Antietam, it was our unit's responsibility to escort "Chuckie V" (LOL). As an Operations Specialist, I had a "cool" time in the Combat Information Center (it was ALWAYS freezing in there). Sleep was something our division was deprived of, we had port and starboard watch the entirety of both deployments I was on! Five hours on, five hours off; seven hours on, seven hours off + whatever work had to be done! Senior Chief would always bellow, "You can sleep when you're dead!" ... we hated that man, lol. Oh, and since the command generally had low moral, we called our ship the USS Anti-team (instead of Antietam).

[aaron]

pretty sure black sabbath sums this argument up best. see "war pigs," "children of the grave," etc. perhaps nullface could check out "changes."

i have a lot of friends who have served/are serving in the military and i respect them for their contributions, but i take each person's attitude in stride and on an individual basis, because a lot of them are fucking dolts when it comes to actual foreign policy/the-reason-they-had-to-go-to-iraq.

but veteran's day is a day for veteran's to be heralded for the personal sacrifices they made as individuals, not a day to be used as a self-serving platform for openly disagree with war/unjustified murder. i don't like the military, but i am humbled by and appreciative of the actions of our country's soldiers. for the most part.

[CRTGAMER]

CT2

Obviously I won't have a lot of pictures to share! I never did anything with the Carl Vinson strike group but I DID spend a LOT of time with the Kitty Hawk strike group and even did a couple of months on the Shitty Kitty herself.

No one realizes this until you go aboard a carrier but those things are the most impossibly big and insanely dangerous man made objects in the world. My office was right underneath the flight deck, right where the catapults ended their run. All day long, 'BAM! and then the sound of chains dragging'.

That chain sound would be cables and a grab assembly going forward to retrieve the shuttle for the next shot. Cables attached to a hydraulic retraction engine aft. My cats had a berthing compartment between 1 and 2 water brake pump rooms. Anyone late getting up got a great wakeup call during pre-op catapult test no loads!

I hated that water brake tank, had to visit every night for a quality assurance post-op inspection of the choke ring. A steam bath after shooting all day. An ingenious design of stopping a 150mph piston assembly in six feet with just a water squeeze affect.

I was actually onboard the USS Antietam, it was our unit's responsibility to escort "Chuckie V" (LOL). As an Operations Specialist, I had a "cool" time in the Combat Information Center (it was ALWAYS freezing in there). Sleep was something our division was deprived of, we had port and starboard watch the entirety of both deployments I was on! Five hours on, five hours off; seven hours on, seven hours off + whatever work had to be done! Senior Chief would always bellow, "You can sleep when you're dead!" ... we hated that man, lol.

Thanks for reminding me about Carrier Quals. Literal 20 hour days, cat nap in the catwalk during a squadron change of aircraft. squeeze 10 minutes when you can. Have to put the cat to bed with a post-op preventative maintenance before hitting the rack.

So any other tales from maybe other Armed services?
How about some of the crazy liberty ports?

[Flake]

Lol, crazy liberty ports. Hong Kong was always a pretty crazy time, especially when I was younger. I'd start the day out looking for arcades so I could play the most recent 'Gundam Vs' game. I'd end the day drunk, angry, possibly running from shore patrol. I once got into a fight with a prostitute in Wan Chai. She didn't realize that 'no means no, you're a poxed skank get away from me'.

It should be a crime against humanity to drop a carrier strike group on a port for liberty. I don't know how those towns manage to survive.

[jp1]

I'm done. You can start handing out miniature American flags now.

Very well.

[Incognito D]

To call all soldiers 'murderers' is ridiculous. What about those men in 1911 that got conscripted into the army, sent down a muddy trench, and then over the top straight into oncoming machine gun fire. They were just normal people like you or me that had jobs and families back home, yet look at the sacrifice that they made. And then ignorant fools of the future come out and try to be all hip and edgy by saying they're just murderers. gah.

Days like today are important to remember what they sacrificed.

[CRTGAMER]

It should be a crime against humanity to drop a carrier strike group on a port for liberty. I don't know how those towns manage to survive.

Damn drunken sailors. Ever been to Korea and try Oscar? Back in the day when the good stuff was in it. There was a vendor outside the bar frying up egg sandwiches. After a couple bottles, I got the serious munchies, think I ate six or ten of those sandwiches.

[Snickerd00dle]

Thanks to all you Veterans!

[Luke]

Thanks to all the Veterans here at Racketboy, and also across our great nation. Whether it was your decision or not to enlist, we all owe you a debt of gratitude. Your service is nothing short of admirable.

Both of my Grandfathers fled from Germany when Hitler was coming to power. Their strong Lutheran background would not let them support the murder of innocent Jews. After a few years in America, they both enlisted in the Army, and actually fought against their homeland during WW2. It's sad to see how few WW2 veterans are left today. They weren't called the "greatest generation" for nothing, and I hope and pray that at least a few of their ideals, beliefs, and devotions will pass on to future generations. Sadly, I don't see that happening.

My Father served in Vietnam. He was First Calvary, and not too long ago a movie titled We Were Soldiers was released, and that movie was loosely based on his platoon. He was offered a purple heart, which he respectfully declined, as in his mind he didn't deserve it, as he thought the soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice were usually the ones that deserved any reward.

Me? I've got nothing. I was in cub and boy scouts. I've often wondered what my life would be like if I was sent into war. Real war. I would love to serve my country as a soldier, but my family would never want to see that happen. I consider myself lucky that I'm the first male in my family that hasn't had to risk life and limb in combat. My Grandfathers and my Father help made that possible. That is truly one reason why we should all honor and thank every veteran, regardless of your stance on the military.

If it weren't for our veterans, it is very likely half of us could be active in the military still fighting for the freedoms that we now feel we are entitled to. Perception is reality, and sometimes we lose focus of that. Just for a minute, wherever you are, take at least three minutes to think of how good we actually have it and how different things could be if it weren't for the brave men who fought the difficult battles for us.

[Flake]

Damn drunken sailors. Ever been to Korea and try Oscar?

Been to Korea. Never tried Oscar. Tried just about everything else once. Some of my most outrageous port stories are from Osan. But I'm not sharing those till someone else pipes up with one of theirs.