The Mess

[Smitty-48]

That's what it was like when I was a private. When I was a private, NCOs could kick a private out of his seat, and the private sat on the floor. NCOs and joes had separate latrines. Joes didn't go into the NCO's office without permission, and as soon as your business was concluded, you left.

Best rank in the Canadian Army is Master Corporal, that's a Corporal who is qualified to Sergeant, can do the job of a Sergeant, but doesn't have to put up with the hassles of being a Sergeant, because is still in the Junior Ranks Mess, when I made Master Corporal, that was the best, king of the dipshits, nobody outranks you in your own realm, going to Sergeant from there was actually like a step down, because when you get promoted to Sergeant, you're right back to the bottom of the totem, out of the JR's Mess, into the Segreant's Mess; out of the frying pan into the fire, under the thumb of the RSM.

[Okeefenokee]

I'm pretty sure we'll read about them doing away with rank all together before long. That's discrimination, man.

[Smitty-48]

Well, can't speak for the US Army, but I was down at the Mess not too long ago, and I can confirm that in the Canadian Army, Sergeants in the Sergeant's Mess, still get treated like Privates, by the Sergeant-Majors.

Any joe jobs that come down the pike, sure as shit the Warrant Officers aint doing it, bet dat.

[Speaker to Animals]

In the 90s, the Canadian NCOs in the RCAF ate the same food as the other enlisted. Their enlisted chow hall was basically like our officer's mess, and our officers said the officer's mess served seafood buffets and steaks.

We drank some beers with an Army NCO at one of the pubs on the base (Canadian's can't just have one). He was very cool. He was demoralized, however, because the Canadian politicians decided the Army was not allowed to wear their uniforms in public for some stupid reason. That really seemed crazy to us, since in America, the only place that happens is in military detention barracks.

[Smitty-48]

Two different types of Messes, eating Mess, drinking Mess, there's not much difference between the eating Messes, but drinking Messes, big difference. When I say Mess, I generally mean the drinking Mess, there's not a lot of poltics going on at the eating Messes, at those Messes, you just eat, you don't actually hang out there.

The only politics going on at the eating Messes back in my day, was with the Airborne Regiment, for your first year in the Airborne, you ate alone, and no one would speak to you, FNG's had to make it for 12 months in the Airborne before they were allowed to eat at the table with the rest of the Paratroopers, and because they were Airborne, they couldn't sit with nor speak to any of the Legs neither.

The air force was like a different world, right at the end of my career I got posted to an air force base at what was to become the Land Advanced Warfare Center, and it was a culture shock, first week I was there, some troops walk right past an officer, nobody is wearing hats, nobody salutes, not indoors mind you, this was outside, totally different vibe on the air force side, took some getting used to.

[Smitty-48]

By the time I got out, privates thought you were supposed to give them your seat under the guise of, "taking care of soldiers." PSG's office had chairs and couches for the soldiers to lounge in. I pointed out some deficiencies in a latrine that hadn't been cleaned well enough. The soldier ran to tell his NCO, who then thought it would be a good idea to say something to me about telling a private he didn't do a good enough job. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Fucking whole place is in a death spiral.

I'm told similar things about the army here, basically the military overreacting to the constant liberal media hysteria about "ZOMG PTSD" like they're all gonna commit suicide if you so much as raise your voice to them, all over the Western World, the military brass are cucking out to protect their careers at any cost.

[Okeefenokee]

By the time I got out, privates thought you were supposed to give them your seat under the guise of, "taking care of soldiers." PSG's office had chairs and couches for the soldiers to lounge in. I pointed out some deficiencies in a latrine that hadn't been cleaned well enough. The soldier ran to tell his NCO, who then thought it would be a good idea to say something to me about telling a private he didn't do a good enough job. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Fucking whole place is in a death spiral.

I'm told similar things about the army here, basically the military overreacting to the constant liberal media hysteria about "ZOMG PTSD" like they're all gonna commit suicide if you so much as raise your voice to them, all over the Western World, the military brass are cucking out to protect their careers at any cost.

We need a good war with heavy casualties to remind these fuckers. They've gone too long with no consequences. Ivan ain't gonna give quarter because you did a good job digging your foxhole. Here's you participation medal.

[Smitty-48]

I think it would require a catastrophic defeat, not on the quiting the failed nation building voluntary withdrawal model, but the unmitigated defeat of an army in the field, to wit, being routed, Dunkirk style.

[Hwen Hoshino]

By the time I got out, privates thought you were supposed to give them your seat under the guise of, "taking care of soldiers." PSG's office had chairs and couches for the soldiers to lounge in. I pointed out some deficiencies in a latrine that hadn't been cleaned well enough. The soldier ran to tell his NCO, who then thought it would be a good idea to say something to me about telling a private he didn't do a good enough job. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Fucking whole place is in a death spiral.

I'm told similar things about the army here, basically the military overreacting to the constant liberal media hysteria about "ZOMG PTSD" like they're all gonna commit suicide if you so much as raise your voice to them, all over the Western World, the military brass are cucking out to protect their careers at any cost.

Which country's media would you say has the right balance on the issue?

[Smitty-48]

By the time I got out, privates thought you were supposed to give them your seat under the guise of, "taking care of soldiers." PSG's office had chairs and couches for the soldiers to lounge in. I pointed out some deficiencies in a latrine that hadn't been cleaned well enough. The soldier ran to tell his NCO, who then thought it would be a good idea to say something to me about telling a private he didn't do a good enough job. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Fucking whole place is in a death spiral.

I'm told similar things about the army here, basically the military overreacting to the constant liberal media hysteria about "ZOMG PTSD" like they're all gonna commit suicide if you so much as raise your voice to them, all over the Western World, the military brass are cucking out to protect their careers at any cost.

Which country's media would you say has the right balance on the issue?

The Canadian media simply parrots the American media, the Canadian media is all run centrally within a few blocks of each other in downtown Toronto, they have no original thoughts, they're like the farm team for the American liberal media, whatever the American liberal media says, the CBC & Co dutifully regurgitates it like trained seals.

In the Canadian media, they're actually bucking for jobs in the US, hoping to be the next Peter Jennings or John Roberts or whatever, they're all basically auditioning all the time, hoping to get picked up by an American network, so they just ape what they see on the US networks.

The American liberal media only has three military stories, all soldiers are either; tragic victims, heroic paragons, or villanous criminals, and it's all warped by this "if it bleeds it leads" falacious paradigm, and the Canadian media in Toronto simply spews out a carbon copy of whatever New York says therein.