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March 28, 2024, 08:44:35 AM

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Join the Forces

Started by Shoulders?-Stomach!, May 08, 2021, 10:54:57 AM

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shiftwork2

The only real exposure I had to ex-forces lads was in Kensington Palace, which I worked in one summer.  There's a tradition of ex-military types working as equerries and whatnot, attracted I would say by the emphasis on routine and the live-in nature of the job.  The funny thing is they were matched in number by extraordinarily effete gay fellas and neither contingent appeared to even be aware of the other.

Sebastian Cobb

Another ex-forces bloke I met was the boyfriend of a friend's ex who he was still friends with. An ex-marine and genuinely nice bloke who after leaving the army did tours of 'private security', I got the impression despite being entirely personable, he probably seen and done some pretty terrible things.

Icehaven

Quote from: Butchers Blind on May 08, 2021, 02:47:57 PM
I tell you who are worse than army cunts and that's their fucking wives. Horrible, bigoted, entitled, nasty bitches.

Given my boyfriend's ex was one, I couldn't agree more!

Actually I've never met her. He doesn't speak highly of her, but then he wouldn't would he.

I'm ex-forces. 5 years in the Royal Navy fixing aircraft. I joined because I'd dropped out of uni and didn't have a fucking clue what to do with my life. Aside from a couple of close friends I don't keep in contact with any of my ex shipmates as they're mostly Brexit voting, Joris supporting, nationalistic fuckwits (I have a few on my FB friends list but haven't so much as exchanged a comment under a FB pic with them in the 15 years I've been on there).

Despite having been in the forces, I've never given a penny to any 'sport are troops charities and hate the adulation directed at servicemen by the kind of cunts who like Mark Francois and Farage. Mind you, we could be like the US where you get thanked for your service by people all the time whether you stacked blankets in the stores or killed Osama Bin Laden to death.

badaids

Quote from: Nice Relaxing Poo on May 08, 2021, 06:32:11 PM
I'm ex-forces. 5 years in the Royal Navy fixing aircraft. I joined because I'd dropped out of uni and didn't have a fucking clue what to do with my life. Aside from a couple of close friends I don't keep in contact with any of my ex shipmates as they're mostly Brexit voting, Joris supporting, nationalistic fuckwits (I have a few on my FB friends list but haven't so much as exchanged a comment under a FB pic with them in the 15 years I've been on there).

Despite having been in the forces, I've never given a penny to any 'sport are troops charities and hate the adulation directed at servicemen by the kind of cunts who like Mark Francois and Farage. Mind you, we could be like the US where you get thanked for your service by people all the time whether you stacked blankets in the stores or killed Osama Bin Laden to death.

What aircraft and what trade NLP?

Quote from: badaids on May 08, 2021, 07:51:48 PM
What aircraft and what trade NLP?

Aircraft mechanic on Sea Harriers. I enjoyed my time but never felt like I was going to stay any decent amount of time there. At least the branch of the Navy I was in was the most easy going and civilian-like of them all but after a while the bullshit wears you down.

Glebe


Inspector Norse

Once chatted to a bloke who was actually a sommelier for the Swedish Army (so he claimed, this was several beers into a party). Massive moustache. That's pretty much it for my experience of people in active service.

Sebastian Cobb

Quote from: Inspector Norse on May 08, 2021, 11:44:30 PM
Once chatted to a bloke who was actually a sommelier for the Swedish Army (so he claimed, this was several beers into a party). Massive moustache. That's pretty much it for my experience of people in active service.

Well if it's unnecessary decadence you're after, the last French army-ran mobile brothel closed in 1995.

badaids

Quote from: Nice Relaxing Poo on May 08, 2021, 08:46:12 PM
Aircraft mechanic on Sea Harriers. I enjoyed my time but never felt like I was going to stay any decent amount of time there. At least the branch of the Navy I was in was the most easy going and civilian-like of them all but after a while the bullshit wears you down.

Driven past Yeovilton many times but never been in.  What trade were you?  And where you still in when they got rid of them in 2006?  Oh, and were the Navy Sea Harrier pilots as notoriously arrogant as the RAF ones?

buttgammon

Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on May 09, 2021, 12:05:50 AM
Well if it's unnecessary decadence you're after, the last French army-ran mobile brothel closed in 1995.

And the Foreign Legion had one in Djibouti until 2003!

Quote from: badaids on May 09, 2021, 12:12:33 AM
Driven past Yeovilton many times but never been in.  What trade were you?  And where you still in when they got rid of them in 2006?  Oh, and were the Navy Sea Harrier pilots as notoriously arrogant as the RAF ones?

I was the lowest rank which had no trade per se, just a general dogsbody and flight services. You had to attain the dizzy heights of Leading Hand before they trained you in a specific aircraft trade.

I left in 2001 and yes the pilots were for the most part living their lives as if they were in Top Gun. Something about flying jets brings out the arrogant bellend in people.

badaids

Quote from: Nice Relaxing Poo on May 09, 2021, 09:29:34 AM
I was the lowest rank which had no trade per se, just a general dogsbody and flight services. You had to attain the dizzy heights of Leading Hand before they trained you in a specific aircraft trade.

I left in 2001 and yes the pilots were for the most part living their lives as if they were in Top Gun. Something about flying jets brings out the arrogant bellend in people.

The RAF had a similar system with their aircraft mechanics - minimum amount of training to do the basic servicing at first and train and retain the best of them. Far cry from the days of apprentices when they did like 3 years training out the gate. Amazing aircraft the harrier though.

Quote from: Nice Relaxing Poo on May 09, 2021, 09:29:34 AM
I was the lowest rank which had no trade per se, just a general dogsbody and flight services. You had to attain the dizzy heights of Leading Hand before they trained you in a specific aircraft trade.

I left in 2001 and yes the pilots were for the most part living their lives as if they were in Top Gun. Something about flying jets brings out the arrogant bellend in people.

Did you get to see much of the world?  Thats the only thing that appeals to me about the Navy.

Glebe

A spell in the forces, that's what you lot need!*

*Although some of you have - surprizingly! - actually been in the forces.

Quote from: Mrs Wogans lemon drizzle on May 09, 2021, 10:03:22 AM
Did you get to see much of the world?  Thats the only thing that appeals to me about the Navy.

The travel isn't anywhere near as good as it used to be but I still went all around the Med, the Gulf and the US. If I'd joined a bit earlier, I'd have got the chance to go all through the middle and far east to Australia and NZ.

Zetetic


Icehaven

Quote from: Nice Relaxing Poo on May 09, 2021, 06:07:39 PM
The travel isn't anywhere near as good as it used to be but I still went all around the Med, the Gulf and the US.

Did you get to see much of the countries?

Brian Freeze

An ex wifes friend married a fella who fettled Lynx helichocters, forgotten his rank (think he said it was the highest he could be without being a proper officer?). Anyway, had a weekend of getting pissed with him in the married quarters while they went on a hen do. Bloody hell, I nearly signed up. They'd done a promo video of the larks and all that with a soundtrack of them "messing" about on an aircraft carrier (the one that ran aground off Australia?). Glad I didnt obviously but it were an entertaining video after a few Bloody Marys.

Brian Freeze

Naked mess sounded quite popular (with them, not me) while at sea. Plus an immense quantity of alcohol.

Quote from: icehaven on May 09, 2021, 06:59:44 PM
Did you get to see much of the countries?

When I went to US we flew out there rather than sailed so I got to see a fair bit of Arizona and California and also took a weeks break in Hawaii with was pretty fucking nice I have to say. Most of the other places I visited were ports: Amsterdam, Barcelona, some horrible port in Saudi, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Brest, Bahrain etc. Visited Cairo which I can safely say is one of the biggest shitholes on the planet.


El Unicornio, mang

I've got an acquaintance who goes on about the armed forces life constantly on facebook, always posting those "You don't know the hell I've been threw" memes with a silhouette of a soldier or "when civilians complain about their lives" and a picture of some really inconvenient thing like having to sleep in a forest for two nights eating nothing but cold beans or carrying the weight of a teenager on their back. Its like he did a tour of duty in 'Nam or something when in actual fact he was just did training in a regiment for a year or two when he was in his early 20s.

A friend of mine in the US who served a couple of years in Iraq and suffered severe PTSD to the point that he committed suicide when he was 27 a few years ago always said that the people who go on about the military life a lot are the ones who haven't actually experienced how awful the whole thing is.

bgmnts

My great grancha was torpedoed in the second world war and he would never ever talk about it.

I cant imagine genuine horror is something you'd ever relish in reliving or discussing.

Kankurette

It is quite telling how people who glorify war the most have rarely had to live through one.

I have an American friend who's a vet - she's a lawyer now, housing and stuff - and she hates being called a hero.

The extent of my knowledge of people in the army is the kid who sat behind me in GCSE History, who wants to be a pilot. Never considered joining, apart from Peter's Mad Thoughts style 'What if I fucked off to Iraq?' SpiderChrist mentioned that apparently they used to recruit at schools, which isn't something I've seen during my time so I assume they might've changed it. That or they have our school down on the big strategy map as 'Weak Cunts'.

H-O-W-L

I can't understand what makes a man hate another man help me understand

EOLAN

Do the Poppy Campaign and Help for Heroes use their considerable positive public image to lobby the government to ensure essential post-service support for veterans; or are they happy to just continue with their charitable status?

earl_sleek

I work in a hostel for veterans and the British Legion does a lot for ex service people who are in bad situations. I don't think I've ever heard HFH mentioned here.

Jerzy Bondov

It is a disgrace that anyone in this country has so few prospects that the idea of getting in army seems like the best career move they can make. It's also a disgrace that we are happy to send them off and get limbs all blown off body and head gone mental and then when they come back we're like here's a couple of quid I got doing a fun run for you big man, your so brave. Everything about it is fucked up.

Some bloke in town, back before it was a criminal offence to have a laugh with your mates, came up to us and started going on about how he'd been in wars and seen horrible shit and that he had a knife on him. I was fully convinced I was going to die by his hand. Went in pub and goth bar girl said not you again, fuck off out of it, off he went. Mad bugger. Look if you're going to be in army and see horrible shit please don't take it out on me okay. It wasn't my idea.

Zetetic

Quote from: Jerzy Bondov on May 10, 2021, 09:42:25 PM
Look if you're going to be in army and see horrible shit please don't take it out on me okay. It wasn't my idea.
Democracy though, isn't it? Done in your name.