Firemen Don't Talk About Whether A Burning

Right Now, America Doesn't Ask Us To Do Anything Besides Pay Taxes. We Don't Even Have To Vote. But As Psychologists Will Tell You, When You Have To Sacrifice For Something, You Value It More. What About National Service For Young People? Everybody Between 18 And 24 Could Spend A Year Or Two Working For This Country In Some Capacity. It'd Be An Amazing Thing. And It Would Mix This Country Racially, Culturally, Economically.

During The Air War Of 1944, A Four-man Combat Crew On A B-17 Bomber Took A Vow To Never Abandon One Another No Matter How Desperate The Situation. The Aircraft Was Hit By Flak During A Mission And Went Into A Terminal Dive, And The Pilot Ordered Everyone To Bail Out. The Top Turret Gunner Obeyed The Order, But The Ball Turret Gunner Discovered That A Piece Of Flak Had Jammed His Turret And He Could Not Get Out. The Other Three Men In His Pact Could Have Bailed Out With The Parachutes, But They Stayed With Him Until The Plan Hit The Ground And Exploded. They All Died.

Each Javelin Round Costs $80,000, And The Idea That It's Fired By A Guy Who Doesn't Make That In A Year At A Guy Who Doesn't Make That In A Lifetime Is Somehow So Outrageous It Almost Makes The War Seem Winnable.

In My Eyes Marlantes Has Become The Pre-eminent Literary Voice On War Of Our Generation. He Is A Natural Storyteller And A Deeply Profound Thinker Who Not Only Illuminates War For Civilians, But Also Offers A Kind Of Spiritual Guidance To Vets Themselves. As This Generation Of Warriors Comes Home, They Will Be Enormously Helped By What Marlantes Has Written. I’m Sure He Will Literally Save Lives.

If Hardship Brought Out The Worst In People, The Human Race Wouldn't Have Survived. Right After 9/11, For Instance, The Murder Rate Actually Went Down In New York City. In World War Ii During The Blitz, The Civilians Of London Were Bombed Almost Every Night For Six Months, But Psychiatric Admissions Declined.