Text 27413, 63 rader
Skriven 2006-04-17 07:54:00 av FRANK SCHEIDT (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av ROBERT COUTURE
Ärende: Canadian "Skills"
=========================
-=> Quoting Robert Couture to Frank Scheidt <=-

 FS|> Perhaps I worded that carelessly.  Put it this way:  We airplane
 FS|> mechanics prepared bombers and cargo planes to fly to Europe
 FS|> where they played a critical role.  We did that eight hours/day,
 FS|> six days/week.  Week-after-week ... thus were *constantly*
 FS|> contributing to victory.

 RC> Only 8 hours a day? :)  I never thought your role unimportant. 
 RC> However, you made it sound that your role was *more* important.  I am
 RC> disagreeing with that. 

That's your right ...

 FS|> The combat troops, when in combat obviously played a critical role.
 FS|> However -- and this is important -- they were in combat only a
 FS|> relatively small fraction of their total military life.  *We* spent
 FS|> *all* of our time contributing.  Got that now?

 RC> Well what about the soldiers that were on the front line and were
 RC> lucky if the managed a hour or two sleep in a day?  I would say that
 RC> was rather hard on them.  (Compared to your eight hour day.)  Of course
 RC> that was not all the time. I understand that.

Of *course* when they were in actual combat they contributed far 
more than we did, on a time basis.  But what fraction of their 
time were they *in* combat?  A very small fraction.

 RC> Personally, I think it balances out rather well when you compare the
 RC> types of duty combast soldiers faced in shorter rotations compared to
 RC> your less dangerous 8 hour shifts six days a week.

You think it all balances out and maybe it does.  However what I 
said was *still* true -- we contributed constantly while they 
contributed sporatically ...
 
 FS|> This is not to denigrate the combat activities of those men.
 FS|> They were far more dangerous than our own but viewed objectively,
 FS|> *we* did more.

 RC> I gather you meant they were in far more danger than you, yes?  I will
 RC> still disagree that you did more.  You did spend a lot more hours at
 RC> it, but in the long run they did more in some senses than you did.

That's your opinion, but it's not mine ... 
 
 FS|> Now do you think you can consider that *objectively* without
 FS|> insulting?  BTW, my own brother was a member of the 101st
 FS|> Airborne from its inception, all through its European activity
 FS|> including the invasion of Normandy.  For that reason I've very
 FS|> familiar with the activities of the combat soldier.

 RC> I am not insulting.  I am mearly objecting that you role was more
 RC> important than the combat soldiers'.

*Only* because they spent such a small portion of their service 
in that mode ...

... Cherchez la fizz:  Look for the Alka Seltzer.

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