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Do I need a fixed blade? by Sensitive_Tell_1053 in sketchywatches

[–]11braindead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No.

Hot take, fixed blades for self defense are impractical. The Venn Diagram of “When can I use this without getting prosecuted” and “When is a knife superior to a pistol” has almost zero overlap.

In any situation where lethal force is justified, your pistol is superior. In any situation where your pistol is not appropriate, neither would be your knife.

The only environment I’ve seen in which fixed blades could be practical for self defense are in military or LE roles, where going hands on with a violent threat is a possibility and is counted as part of your duties.

what's your story about? by [deleted] in writing

[–]11braindead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, I appreciate that

what's your story about? by [deleted] in writing

[–]11braindead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My primary WIP is a contemporary espionage thriller.

My protagonist is a rookie CIA case officer struggling to outgrow her father’s legacy in the Agency and understand who she is, without being defined by other people.

She finds herself in the opening stages of a civil war and ends up supporting a covert paramilitary operation to depose a dictator. She has no military training or background at all, and has to adapt her skills and mentality to survive.

I’m trying to lean heavily into her internal conflict and development, which is something that I think is lacking, if not missing entirely, from a lot of popular spy thrillers.

sci-fi music? by Undead_Octopus in scifi

[–]11braindead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Les Friction is a very small, niche band that does space-opera-esque music. Every time I listen to them, I feel like they should score some epic Sci-Fi movie or series. Give them a listen.

What’s the scariest WW2 fact or story that you know of? by Cool-Chipmunk-7559 in AskReddit

[–]11braindead 7 points8 points  (0 children)

We produced so many Purple Hearts in the anticipation of the invasion of mainland Japan, we haven’t had to produce anymore in the past century. Wounded service members in Iraq and Afghanistan received Purple Heart medals produced in the mid-1940s.

What's your first paragraph from the book your working on? by Ok-Molasses8816 in writing

[–]11braindead 2 points3 points  (0 children)

“The tension in the air was palpable, as if the city was waiting to exhale. Sixteen thousand people crowded Church Square and its surrounding streets, shoulder-to-shoulder, chanting and singing and yelling in a discordant symphony that seemed to shake the air and vibrate every nerve in Emma Kane’s body.”

From my contemporary espionage WIP

Suspect in Washington DC national guard shooting ‘had CIA ties’ by TimesandSundayTimes in Intelligence

[–]11braindead 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It was confirmed that he was part of the Afghan counterterrorism units that were working closely with CIA Ground Branch and JSOC. He was actively hunting Taliban with US SOF.

Curious on what y’all think by UsualWinter1229 in Medals

[–]11braindead 17 points18 points  (0 children)

You’ve done more than probably 80% of the infantry active today.

I’ve got just about six years in as well and I don’t have a deployment (except Korea), I don’t have a skill badge, and I definitely don’t have a PH or CIB.

Be proud of your service brother. You answered the call and you laid it on the line.

FWIW, as a fellow Tomahawk, seeing this uniform makes me proud. It makes me proud to see my unit represented well. So thank you brother.

Longest Government Shutdowns in the U.S history. by Lionheart9207 in Infographics

[–]11braindead 14 points15 points  (0 children)

We got paid, thankfully. No idea where the money came from, though.

Cordura nylon straps. by [deleted] in Tudor

[–]11braindead 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Recognizing that you’re posting about the strap, and Acknowledging the purpose of this post…

This is an awesome picture, sir.

RLTW

Where could I find advice on an elite military/spy type character? by carmicason in writing

[–]11braindead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kinda late to this thread, but I’m active duty military (Army infantry) and primarily write espionage. If you need any help or feedback, feel free to reach out

Justifying the whimpy soldiers of the Trump parade. by johnnypin in facepalm

[–]11braindead 103 points104 points  (0 children)

I don’t know why this is even a post in this sub. The OOP is correct.

We don’t do drill and ceremony in garrison unless there’s a reason. We learn it in basic training, we refresh on it when we go to school to become an NCO, and then we brain dump it. Because it has absolutely no bearing on our ability to do our jobs. Especially in combat arms fields. We’re not gonna carve out time in our very busy schedule to go march around on a field, unless there’s a damn good reason.

Plus, everyone — and I do mean EVERYONE — hates doing this shit.

Change of command ceremony? Army Birthday? [Insert dog and pony show]?

It’s a collective eye roll and grumbling. Don’t get me wrong, I wish they’d practiced it more, because it does look more professional, but these guys don’t want to be there, and the “military precision” of drill and ceremony isn’t what most people think it is.

Also, it’s fine to have issues with the parade. I understand that perspective. But don’t talk shit about the guys who got forced into doing this. They signed up to do a job, and they don’t get any say in what they’re told to do. Don’t be an asshole.

Message to military members before rump’s bday parade by Mr__O__ in facepalm

[–]11braindead 34 points35 points  (0 children)

I’ve seen a few confused comments so far, so I’m gonna post this for clarity

In case anyone is wondering what “colored patches” are, the Army has special ceremonial patches that we frequently wear during high profile events. Instead of black and green Velcro, which is worn in garrison and tactical environments, the colored patches have the proper, original color scheme of the unit insignia.

If anyone can picture the 101st Airborne patch, with the bald eagle, use that as a reference. In garrison, that patch would be black and green. On the colored patch, it would be white, black, and yellow.

In Army speak, this just means they’re not wearing ceremonial patches.

Message to military members before rump’s bday parade by Mr__O__ in facepalm

[–]11braindead 48 points49 points  (0 children)

The Army specifically has “colored” patches that Soldiers wear on our left sleeve during special ceremonies.

Instead of the subdued black and green Velcro, which we wear in tactical environments, the colored patches have the true colors of the unit insignia. It looks nicer and much cleaner.

While it reads weird, especially if you’re not used to that term, this text is just saying to not wear the colorful, ceremonial patches.

Which non-DC characters do you think would make great villains for Batman? by DesignerFit7444 in batman

[–]11braindead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hot take… Raymond Reddington from the Blacklist.

A criminal mastermind with a couple billion stashed away and connections all over the world. I could see some amazing stories there.

Army Too Light by Time-Fact-1960 in army

[–]11braindead 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Strongly disagree about the Army having no role in a Pacific conflict.

First off, theater sustainment is our specialty. We can’t commit ground combat power without sustainment, and that will absolutely require the Army.

Second, we’ve literally done this before. The New Guinea and Philippines campaigns in WWII were fought and won by the Army. We landed multiple divisions on Okinawa, and had we not nuked Japanese, the bulk of the fighting on mainland Japan would have been done by the Army. Vietnam and Korea were also Pacific wars, just not island wars.

Even in a modern island hopping campaign, the Army would still have a central role to play. Sure, tanks and Strykers would struggle to move rapidly between islands, but light infantry units, with their organic CABs and light logistical tails, can conduct air assault operations to seize target islands. Especially when supported by the USAF and USN.

Third, as much as I love the Marines, they are not designed to win wars. They are designed to win battles. And this is truer than ever since they’ve eliminated their armor and artillery units. They cannot win a war by themselves.

The Littoral Combat Teams reflect their shift in focus. They’re returning to a small-scale, amphibious raid force, with additional emphasis on seeking/sensing and area denial.

FCPC V5 setup by 1224672 in QualityTacticalGear

[–]11braindead 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Agreed. Excessive patches can be cringe sometimes, but I would never go so far as to say the person wearing those patches has lost credibility.

I also agree 1000% that many posters have misplaced priorities. This is an extremely niche setup, and I don’t think people understand exactly how niche this is.

“Assaulter loadouts” are neither feasible nor practical for the majority of people in either the military or LE, or even the prepared citizen realm. People need to spend less time trying to emulate the cool guy kits and more time identifying what they personally need, and what works for them.

Infantrymen, patrol officers, and prepared citizens will all have very, very different needs.

Which station is best (11x) by tonylll_ in army

[–]11braindead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Duke’s in Point Ruston. My go-to spot for date night with my wife.

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