I am profoundly moved by the great respect that the American Soldiers and their dependents have for the Korean people. A great example of this takes place at the movie theater or all places. Mike and I go to the movies quite a bit here. The movies are cost-free for us and are reasonably current. Before each movie, the national anthem of the US is played, then the Korean national anthem. Everyone in the theater stands for the US national anthem. They stand for the Korean anthem, too. The reason for the soldiers' standing for the Korean national anthem is their respect. The soldiers stand if the come in after the US anthem, if they enter while the Korean anthem is playing, they stand in place, waiting until the anthem is finished before going to their seats. This is especially impressive because everyone stands even if there are only two or three people in the theater. They stand even though there are no Korean people in the theater. They stand because they respect the people of the Republic of Korea (aka South Korea, ROK and SK). They know that they are here to support the ROK in their desire to be free and remain free.
Respect for Women
I am also impressed by the Army's message of support and respect for women. Throughout the base, there are posters that take a strong stance against date rape and sexual assault. One poster states that sexual assault is incompatible with Army values and Warrior Ethos. Another has I.A.M. Strong where I.A.M. stands for Intervene, Act and Motivate. Some posters are titles "Army Strong". The men and women on the posters are sometimes in uniform and other times in civilian clothes. The message I get when I read the posters is that real men protect. They protect military and civilian women. This reminds me of an article that I read some time ago. I believe it was by James Dobbs from Georgia State University. The article theorized that testosterone influenced aggression, in early days of mankind, was useful in protecting the family. The channeling of aggression into behaviors that were beneficial to society may have been passed down from fathers to sons. Thus, the violence by inner city youth may be partially due to their aggression not being directed, channeled appropriately by their fathers. The fathers are often absent and others never learned how to appropriately express or channel their aggression. Now, back to the Army. They even have a video titled "Band of Brothers and Sisters".
In Korea, the Army also promotes respect for women via their campaign against Human Trafficking and Prostitution, which is linked to Human Trafficking. They educate soldiers about Human Trafficking through posters, full day training twice per year, articles in the US Korea forces newspaper and other avenues.
Support for Families
Army life has its hardships for military spouses and their children. The Army can not alleviate all of the stress. However, the Army provides a lot of support for military families. I'm sure that, at times, military families are frustrated with the Army. It is likely that sometimes the Army's support falls short of what a family needs. I am, however, very impressed with the many support services that the Army does provide to military families.
Final Thoughts on the Army
I am genuinely impressed by the soldiers I have seen in Korea. Frankly, their behavior makes me proud. Seeing the ways the Army is trying to provide support services for military families, promote respect for, and protection of, women, and their campaign against human trafficking and prostitution, made me proud of the Army and glad that my tax dollars were going to an organization like this Army. I am not being naive. I know that the Army, as with any organization, messes up terribly sometimes. I am proud of an Army that is striving for excellence in military preparedness, military operation, military conduct and support for the families that sacrifice so much for their country.
1 comment:
Great post! Looking forward to the next ones!
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