from Hacker News

On Memorial day, will you thank someone for their service?

by noemit on 5/26/24, 3:03 PM with 6 comments

I’ve always been somewhat cynical about the military and military service, but I have always said “thank you for your service” genuinely. I respect the sacrifice other people have made. Even if I criticize the military industrial complex, even if I see it as a sort of modern imperialism, all that doesn’t really matter on the individual level. Now, most people look down on military people in general, and it’s a canary in a coal mine. We no longer respect people that sacrifice for the greater good. Even when we knew the military had problems, we still respected people’s sacrifice for that ideal, even if was imperfect and even if we knew their sacrifice at times may have created more harm than good.. I think the problem now is not that we respect military less, or are more critical of military imperialism. I think as a society, the west, the United States, developing countries in general - we no longer believe there is a greater good. Either it's just not possible for life to be better or we don't believe anything idealistic is possible. ("We used to build things"... remember?) So instead of seeking a greater society, greater good for ourselves, we seek as much harm to our enemies as possible. We’ve all become terrorists ideologically. And terrorists don't thank anyone for their service, they say "glory to our martyrs."

  • by heartag on 5/26/24, 4:57 PM

    Something that adjusted my cynical attitude as a college student was reading "Don't Blow Yourself Up" by Homer Hickam. He was an early role model of mine as a child watching October Sky on repeat, and in the book he describes being judged for his time in the military regardless of what he did or how he felt about it.

    And just in case you're going to run into someone who will chastise you for thanking them this weekend: Memorial Day is dedicated to the dead, Veterans Day to the living / all veterans. So attending a memorial service may be an appropriate way to mark the weekend.

    https://www.hfotusa.org/difference-memorial-day-veterans-day...

  • by giantg2 on 5/26/24, 5:59 PM

    I'd probably thank them for their service more around veterans day or just in a general context. Memorial day is about the fallen.

    I've seen better treatment for vets in the past few decades than in the past. Many Vietnam vets had absolutely terrible experiences coming home. You don't hear too much about that these days.

    As for ideals, a lot of that has been eroded by the policies and leaders from the inside. Moat of the people I know getting out got tired of the stuff happening internally.

  • by bruce511 on 5/27/24, 5:35 AM

    Speaking as someone who did military service;

    I agree that there's a fine line to walk between distain for the military in general and respect for individuals who served.

    My distain is for the concept that "our military keeps us safe" (which contains a nugget of truth, but doesn't really explain why the US spends waaay more on military than the rest of the world combined.)

    To maintain this apparently vital expenditure it's necessary to engage in spurious proxy conflicts whenever possible. Have weapon. Use weapon.

    On the other hand I have respect for those who put their lives in danger, who are altered physically and/or mentally, or who get killed feeding this insatiable monster. I respect them in spite of the meaninglessness of the conflict that lead to such sacrifice.

    I usually get down-voted for expressing this anti-military stance, partly I suspect because any military demands unconditional support. In the sense that if you start asking the gard questions, they may lead to answers you don't like.

  • by al_borland on 5/27/24, 2:53 AM

    Memorial Day isn’t for the living, it’s for those we’ve lost.

  • by Spooky23 on 5/26/24, 7:31 PM

    I feel like it’s cringy and performative to do that. You never know what’s in people’s heads or what that callout means to them.

    Treat veterans with respect. Whatever our political or moral beliefs are, every soldier or sailor made a personal sacrifice in service. Soldiers don’t make policy, and I wouldn’t assume what every individual believes or doesn’t.

  • by meiraleal on 5/26/24, 4:15 PM

    There is no memorial day in my country and for the whole world the american military industrial complex is a cancer so no, I won't be thanking nobody for keeping the world in a constant state of war for their own benefit.