The Military is Politics

Posted by Sam Gillmer on 07.02.2009

A personal revelation on our protectors...

Generally, I like to spice things up with this article, taking a recent development in the political world and poking fun at it, but this week I am going to try to be a little bit more serious and take a different kind of approach on politics. I realize that politics often means, as far as news goes, diplomacy around the world, taxes, etc. The basic things we always hear about on both a state and federal level. This week though, i'd rather talk about the military, which clearly plays a role in politics.

I do not want to go about saying that one military is better than another. As far as I'm concerned, the only difference is the orders that are given. For the purpose of this story I'm going to focus on the United States Military, specifically the Air Force, because that is where my experience happened.

I recently attended graduation from Basic Military Training at Lackland Air Force Base. I can honestly say it was one of the most interesting things I have ever seen, and made me very proud. The cohesiveness that these men displayed, as well as the respect that they had for all the civilians, was something that we rarely experience or see in our lives. It is the ultimate team, and I can attest to the transformation that occurs with these men and women, a transformation that would make even Optimus Prime proud (I had to throw in at least one bad movie reference).

I realize that there are instances where people disagree with war, but I do think, at least in America, we have become more supportive of our troops, because we realize it is not their call to go to war, and they are just doing their best to protect us. I witnessed people coming up to these new graduates and thanking them for their services, and congratulating them on graduating.

This is politics first hand. Rather than speculating on theories of how we can fix the economy, or listening to "analysts" go on shows and talk about what they think, we need to do no more than meet a member of the military and thank them to be a participant in democracy.

So next time you see a member of the military thank them for all that they are doing for you. I know that it probably makes their day to hear just one person who is appreciative of what they do. And if you ever get a chance to go to a military base and watch Basic Military Training, because not only does it show that you support our troops, but it is also hilarious to listen to the T.I's yell at our young men and women of the armed services.