Someone asked in the comments here if I ever felt 'unloved' by the other branches of the service since I was Air Force. There are definite rivalries going on, but for the most part there's also a lot of respect once you get past the lowest ranks.
Of course, there were jokes...
"Lancer 1 to Tower, time check please.""Tower to Lancer 1, branch of service please."
"Lancer 1 to Tower, repeat last. Over."
"Tower to Lancer 1, branch of service please."
"Lancer 1 to Tower, what difference does that make? Over.
"Tower to Lancer 1, if you're Navy, then it's 1500 hours. If you're Air Force, it's 3 o'clock, and if you're Army, then the big hand is on the three and the little hand is on the 12."
I once ticked off a retired Marine when I told him that if God had intended Marines to fly, he would have made them smart enough to join the Air Force.
Actually, the Air Force enlisted do believe they're at the top of the military food chain. Think about it. In the Army, the officers say "There's the enemy, go get him." In the Navy, it's "There's the enemy, let's go get him." But in the Air Force the enlisted ready the aircraft, help strap the officer in, then salute and say "Go get 'em, Sir."
Aim high.
Posted by Ted at March 1, 2004 08:14 AM | TrackBackI heard a good one once:
One reason the Armed Services have trouble operating jointly is that they have very different meanings for the same terms.
The Joint Chiefs once told the Navy to "secure a building," to which they responded by turning off the lights and locking the doors.
The Joint Chiefs then instructed Army personnel to "secure the building," and they occupied the building so no one could enter.
Upon receiving the exact same order, the Marines assaulted the building, captured it, and set up defences with suppressive fire and amphibious assault vehicals, established reconnaissance and communications channels, and prepared for close hand-to-hand combat if the situation arose.
But the Air Force, on the other hand, acted most swiftly on the command, and took out a three-year lease with an option to buy.
LOL Sarah!
And, yep, we Air Force enlistees definately felt like we were at the top of the military branches' food chain; if, for no other reason, we were the ones who said "no" the Army and actually had the military seek us out. That was clue enough! ;)
Wait, I didn't say that right. We were the one's who ssid "no" and actually sought the military out! yeah, that's what I meant...
Posted by: Tuning Spork at March 2, 2004 01:45 AM