Posted on Feb 23, 2018
Does rank play a part in how you view individuals after you have left the service?
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Whether it be on social media or in person at the local Veteran Service Organization (VSO), does the rank that you left the service with and the ranks that other veterans left the service with play into how you view, associate with, or speak to other veterans? The highest rank that I ever had was Sergeant and I still find that I address those that I know were officers as "sir" or "ma'am". (I also address all generations of older veterans as "sir" or "ma'am".) I still hold a certain level of respect for all those who attained a rank higher than I did, but I do speak to them as if we could have been old friends. I consider us all on almost a completely even field after leaving the service. Does anyone believe any different?
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Posted 7 y ago
Responses: 113
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No. I like to view everyone as a human being, get to know them for who they are as a person and not by some position they held years ago.
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MCPO (Join to see)
A retired Marine CSM told me, "My name is Jim. 'James' if you're pissed at me. Sergeant Major is just a rank - and Used-to-bees don't make no honey."
When someone tries to call me by rate (rank), I correct them. My title now is "Dude." My wife has dibs on calling me, "Asshole." ;)
When someone tries to call me by rate (rank), I correct them. My title now is "Dude." My wife has dibs on calling me, "Asshole." ;)
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The only time the thought of rank enters my mind is if the conversation is steered in such a way as to relate to their service; for instance, if someone was to speak as an authority on the internal operations of a squadron's front office (CO/XO/Senior E) or how flawed the evaluations system is, but the highest rank/rate they achieved was E-3 (no contact with CO/XO, never wrote an evaluation), I'd be unlikely to put much stock in their stance on that one particular subject. Same goes for the career officers who never directly led junior Es when they try to speak with authority on the door-kicker E-3s out there. Otherwise, they're just people like everybody else. Hell, they're probably smarter than those of us who stay in and embrace the suck every day - they got out and enjoyed their lives, after all.
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SN Greg Wright
I take your point, LT, but that's not black and white. I got out as an E-3, but I would comfortably (and competently) put myself up against any Naval officer when it comes to driving ships. And I don't mean turning the helm. I mean ship-handling, rules of the road, navigation...all of it. <-- That's what I would have said a year ago. After this last year has blown holes wide open on the shortfalls the Navy has created in bridge crew training, I wouldn't be too uncomfortable saying that I can do it better than most in the current climate. This is only because, of course, I continued on at sea after getting out. Point is, learning doesn't stop when you get out. (Potentially sounds condescending in text, I don't mean it that way at all.)
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