THE MILITARY AND ME

In the early 60s, I found myself headed toward Fort Stewart Georgia.  I had married a Major in the United States Army.  Fort Stewart was described to me as being a small base located outside the "sleepy" town of Hinesville, Georgia.

Little did I realize that I had been placed smack dab in the middle of the Cuban/Russian missile crisis. I found myself on the  military base which would become the one where  thousands of men, women and equipment would go to war if Russia would not back off.  I met people of all ages and experience from across the country and formed a number of friendships across the ranks.

I learned much about military life at Fort Stewart. Some of what I learned was in sharp contrast to the information provided to the public by the Army: discrimination, alcoholism, abuse of women and children, and an attitude held by many that the military were the only true patriots; justice was administered by officers who, along with  a training manual, the military felt were competent enough to defend men and women in civilian courts.

Since that time, I have been reassured that much has changed for the better in the military.   But with the recent revelation about the elite web of inappropriate Internet messaging by our military I wonder just how much has changed.

Any one of us can be intoxicated by superficial words and actions or dress.  The military holds no exemption to this, if anything is more susceptible to encouraging an attitude of elitism and privilege.
As an example,  whenever I entered or left the base, I was in a car with the Major's insignia on it.
Each time I came or went,  the guard at the gate came to attention, clicked his heels and gave me a snappy salute. Man, did I feel important and privileged!.