Much as I hate to prevent conflict ... JoeyBike, doesn't mean it is silly to be a soldier. He was calling me "silly." He is merely saying he would not want to be a soldier.
I have great respect for vets, but like, JoeyBike, I opted not to enlist. Too tough a path for me.
He also ignores that in most wars, most casualties are civilians. Whatever.
In one post in one thread quite a while ago he claimed that biking in New Orleans was like being in a war zone. A lot of people took exception because the comparison was so overblown. it was just a passing comment but a lot of us latched onto it as a sign that JoeyBike was getting too deep into exaggeration and self-pity and ridiculousness (he has a long history of excellent, informative, well-reasoned posts prior to that---and several since.)
He meant no disrespect to people who have chosen or been called to serve. Or ... well, he can say so for himself, if I am wrong. But I do not want any misunderstandings here.