[Loser]

I disagree with you, Atrocities. What Puke said was not only funny, but carries some truth to it.

I was going to go into more detail about my feeling for GIs, but it isn't coming out well. Actually, on proof it looks like I've tried again... this could lose me a pip or two...

It suffices to say that I live in a 'military town' with five separate bases including NORAD, which was mentioned earlier in the thread.

I see a lot of the enlisted kids, and they tend to be trouble. I'll be as friendly and humane to a stranger in the service as I would be to any other stranger, and some of these kids are decent company with a few really good people mixed in. But I'd rather they didn't date my female friends, the female friends of my friends, or any friend's sister. It consistently works out poorly.

I see a lot of retired military, and they are consistently good people, especially the marines. They make for good conversations and, when appropriate, tend to tip pretty well. I do wish we didn't have so many 'wash outs' around town (quite different than retirees), but if it wasn't them filling in the local can't-hold-down-a-job-caught-in-a-storm-of-self-destruction positions I suppose it would just be someone else.

I hear a lot about the decision-making process in the military, both from those in the service, those who have been in the service, and through the thousands of defense contractors around town, and Puke's description of their apparent intelligence is only slightly exaggerated.

Now, I have the highest respect for the Military and the men and women serving our country in such a matter. They are working in a way that benefits my own life in very real ways. But Puke's joke, which was funny, makes light of problems that some of us see on an almost day-to-day basis. Really, they put the corporate world to shame when it comes to clumsy decisions and Puke's explanation is as good as any, and made for a nice tie-back into the whole cockroach-thing.

Shang is .. I reread the thread during a proofread and it looks like Shang's issue is resolved. Cool, man.

I hear more complaints like those Puke is describing from military personnel than I hear from anywhere else. It's a common joke, not any blasphemy on Puke's part. On top of that Puke has done a good job of making clear not only his harmless intentions, but the close-to-home source of the joke.

Of course, it's also possible that you are referring to a post Puke made that has been removed. I'm talking about the ones I can see now.