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JohnnyW

I don't believe that a dishonorable discharge is warrant for drug charges, but the soldier should be discharged. The military is not a party or social gathering. It is about discipline and honor. And stoners like yourselves do not the meaning of these two words!

 

Niteshift

While I agree with you that the military isn't a party or social gathering, I can't sit a listen to you stereotype everyone as a stoner that doesn;t know the meaning of the words honor and discipline ether.

There are plenty of people on here who have served honorably in the military. Others, while supporting mj legalization, have conceeded that the military is different and that while in it, a person has to follow the rules.

Stereotyping is just the wrong thing to do.

__________________
A burning desire for social justice is never a substitute for knowing what you're talking about. -Thomas Sowell

Sometimes the light at the end of the tunnel is muzzle flash.

Sticky Fingers

I smoke pot. I grow pot. I also have served for 11 years in the Army and have served overseas in Iraq, and before that, Afghanistan, and before that, Kosovo, and before that, Bosnia. In my most recent deployment, my Brigade captured Saddam. I have my Combat Infantryman's Badge, Expert Infantryman’s badge, Master Parachute Badge, Pathfinder Badge, French Commando Badge, as well as all the pretty ribbons that go along with my deployments, NCOES, etc. I represent my unit every year for the Special Olympics, and volunteer at the local school my unit sponsors. How exactly does my "stoner" lifestyle make me less patriotic? How does it diminish my honor, or sense of duty? You throw out a blanket insult in a naive manner, where you can't even write a couple of sentences without making a mistake. If I were to make a generalization that you are stupid, would that be correct? Of course not, but by your logic, it would be. The life we live in the military is one of service, duty, and an ethos of mission, yes, but at the end of the day, we are just like everyone else. After work we sit and watch movies, play with our kids, and cook on the grill. Some even smoke pot. My occasional use of marijuana should not open me up to a punishment that far exceeds that of the average American. My use of pot does nothing to diminish neither my knowledge of, nor my internal sense of duty, discipline, or honor.

wanaman

I agree! I to am a veteran and I have also always been a smoker, however you said it yourself after the day is over. I can't believe that you never became forgetful or absent minded or complacient after catching a good buzz. How would you feel if you were in a situation and you were being covered or you were depending on someone to back you up and you turn around in that time of need and saw your backup staring off into the distance not paying attention to what is really important. Yes I think that if they find you under the influence during action you should be dishonerably discharged, however if after you return home and they do a pre seperation physical and find it I think no dishonerable discharge. After all even though you and I partake we both know it is illegal and in the military their are rules uCMJ that must be followed with no leway. The structure must be maintained or it would gradually breakdown.

__________________
Wanaman

Pufnstuf

I served 377 days in SE Asia in 1971 and 1972. I was involved in capture and SLAM missions. I have seen combat. I have seen people die. I have killed people. And when I got back to base I got high. We all did. That was the only way you could sleep at night and keep from shaking.

Would I want somone on patrol high? The answer is no. Do I care if he smokes on his own time. No. Were we ever or could we have been attacked while high? Yes. Is this bad? I don't know....have you ever seen a soilder who has not had any sleep for 10 days? I have and I don't want him anywhere near me. Give me the guy who just smoked a joint over anyone with sleep deprivation every time. In combat your body is so fukced up from sensory overload you don't know which way is up. When you go out on a patrol your adreniline rush is so high that smoking a joint will have little if any effect. However, with that being said, prior to any mission we refrained from drinking or smoking.....one small slip and everybody dies.

I would like to point out that I worked extensively with the Civilian Irregular Defense Group. This was a special forces unit made up of indigenous people and they were fukced up on one thing or another all the time.....yet in the jungle they were as stealthy as cats.

Now to answer your question, should a soldier be discharged for drugs after testing positive and then being sent into combat? I don't agree with them........anything other than an honorable discharge causes you to lose all your benefits and could hinder you in civilian life. Pretty severe after fighting for your rights to freedom, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Give them an honorable discharge and let them get on with their lives.


And last but not least: To JohnnyW and your smartass remark :


"The military is not a party or social gathering. It is about discipline and honor. And stoners like yourselves do not the meaning of these two words!"


Don't ever question my honor or disipline. I have smoked for over 35yrs and I have enough disipline to proof read my posts so as not to make obvious grammatical errors.

Lt. Puf
SOG-OP35
Cambodia/Laos/Vietnam

__________________
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.......HST

 

teg21

I definitely do not think these guys need to be dishonorably discharged, discharged yes but not dishonorable.

How did they dishonor the military?

I don't think drug use while in combat is the best idea since there is no real "down time" where you can trail off. I haven't been in the military and definitely never will be but this is how I picture it.

If someone wants to go and murder and possibly die for this country I don't care what they do in their free time better them than me going to combat.

I thinks its hilarious that a draft dodging pot smoker could become president, a coke head/alcoholic can become president, and a crack head/cokehead (cought on tape while in office) can become mayor of the capital of our nation but a person serving their country and smoking pot is dishonorably discharged. Long live the hypocrisy

Niteshift

How did they dishonor the military?

Discharges, honorable/dishonorable, reflect your service, not the military's reputation.

Getting a dishonorable discharge is characterizing your individual service as dishonorable.

JTP

Well, I definatley dissagree with your past actions. I find it irresponsable and dangerous that you were regularily smoking under the conditions you claim. I do not support MJ use under combat conditions or while deployed. I am damn glad my Lts. never smoked while "on the job". Combat is dangerous and stressfull enough with the further dangers of getting stoned. I would probably introduce the concept of a "blanket party" to anyone who endangered me like you endangered your men.

Niteshift

I would agree JTP.

I'd also take specific exception to this statement: We all did. That was the only way you could sleep at night and keep from shaking.

I doubt that EVERYONE did, but it's IS possible, so I'll let it stand. But to say that was the only way you could sleep and keep from shaking is wrong. It was not the only way. Many others were in your particular situation at the same time and managed without smoking pot.

And many others were in worse situations, for longer, and managed without smoking pot.

If you smoked pot, then you smoked pot. But please don't use some excuse about how "necessary" it was to justify it.

Unreg_666

Anyone against pot use in such situations has obviously never smoked it.