Anti-war protestors at Coast Guard Academy

I did a double take when I saw this headline:

PROTEST RALLY AT COAST GUARD

The Academy had their graduation ceremony on Wednesday, and Vice President Cheney was the speaker – I should have assumed that would be a lock to draw out the filthy rich kid hippies over at Conn College to piss and moan about the war.  I do find it mildly amusing that these very same protesters will be the first people to call the Coast Guard when their daddy’s yacht starts taking on water because they decided they were good enough seamen to take it out during a storm.

My favorite pictures are the people holding signs that say “War is Death”, which really demonstrates a keen grasp of the international and social consequences of going to war.  No, really it does.  I’m stunned by their insight.

Now, I get that these retards were at my beloved CGA to protest VP Cheney, and that they weren’t protesting the Coast Guard per se.  But I find the “War is Death” theme to be ironic, due to the fact that unlike the other four branches of the military, the Coast Guard is known primarily as a live-saving agency, and not a life-taking one.  Having been there, I don’t want other Coasties to think I’m detracting from our military and law enforcement role, because I’m not – I understand the importance and value of those missions; where we operate as a military force to bring violence and harm to the enemy.  But when most people think “Coast Guard”, they think of 47 foot motor-life boats going out into 8 foot seas to rescue hapless boaters, or they think of nigh-insane helicopter pilots and rescue swimmers daring conditions that scare even the saltiest of Navy men.

Ultimately, that’s why I found the anti-war protesters so amusing – yes, the men and women of the Coast Guard are warriors.  The difference is that often our enemy aren’t insurgent fighters, but rather the forces of nature.  So standing outside our Academy with “war is death” signs, when the young men and women inside those walls will risk their lives to save you seems, well…retarded.

I guess I shouldn’t expect protesters to be logical though.

3 Comments

  1. Heh… 8 foot seas are a walk in the park. Especially for the 47 boats.

  2. Shush, if people know that they won’t think it’s awesome any more, and we’ll have to upgrade our PR to say 15 foot waves or something.

  3. “due to the fact that unlike the other four branches of the military, the Coast Guard is known primarily as a live-saving agency, and not a life-taking one.”

    That difference probably has a lot to do with why the CG is funded by the Dept. of Transportation. One of my riding buddies is a CG pilot, having started out as an Army pilot. I routinely pick on him with comments like “well, I guess if you couldn’t cut it in the real military, working for the highway department is the next best thing, right?”

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