I disagree with Rachel tonite on the issue of a ticker parade for Iraq Vets

[Leopolds Ghost]

130. I am just getting tired of reading posts from family of Marines talking about how the rest of us are

Somehow less than a man because we have not volunteered to serve in combat and have not experienced the horrors of war or PTSD.

Have they ever considered that it might be more honorable not to serve? At least in my politics and upbringing (religious or otherwise)...*

Put it another way, it is honorable to put ones life on the line in defense of another man, is it honorable to engage in nonviolence?

That does not mean it is not more of a sacrifice to, well, sacrifice their life or health in the line of duty. But is people who have sacrificed more honorable than those who have not served?

Or maybe I AM fucked up. Maybe the whole concept of honor basically implies that I have risked my life for someone, which is usually only possible in combat and certainly can't be sought out otherwise. If so then I AM less of an honorable person than my friends and family who were in the military. That's what I was getting at.

(if serving means in support of combat. Not sure if I need that qualifier though, this is really a cultural issue that folks who come from other backgrounds that regard pacifism with hostility won't agree with)