I am 68. As I “look back,” I am amazed that I made it to 68, being so “wrong” about everything in Life. Kinda surprised I’m not incarcerated somewhere, and I know I am probably going to Hell for it all. Oh well… Let me give you a few examples here.
Child Rearing: How many times did I toss my kids in the back of my pick-up truck, and just let them “rattle around” back there as we traveled about? And to make it even more challenging, for 2 years we were In Australia where I drove on the other side of the road! Today, that’s just WRONG!
And then I taught my daughter how to ride a bike – her without any of the mandated protective clothing required today. No helmet, no elbow or knee guards, no padded gloves – and look at the clothing she is wearing. Child Services would ahve a field day with this one!
Just how WRONG is this?
And then there are the countless times I left the kids in the car as I went into the Post Office or grocery store. Of course I didn’t lock them in the car with the windows up – in 100-degree weather – that’s stupid! But I did leave them when I went 30 feet up to the Post Office to drop off a letter… going to Hell for sure!
Pilot Training: When I was in pilot training (1970 – ’71) a student was placed on “Marginal Student Status” when he (sorry, no ‘she’s’ at the time) began experiencing problems. Well a few of the students became “offended” with the term so ATC capitulated – they renamed the status to “Special Monitoring Status.” Swell…
Then “they” went after “Plowbacks.” ‘Plowbacks’ were students who received instructor pilot assignments upon graduation. The “appeasement” resulted in “FAIPs” – First Assignment Instructor Pilots.” Ahhhh…. I think I would rather have been a “Plowback” than a Fu*kin’ FAIP (as was often heard about these guys! LOL)….
As a T-38 IP (Instructor Pilot): How many times did I pass a kid when there was a clear “clean kill” presented during flight? (A “clean kill” in this context means that the kid committed a “fatal error” during the flight profile, a mistake that could have/should have warranted a failing of the ride.) But who was going to tell? Not me; and not the kid, for sure! I got a lot of “instructing” done during instances like this, but had it been discovered, I would have been WRONG, and decertified as an IP! Little difference does it make that 3 of the guys, just off the top of my head, went on to be squadron commanders themselves. Had I “smoked them,” per the direction of the day, and most certainly that of today, who knows the directions their careers would have taken…
I could go on and on here, but I think you get the idea. The latest thing I saw is a ‘movement’ to change the name of us, those of us who grew up as ‘Military Brats,’ to ‘Champs’ – Child Heroes Attached to Military Personnel. The rationale stated is,
“The Finks originally named the book “The Little Brats,” based on the age-old term “military brats” for children who grew up in military families. However, the title did not go over well with some military organizations with which the authors hoped to collaborate.” (Jennifer Fink and her mother Debbie wrote the book…)
So, something else I have learned now in my “senior years” – I have been WRONG about being a Military Brat, something I have taken great pride in. Well Folks, you can hammer me about being WRONG about just damn-near everything else but here is where I draw the line – and it’s not one of those artificial lines that our president has been drawing of late! I will not acquiesces to being a CHAMP! That just makes my skin crawl… Nope, I’m a BRAT! And I know there are several of you out there that can attest to this, with absolutely no reservation at all!