# Have you served in the military? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 30, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828 "2013-01-30T18:17:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/1 "2013-01-30T18:17:04Z")
Have you served, or do you still serve, in the military? If so, what country and which branch? United States Air Force, four years. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/2 "2013-01-30T18:28:15Z")
Nope. Spent my childhood on US Army bases and live and work on one now, but have never worn the uniform myself. ---
**Author:** ![flyboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4da419/32.png) [@flyboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flyboy)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/3 "2013-01-30T18:39:46Z")
Currently in the Navy, 18+ years, getting ready for retirement. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/4 "2013-01-30T18:41:39Z")
Been around the military all my life, and family members have served, but I am a serious civilian. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/5 "2013-01-30T18:46:08Z")
> [@flyboy](#): > > Currently in the Navy, 18+ years, getting ready for retirement. Is it true that Navy flyboys can’t park a car without the aid of a flagger and a large net? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/6 "2013-01-30T19:02:10Z")
Came of age in the no gays inthe military era so no. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/7 "2013-01-30T19:05:17Z")
I serve the military, but have never served _in_ the military. ---
**Author:** ![yanceylebeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yanceylebeef/32/12290_2.png) [@yanceylebeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yanceylebeef)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/8 "2013-01-30T19:05:22Z")
10 years in the Air force working for AFRTS. 10 years a a DoD civilian at the USAF Academy. First 12 years of my life was spent as an Air Force Brat. Great way to grow up, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/9 "2013-01-30T19:07:58Z")
4 years of active duty army. Went from that directly into the Army National Guard. Just about to complete my 24th (yikes) year. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/10 "2013-01-30T19:19:16Z")
2 years in the army for the college fund. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/11 "2013-01-30T19:19:38Z")
Mentioned before: US Navy Seabees, 23 years, retired Chief Petty Officer. I’m assuming you wanted the country of citizenship, not places visited. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/12 "2013-01-30T19:33:50Z")
Nope; my father did, but not me. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/13 "2013-01-30T19:42:57Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/14 "2013-01-30T19:55:59Z")
I assume being a [del]filthy[/del] contractor doesn’t count? ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/15 "2013-01-30T19:58:49Z")
No. I talked to my father about it, but my heart wasn’t set on it. We discussed it as a possibility. He was in the Navy, but he really wanted me to go directly to college and have a career. So I did. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/16 "2013-01-30T20:00:59Z")
My family’s an Air Force family. Grandfather met my grandmother when he was stationed in Luxembourg. Mother met my father when they were stationed in Florida. I was born on an Air Force base. All that and the Air Force line ends with me. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/17 "2013-01-30T20:49:18Z")
Nope. I was (very thankfully) born in one of the very first French generations that went through “compulsory military orientation” (i.e. two mandatory days of being called a soft, sackless faggot for 2 days straight by some gung-ho Indochina Wars veteran sergeant, from 6 AM onwards) instead of “compulsory military service”. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/18 "2013-01-30T20:57:19Z")
Yep. 3 plus years in the Army. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/19 "2013-01-30T22:21:01Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Nope. I was (very thankfully) born in one of the very first French generations that went through “compulsory military orientation” (i.e. two mandatory days of being called a soft, sackless faggot for 2 days straight by some gung-ho Indochina Wars veteran sergeant, from 6 AM onwards) instead of “compulsory military service”. Since you’re not actually in the military are you allowed to yell back? 🙂 > [@Antinor01](#): > > Came of age in the no gays inthe military era so no. Ditto, although I never had any desire to serve in the military. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2013, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828/20 "2013-01-30T22:23:00Z")
I was all set to report for the Vietnam war, if drafted. (My mother wanted me to run away to Canada.) Moot, since, for physical and psychological reasons, I’d have washed out in Basic Training. (Or… What happened, during Vietnam, to U.S. draftees who were simply too slow, stupid, pudgy, clumsy, and/or cowardly to function as soldiers? Were there “punishment battalions” where losers were sent, assigned to paint barracks or wash trucks?) (You’ve seen “Full Metal Jacket?” That would have been me, except I wouldn’t even have had the guts to shoot the D.I. Sigh…) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-served-in-the-military/648828.md?page=2)