a real job...

in light of recent events..and what civilians think of us...



JOHN GLENN ON THE SENATE FLOOR

Some people still don't understand why military personnel do what they
do for a living. This exchange between Senators John Glenn and Senator
Howard Metzenbaum is worth reading. Not only is it a pretty impressive
impromptu speech, but it's also a good example of one man's explanation
of why men and women in the armed services do what they do for a living.
This is a typical, though sad, example of what some who have never
served think of the military.

Senator Metzenbaum to Senator Glenn: "How can you run for Senate when
you've never held a real job?"

Senator Glenn: "I served 23 years in the United States Marine Corps. I
served through two wars. I flew 149 missions. My plane was hit by
anti-aircraft fire on 12 different occasions. I was in the space
program. It wasn't my checkbook, Howard; it was my life on the line. It
was not a nine-to-five job, where I took time off to take the daily cash
receipts to the bank.

I ask you to go with me . as I went the other day ... to a veteran's
hospital and look at those men -- with their mangled bodies -- in the
eye, and tell THEM they didn't hold a job!

You go with me to the Space Program at NASA and go, as I have gone, to
the widows and orphans of Ed White, Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee ...
and you look those kids in the eye and tell them that their DADS didn't
hold a job.


You go with me on Memorial Day and you stand in Arlington National
Cemetery, where I have more friends buried than I'd like to remember,
and you watch those waving flags. You stand there, and you think about
this nation, and you tell ME that that those people didn't have a job?
I'll tell you, Howard Metzenbaum; you should be on your knees every day
of your life thanking God that there were some men who held REAL jobs.
And they required a dedication to a purpose -- and a love of country and
a dedication to duty -- that was more important than life itself. And
their self-sacrifice is what made this country possible. I HAVE held a
job, Howard! What about you?"

For those who don't remember - During W.W.II, Howard Metzenbaum was an
attorney representing the Communist Party in the USA. Now he is a
Senator! If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you are reading it in
English, thank a Veteran.

[Edited on Nov 18, 2004 by twizz]

Because its always a really good idea to quote a partisan web chain E Mail instead of coming up with something on your own.

Yes, John Glenn said that.

Unfortunately, he said it in 1974 in a Democratic primary debate. This was back when Democrats had some balls and weren't' afraid to throw a few elbows, because you see while glenn did say that, Metzenbaum didn't. Metzenbaum said, days before that "Glenn had never met a payroll. Glenn twisted his words, and jumped up on his soapbox to appeal to conservative voters. it worked.

It was not an impromptu speech, and Metzenbaum was not a communist.

...uh.


and a bit of

my whole point is...if you havent experienced the military..dont comment...as in the case with the marine who shot an iraqi insurgent...but it was caught on film...that it what happens at war..im sick of people bad mouthin the military...

ignorant.

great logic there. only people who do something for a living [and therefore have a vested interest in defending said actions, as well as having displayed a willingness to weild a weapon against others] can criticize it?

so... only people who dump toxic waste in our water supply can criticize people who dump toxic waste in our water supply?

then maybe our military should stop killing people in far off lands.

oh, and hey, i know this is a bit too obvious for you... but aren't you the kind of person who believes our soldiers die to protect our freedoms? well then... wouldn't one of those freedoms be telling our soldiers that we don't want them fighting this war?

reprobate, as much as i love your posts, it saddens me that time and time again you have to exert energy to put people like this in their place. we're up against an army of cut and pasters, and it makes me sick to my stomach.

Why do these things get embellished with every forward?

http://www.snopes.com/quotes/glenn.htm

And it's very interesting, since Metzenbaum was Jewish and supposedly somehow someway affiliated with the American communist party, and he was involved with the Brady Bill, you can imagine some of the things I read on Google just now. You'd think he was the reincanation of Adolf Hitler from the shit that's on the web about him.

[Edited on Nov 17, 2004 by Keith]

well, what a great idea! we'll start a new system in the country: the DON'T COMMENT system!

yeah! that'll be totally awesome, because then noone will ever talk about things they haven't directly experienced. i for instance would be prohibited from talking about war, famine or tourture. you will be prohibited from speaking about education, gay sex and france.

woo hoo.

it gets funnier every time i read it. thanks.

actually, i'm not sure about the gay sex bit. maybe he can talk about that.

Did nakie forward that to you?

if i put on my tinfoil hat, i'd say it was because cutting and pasting requires near zero effort, but refuting such stupidity takes time. they will respond to any rebuttal, no matter how well reasoned, with more ignorance (usually in ALL CAPS). this causes everybody else to put that much more energy into it - trying to convince the unconvincible.

in other words, the internet is sapping energy from the thinkers. this energy is being slurped up by the screen, sent over the interweb, and injected directly into the stupidhead that caused the energy sap in the first place. if they get enough, they can transform into giant space robots.

it's the only explanation, really.

And my whole point is that if you have to lie to make your point, your point fucking sucks.

as much as i agree with you reprobate... what if lying -is- the point?

hit the heartstrings and damn the truth.

does this mean you are gonna become a robot..because it looks to me as if you are the one who has spent the most time on this post...



and maybe you should all stop being so angry...ill tell you what...next time ill ask your permission to post something...that way you wont lose so much sleep over it if you dont agree...

thats a bit extreme dont you think?

i dont know if getting his permission is as important as getting permission from the person who wrote the post before you re-posted it without crediting the author.

Just ask permission before you cut and paste crap you got from an email, and everyone can call it even, hmm?

ok heres the thing...it was something that was shown to me at work...that i asked for a copy of...i didnt catch a chain letter...i didnt paraphrase to suit my needs...i think you can all quit being a bunch of bitches now...

I am unclear on this date - this is when the impromptu speech occured?

Your response to reprobate didn't make it clear - is the quoted date correct or not? If it is, link please. If not, where did it come from?

So... you got a copy of a chain letter someone else got?

i dont know if the date is correct or not...it wasnt found on a link...it was something shown to me at work..and i asked for it to be sent to me..i dont know the source...

and most of all...if the information i posted is incorrect...or something u dont agree with...then say so...there is not point in attacking me...i mean..unless you have nothing better to do with your day than to try to make yourself feel intellectual..or politically "in tuned" with the world...by running your virtual mouth about other people...

Okay. The date you have posted there is wrong. Check the link Keith posted. It's not from 2004, it's from 1974. You might also want to read the context in which the speech was made.

ok...i took the date off...everyone happy?

Replace "impromptu" with "carefully prepared" and maybe then.

thats a bit extreme dont you think?

Seriously though, one of the things about America is that we obey certain rules even during wartime. If a soldier may have violated those rules he's not exempt from god forbid, being talked about by civilians. Of course you need to make some allowances for the situation (like how every so often a cop accidentally shoots some kid who was carrying a toy gun) but that only goes so far.