I had a very interesting conversation with an air force guy tonight

[proud2BlibKansan]

I am in Memphis for a getaway and we went to Beale Street tonight. There is a bowl game here tomorrow (The Liberty Bowl) and the town is packed with fans going to the game. The restaurant we went to for dinner on Beale was so crowded that we shared a table with 3 guys here for the game tomorrow. One of them was a mechanic in the air force.

He told me he has been in the military for 37 years. He was in the army first and then retired and joined the air force. He travels around the country going from base to base doing mechanical work on airplanes. I asked him what he thought about the war in Iraq and he said that the air force guys have it made. I asked what he meant and he said "The pilots get up in the morning, fly halfway around the world, drop bombs, kill people and fly back home in time for dinner."

I asked if that bothered him and he said he didn't know anyone in the air force who thought the war in Iraq was worthwhile. He talked about the number of our military and the Iraqis who have died. He said this is the biggest mistake and misuse of our military he has ever seen in his time in the service. He also said we will probably be in Iraq for 15 - 20 years.

Then I told him I was active in the anti-war movement. He said "GOOD FOR YOU". :wtf:

[dad]

1. only the air force pilots and flight crew have it made

ground crew work crazy hours in all kinds of weather

[Erika]

2. The truth is coming out

and we're not going to wait until 55,000 of them are dead before we stop the war. Bush be damned.

[Telly Savalas]

3. You should have scolded him for not supporting the troops.

[Monkeyman]

4. From a ground pounder Dropping bombs

Is not seeing the faces of the man you have to kill. Don't get me wrong here seeing a F16 come in when you are getting hit makes your day. Its just a whole other world

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. I figured that

I was still surprised by his honesty.

[illinoisprogressive]

5. thanks for sharing that

I wonder what the military, the regular guys think of this war. I read some things but, still wonder. Wonder if they are pretty much in agreement or just some hate this war and feel like your friend.
This week I've read posts by people who have family members home for the holidays and are in deep trouble emotionally from the war. My heart breaks for them and the Iraqis.

[jody]

6. Probably active duty Army and now civil service or contractor for USAF. n/t

[GreenZoneLT]

7. It's discouraging

It ain't Vietnam, though. The level of casualties is really extremely light if you compare it to any other war -- it's about 3-4 times the normal peacetime death rate from training accidents. The guys who go out on patrol frequently get to interact with the Iraqis in a positive manner, too. You can occasionally see progress on a micro scale, and the macro-scale intense catastrophe affects Iraqi civilians much more than us.

The worst part is just being away from home a year at a time, and being surrounded by the Iraqis' misery, little of which we cause directly (indirectly, of course, we're to blame for unleashing the chaos).

[rsdsharp]

10. Iraq casualties are similar to Viet Nam in the early years.

Don't forget that LBJ vastly increased our presence in 1965, and continued to up the number of troops for the next three years. The escalation of the US war effort caused an escalation in the number of casualties.

I doubt Bush will be allowed to escalat... er, "surge," our troop levels in Iraq to match those of Viet Nam in the late 60s.

[POAS]

8. My friends daughter in the AF is going to

Afghanistan as a volunteer to help out the Army because they are understaffed and overworked.