Memorial Day Whiny Bitch Noises

[waywalker]

I have a friend who is serving in Iraq as contractor. Something with computers, although I've never really known what it is he does for a living, even when he lived here in Georgia. He went to Iraq because he couldn't find viable work here in the States that would pay him what he wanted to make, and in fact because he knew he could make a lot more

Comments

[es]

Both of you seem too harsh. :)

HOWEVER.

It also sounds like one of those irrational pet peeves that don't mean much in the grand scheme. So enjoy it! Embrace the peeviness until you're stomping your feet and throwing your weight too hard when you turn. You can't properly enjoy a peeve without some physicality to express it. :) And at some point in the middle of the expression, it's less about the peeve, and more about the movement. That means you win.

- ES

[jadeejf]

No, I don't think you are. Memorial Day and Veteran's Day are intended to honor service members. There are lots of other government workers and civilian contractors who do their jobs, and hey, some of them are in danger (even domestic postal workers get the stray white powder, you know). And yes, it sucks that life is hard for them, but they did make that choice. And yes, so did the service members, but contractors aren't on the front lines, even if they are making things work. It sounds like so much sour grapes to me, and I would be a little annoyed, too. Sorry, though. :(

[amaril34]

I don't think you're being too harsh. While civilian contractors, etc. certainly face their share of danger overseas, Memorial Day is specifically to honor fallen soldiers and service personnel. I too, would be a little annoyed at her comments/post, but perhaps my sensitivity comes from the fallen soldier thing hitting too close to home this past year.

[ama3x3]

I agree with you, dear. the husband made a CHOICE to put himself in a danger zone. while a soldier chooses to join, where that soul ends up stationed is in the hands of the gods. and maybe the gods really smile and there is no war for some of our fine troops during their service. if she's so sure of her moral ground then she can petition for a new "holiday", to honor mercenaries at work.
Memorial Day is for remembering our dead service family. she needs to get over her bad self.

[pseudopagan]

I was always taught that Memorial Day was a day to remember and honor those who fell in war. What or where the war was doesn't matter, nor does it matter just what they were doing, from the guy on the front lines who catches a bullet to the guy sitting in an office who dies to a bomb. It was also never strictly about soldiers, so far as I know, as soldiers aren't the only ones taking risks or sacrificing. I don't really agree that the civilian contractors are 'just there for the money', as while that's certainly possible as a motivation, it's a bit too sweeping of a generalization. The military needs those people there. If they all just pulled out tomorrow, it'd cause one hell of a problem in virtually any major land operation.

This site seems to suggest that the holiday was observed before official sanction, and was to honor 'the war dead'. I would be deeply shocked to find that such observations were limited strictly to soldiers, as wars (and the civil war in particular) claimed far more lives than just service men.