[Banshee]

How come lfe has to be so complicated?..I decide to join the army and family S H I T on the idea? Im trying to make life better for my wife and kids and people dont like it? Man Im so tired of trying to make everyone happy, Its driving me fooking NUTS!!!...... My mother is having a F'ing s h i t fit....F UC K!!!....Well Im stumped on what to do BUT Iam joining I dont care what anyone thinks except my wife and kids and they are behind me 100%...Do any of you guys think it stupid for me to do?? and dont think Im second guessing myself cause its what I want to do.. I just need input!!!

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!


P.S.. This Sucks!!!

[Maison]

I can say I was maybe a little surprised you signed up at first. I didn't know you that well back then. Usually the army is something for people who are younger. Now that I have known you and become better friends there is no doubt in my mind why you did. You have a love for you country and are willing to put yourself in harms way to protect its citizens no matter how old or what may come. I admire you for you courage. Do not let ANYONE talk you out of what you know you need to do. You are the one that has to live with the decisions you make, so don't make your decisions based on others.

My prayers go out to you Kevin. May God bless and protect you.

[Ghost_Codeman]

Do what you want to do!

[CoMM]

It's never an easy decision...

I have to admit, that although i don't deserve an opinion, when you first mentioned you had joined i was more worried for you than anything. I don't remember what i specifically replied to you with but i believe it was simply a "stay safe" or something along those lines. I'm always proud and thankful for anyone willing to serve but no doubt it is an unstable dangerous environment where nobody is fully safe at any time, even in the "safe zones."

Feeling your mom's pain, I personally had to worry about a younger cousin of mine whom i spent a lot of time with as a kid. He was in the National Guard prior to 9/11, and thanks to Bush he was forced into 2 tours in Iraq. He proudly served at the time with no gripes, but when he got back he was more frank and said that he was just thankful to have survived and that he never planned to be sent overseas to dodge incoming fire on a daily basis for months. In high school he was a solid 4.0 GPA valedictorian student who was also an athlete, so when he joined the guards it was supposed to be more of a career path for learning to become a man and a leader while also pledging his life to protecting our local soil.

Make no mistake either, the Army or the Guards, you will likely see action. We have our troops so spread out that our govt needs every man and they'll pull from wherever they can short of using the draft, because they know that the draft would end all our wars in a matter of months after public opinion swayed. A lot of soldiers are returning for 4+ tours also just because they know the situation and want to protect their fellow soldiers, even though most of them don't approve of the f'd-up situation requiring us to be there in the first place. I've seen about every documentary about both current wars and a bunch of reports on top of that, which is where i've heard the soldiers' opinions.

Whatever you decide to do, stay smart.

If you decide to go; keep your head down, be a hero but not a suicidal one, and get home safe to your family. Hopefully you take a break after your first tour to decompress with your family before you decide additional tours are warranted. Although I and everyone who knows you would be extremely worried for you, i would be overly proud to know someone willing to step up and possibly save the lives of a few of our guys already over there by volunteering to add an extra man to our troops.

If you decide not to go; don't join the guards either, or you will be going. You know without a doubt that you're willing to serve but maybe it's best if you contribute your time in some other way while staying with your family. As an idea, maybe work your ass off at home and contribute 10% of your income to the USO.

Either way, and most seriously, make the decision that's best for you and your family. If you decide to go, great and ty-ty-ty. If not, nobody will think less of you because it takes a hell of a lot of guts to even consider it, and most people just try to put the wars out of their heads nowadays.

[Slippy]

Originally Posted by Ghost_Codeman

Do what you want to do!

+1

May god be with you.

P.S. ...Captain America.

[Redbear]

after spending 6yrs active and then the past 15 working with the DOD and every other military - if i had to do it all again, i wouldn't. but that is just me.

CoMM speaks wise words here - if you do, keep your head down and stay safe.

[X-Rated]

Why? Because they love you.

It's not unreasonable for your mother to feel this way. War is not pretty and there is no glory in it with sh¡t gets real. You know that your mother loves you and cares about you so it's only fitting that she worry for your safety. So it's not so much a case of raining on your parade, it's a case of being concerned with your well being.

I won't lie, the army and every other branch of the military will fúck you six ways from Sunday in every chance they can so be prepared to fight for anything they promise you.

Also following CoMM, do whatever you think is best for your family. You've already said Gina supports your decision and if you both agree and you wan't to do it, then go for it. Your family will always care about you, even if they don't like your decisions to do something like this.

[Ricochet]

Originally Posted by Ghost_Codeman

Do what you want to do!

More importantly, do what makes you happy, followed by what makes you and your family happy.

[Wicked]

You cant live life to make others happy and never look out for #1. You gotta go with your gut.

[Banshee]

Thanks for the kind words guys..And X ya I understand that she is worried about me, I get that BUT I would like some support from her, hopefully she will come around

[BigRedDog]

Noone can make decisions based on what others think. Your life, you live with the consequences, you do what you think.

Forgive your mother, she's worried about you and doesn't want to see you in harms way. That means she loves you. Personally, if my son went into the military right now, I don't think I could keep food down.

I would hope you have solid convictions to go, cause dead is forever.

Standing a post alone in the dark, wearing a uniform that people want to put a bullet through, for the protection of someone you don't know... that's hero's work. I think the best definition I've heard for a hero, is someone that knows what needs to be done and is willing to do it.

Good Luck - Whatever You Do.