Thanks Heeed!, Cdreed for backing me up.
Haujun,
It's like I said before in my first posting, if you graduated from HPSP or USU and are unhappy with the military and you STILL stayed in to retire . . . "And the Stupid Shall Be Punished".
If for one have worked in civilian medicine for the past 9 years while still working in the military on Active Duty as an ER Trauma Nurse.
I've seen doctors come and go. I've also met doctors that were unhappy and happy.
You said: "I spent 4 years in military service and I encountered many military docs who are very unhappy about their times in the military. Just because someone choose to retire doesn't mean he or she was patriotic or happy"
I though have YET to meet a doctor that stayed in the Navy because he/she felt they were FORCED to retire. And if I did meet one and they told me they weren't happy but were going to stay in anyway just to retire, I'd tell them to their face that they were not making the right decision.
You said: "Too many times patriotic comments are made by idealistic people who never truly experienced a difficult time in the military"
I've spent 10 years in, I have experienced the military in it's best and ugliest form. I've experienced it at Sea, in the desert, overseas, in the cold, under fire, . . . am I still idealistic and patriotic? You bet I am! I probably wouldn't be as patriotic and idealistic if it weren't for those experiences.
You said: "If you can stay satisfied about missing births of your children for the third time because you had to follow senseless deployment order then you are military person. If you can follow and excute the really bad orders (you despise) from your commanding officer who never set a foot in the medical school then you are a military person. If you are happy about being pay equally to others who are just going thru motion then you are military person. I met countless regular military officers who were unhappy about leading and babysitting immature, uneducated, unmotivated young troops into the field training exercise. "
Though I cannot speak for all the Navy docs in the world, I can speak for many that I know personally. They make those same sacrifices you mention PROUDLY and because they know they are serving the greater good. They are part of something greater than themselves. That's not to say that missing the birth of their child is to be taken lightly. It's not. It never is. Are military physicians happy about following and executing "the really bad orders"? Of course not. But do they do it because it serves a greater purpose? Of course! Are military physicians happy about being paid equally to others who are just going through the motions? Does it matter? Most Military Docs that I know don't care about how others perform, they care about how THEY serve their patients. The compensation in the military is fair and allows for a comfortable life style. NO ONE joins to get rich. Are military physicians happy about leading and babysitting immature and uneducated, unmotivated your troops into battle? YES. Why you ask? THAT MY FRIEND, is the burden and challenge of LEADERSHIP. Too many times have I faced that exact scenario, and each time I endeavor to motivate them, educate them, and mature them through my own personal experiences, why? Because it's my job as an Officer.
You said: "And the irony is that he is "serving' because he cannot adjust to the civilain life. Sadly this is the case for many military people.'
If that's truly the case, your friend is in a truly hard situation indeed. That story is sad not because of the military, but because your friend is socially inept. There is not many, and I personally know HUNDREDS of military physicians, that are "serving because they can't adjust to civilian life". So it is NOT the case for many military physicians.
You said: "I remember as my former non-commisioned officer told me, "You are paid for losing many of your basic rights as U.S. citizens."
Blind patriotism cannot cure solve problems in the military. Acceptance will."
Your NONCOM gave you wrong advice. You're not paid to give up your rights. You have more rights in the military than as a civilian. Do you give up some rights? Yes. Do people do so with their eyes wide open? They should, if not, like I said the "stupid shall be punished". Besides we all know that the military is not a place to practice DEMOCRACY, we're here to PRESERVE it. But I don't know of many physicians that would say the military took my rights away. Just read the UCMJ alone, it has more rights for the service member written in there, than ANY OTHER judicial system in the U.S.
Blind patriotism will never cure anything. I'm not blind. I see everything for what it is, and what I can make it. Do I accept it? Absolutely! It's better than anything I've seen so far.
I'm not ragging on you, I'm just going back to your original premise: That most military docs are disgruntled, eager to retire, and have to prostitute themselves while they were in the military. And that HPSP and USUHS students had to become patriotic and selfless to "SUCK IT UP" when they were FORCED to serve.
Your premise just doesn't fly when you talk to any significan't number of Army, AF, Navy docs.
I agree with Heeed!, I think you've talked to a small percentage of military docs that had an axe to grind. Misery loves company! Remember, there are THREE sides to EVERY story. Yours, Mine and the TRUTH.
That balance is the truth that you should be seeking.
JT
Happy Holidays everone!!
