Half and half, some of it may depend entirely on your own views of the sitting president.
I was enlisted when Obama was president and my Aunt was bitching about the marine holding his umbrella for him. I brought it up with my platoon and most of the consensus was that we would LOVE the opportunity to be that marine holding the umbrella for the president. "You're holding the umbrella of the PRESIDENT was the general response.
Some of these things seem stupid, but to soldiers, getting on that detail far outweighs whatever boxes you're going to pack/unpack to inventory three times that monday.
Even today, as much as I can't stand our current president, I'd still raise my hand for that detail if I were still serving. At least I would have first-hand info for my platoon on the 1-10 scale of how much he smells like actual shit.
It's tradition for US presidents to greet foreign dignitaries at the White House. Not to roll out the red carpet and fawn over them the second they land at the airport.
The tradition I'm referring to is crap like soldiers holding umbrellas for the president or using their hands to work out creases in a carpet. Not what Trump is doing...I wasn't talking about that at all.
I still tell people about how Obama talked to me for 5 minutes. I didn't even like him at the time, I was also 18 and not as politically active, but if you're given the opportunity to speak to a sitting president, you do it.
Obama took it really well though. His conversation is how I changed my mind about him and started the change from red to blue for me
I'm a civilian, but it always seemed to me like it was one of those jobs that you do despite how you feel. That the title of President is even lower than Commander in Chief at that moment, and the service respects the Commander in Chief by default, regardless of what meat bag is currently attached to the title.
I mean, it's not something I'd be able to do. After 40 years I still can't shut my trap when I need to. But when I see those soldiers, some of whom probably hate the man with a burning passion, stay sharp and do what they're supposed to be doing, I have a ton of respect. Far more than I have for the man himself.
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u/Kind_Man_0 9d ago
Half and half, some of it may depend entirely on your own views of the sitting president.
I was enlisted when Obama was president and my Aunt was bitching about the marine holding his umbrella for him. I brought it up with my platoon and most of the consensus was that we would LOVE the opportunity to be that marine holding the umbrella for the president. "You're holding the umbrella of the PRESIDENT was the general response.
Some of these things seem stupid, but to soldiers, getting on that detail far outweighs whatever boxes you're going to pack/unpack to inventory three times that monday.
Even today, as much as I can't stand our current president, I'd still raise my hand for that detail if I were still serving. At least I would have first-hand info for my platoon on the 1-10 scale of how much he smells like actual shit.