Not specific enough. Again, branch, gender, nation...

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

GAP, there is a joke "What do you call the guy last in his class at medical school? Doctor". Many military docs are very well qualified and to great things. However in the US there is a Feres Doctrine: servicemembers can't sue the military. So there are idiot doctors, doctors working on The Peter Principle and some docs Reassigned to Antarctica (garrison and training units) so that they won't hurt front line units.

There is sick call, at 0600, most servicemembers go to the unit aid station (or sickbay on a ship) and get checked out by a medic (or corpsman). After a go or no-go assessment, they either are sent to work with meds, given a temporary profile or quarters (24 to 48 hours).

For dependents, it's a mixed bag. Sure they have to wait in line with everyone else on base, but there are few fees. Most drugs are covered by TRICARE. If a condition needs special treatment or they fill out the proper forms, they can be referred to a civilian hospital off base. They have to pay for their own transportation however.

I've seen docs and medics who could cure a rainy day. And docs who have a room temp IQ. Medics who can't find a vein to save their lives, physician assistants are the worst, a lot try to act like doctors, but they are way over their heads. Nurses tend to be tough as nails, because many have been downrange. It's not uncommon to see nurses outrank doctors due to time in service.

edited 12th Jul '14 2:18:03 PM by TairaMai

All night at the computer, cuz people ain't that great. I keep to myself so I won't be on The First 48

E Battery 2-43 ADA in OIF I:

All night at the computer, cuz people ain't that great. I keep to myself so I won't be on The First 48

Wow, I guess really need to be more specific. How is a life in United States Army different from civilian life? What do men and women in the Army do as far jobs and lifestyle in the U.S. Army?

"We are just like Irregular Data. And that applies to you too, Ri CO. And as for you, Player... your job is to correct Irregular Data."

Which bit of the Army?

Oh really when?

The Offical Homepage of the Army

National Guard's webpage

lead propaganda and recruitment site of the Army

"Psssh. Even if you could catch a miracle on a picture any person would probably delete it to make space for more porn." - Aszur

tl;dr - Armchair Military, Obstructive Bureaucrats and Soldiers at the Rear tend to crowd out the veterans. Over at This Ain't Hell Jonn Lilyea writes about some of the sillyness. That tattoo policy that came out of left field, that the Sergeant Major of the Army has time to opine on what boots we're allowed to wear, instead of say, the many current world crises.

All night at the computer, cuz people ain't that great. I keep to myself so I won't be on The First 48

I had no idea that where branches within branches of the Army yet alone the Military. I guess I was a little too vague or general, I honestly didn't know that they were branches within branches in the military.

"We are just like Irregular Data. And that applies to you too, Ri CO. And as for you, Player... your job is to correct Irregular Data."

Yep, lots of specialties and subcultures. In the Air Force, for example, you have the fliers (AKA "The Zipper-Suited Sun Gods") as opposed to ground crew (the guys who wear camo uniforms), and even within that you have fighter pilots, bomber pilots, etc. with their own cliques and cultures (and conflicting politics, look up "The Fighter Mafia" and "The Bomber Mafia").

For the ground crew guys, you have the various career specialties. Maintainers, Civil Engineers, Force Support (AKA "Services"), Security Forces, Medical, etc. Various cliques to be found within and inbetween all of the aforementioned categories.

The Soldiers at the Rear: cooks, mechanics, supply, admin et al. all fall under different branches yet serve in infantry, artillery, air defense and other combat units. It's not uncommon for a mechanic with several tours under his belt to be transferred to a more laid back air defense unit or even a support unit.

And then there are those who change jobs. Each MOS (army job) has what are called in/out calls. If a job needs people it's "in", an excess then it's "out". "Balanced" if it is full. Some change because they lost a security clearance or they have successfully applied for one. Others are injured and need to change jobs. Some do it because promotion points are lower, others to get the duty station they want. Some jobs like Special Forces accept new recruits and active duty, while those like MOS 12P (prime power) only accept active duty who apply for the training.

All night at the computer, cuz people ain't that great. I keep to myself so I won't be on The First 48

And as things move along since bureaucracy loves itself a good war, more and more of warfare will be automated and there will be more need for auxiliary and support roles.

As such, the push for younger women to register with Selective Service is gaining steam.

"I'd like to be a tree." - Fluttershy

Wow, I guess life really isn't all that different save for a ton of things.

"We are just like Irregular Data. And that applies to you too, Ri CO. And as for you, Player... your job is to correct Irregular Data."

The military has a different enough life that soldiers need to be trained how to survive in civilian life. Some never make the transfer.

edited 12th Jul '14 11:17:48 PM by Greenmantle

Keep Rolling On

And there are subdivisions within maintainers. You got the knuckle-draggers that fix the planes, the load toads that play with crayons when they're not getting yelled at for mishandling our bombs, guys who fix trucks, oxygen thieves that spend their days making sure the hammers still work (no really), and then you've got AMMO. We get to play with the bombs and decide whether or not the zipper-suited sun gods get to pretend they're cool or if they're delegated to being glorified airline pilots that day.

Hey, at least it's not as bad as the brain donors who spend their time putting stickers on envelopes...

edited 13th Jul '14 12:34:01 AM by desdendelle

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

My favorite thing about maintainers is when they start going on about "Nonners" (Non-Maintainers), which is basically Soldiers at the Rear complaining about Soldiers at the Rear.

Oh, you mean the squadron commanders?

No, those guys sometimes do stuff. I mean people whose actual job is putting stickers on envelopes. Nothing more.

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

Let me introduce you to a word you might like... "numpty". It's not just a Scots word. You can find it in Geordie, too. I'm not responsible for any lines you might draw to connect it with "Humpty Dumpty"...

You're welcome.

edited 13th Jul '14 1:11:03 AM by Euodiachloris

ha

Then you have the most important part of the maintainers life. The idiots who somehow manage to break things in new and creative ways.

edited 13th Jul '14 1:17:37 AM by TuefelHundenIV

Who watches the watchmen?

I was making a joke about squadron commanders (and by extension most officers) being useless.

Coming soon, Fury, wherein Brad Pitt and Shia LaBouef cut about in an M4A3. Apparently it will feature the only remaining running Tiger, so that's cool. Not sure about the cast, though.

EDIT: Nevermind, already been posted. Goldfish moment.

edited 13th Jul '14 4:21:33 AM by Achaemenid

Schild und Schwert der Partei

The First Clear Pictures Of Japan's Stealth Fighter Emerge

The ATD-X is a technology demonstrator, just in case you don't notice. Something for the RAF to keep an eye on, methinks.

edited 13th Jul '14 6:35:18 AM by Greenmantle

Keep Rolling On

Isn't it supposed to be stealthy?

Why did they paint it so loudly?

Oh really when?

Because it's a demonstrator.

edited 13th Jul '14 9:57:47 AM by Deadbeatloser22

"Yup. That tasted purple."