General Discussion

officer or enlisted.

Sometimes the kids would repeat things heard at school and my father would give a lecture about it.

The Air Force is a big wheel with thousands of cogs which keep it running.
If any of the cogs can't function because they are badly treated the entire damn wheel doesn't turn the way it should.

He also said when you are in combat it doesn't matter who has your back and saves your life.
Every one counts.

People flying combat don't have to worry about their families, the commissary workers keep their families fed.
The teachers educate their children. The base commander keeps the base running, etc.

My Dad would have liked your style and agreed with you!

The AF mechanics in WWII for example were magicians. I recently ran into a man whose father was a
mechanic in WWII in the Burma Hump theater, where my Dad was a young tail gunner at the same time!

I asked this man how in the world did the mechanics find parts out in the middle of nowhere to keep the planes flying.
He said the guys made some of the parts the best they could. And anytime they heard of a plane going down,
ours or the enemy, they took long jeep rides and took every part they could scrounge. Their sole mission in life
was to keep America's planes in the air and by god they did.

I also am in awe of the stories I read a out the USMC and Army NCOs who are out in the field, leading troops in horrific battle conditions who are born leaders, so smart, brave, clever.

Russia and China keep trying to replicate American NCO system and just cannot do it.
No one seems to be able to do it.

As I said as kids on small remote working Air Force bases overseas we loved the young airmen who were so kind to us.
I know there were airman risking their lives in combat conditions, but we had the ones who would try to make our lives a bit better because conditions were not always great for us. We had no American TV except a few hours of US news
but they would broadcast some kid's programs for us.

And when we were on lockdown due to typhoons hitting the island they would play I love Lucy
and the like all day and all night for us on the base TV station. In this kind of dangerous situation
the men all had to fly the airplanes and themselves to a safe location and left the woman and children behind.
Ha, the men and airplanes were worth a lot of money, we weren't. Anyway our mothers played cards and drank Typhoon punch and the kids stayed up all night watching the TV shows the airmen scrounged up for us somehow! We were so happy.

Whenever I happen to see a one or two stripe airman even today I want to hug him!