"It is well that war is so terrible...

...lest we become to fond of it"

I admit I have been less than vigilant in blogging lately, which had upset at least my single reader, River. Honestly I haven't had much to say. It's not often I have writers block, and honestly I haven't since I have been noveling still, I just haven't had much to say about my own life. It's funny that every once in a while the hardest thing to write about is yourself. You'd think that since you have you, you know, live as yourself every day it would be a lot easier to say things, but sometimes it really isn't.

The quote I used for the beginning of this blog is one by Robert E. Lee actually (who I think we might be related to on my mom's mom's side, there's quite a few Virginia Lees there but I digress) and it comes from the last lab I had for TAing today. The professor's Marine friend came to speak to the class, and I've found that of the Marines I have met (being two, not a great sample I know, but of them) when discussing their beliefs have a tendency to be very abrasive. I don't know if it just comes from the nature of the military, but it's like they all insist they aren't idiots, which I'm sure they aren't, but don't know how to put forth an idea in a polite setting. I suppose it's one of those things where you sort of need to feel like people are out to attack you if you want to go out and learn to shoot people. It's a very black and white occupation. There's the good guys and the bad guys and you're alive or dead. There's not a whole lot of time to spend contemplating philosophy and psychology. Personally I think that's not a great way to live and hinders their social development. When you're used to being drilled into, you don't know how to act without acting like you need to attack or be attacked. It's actually an interesting study I would think, how the military psychologically effects people. I mean I know you have to hard people up if you're training them to kill people and possibly be killed, but it really doesn't seem conducive to a well made sociable person.
-Lia