Young working class men prepare for their enlistment physical.
The old saying “rich man’s war, poor man’s blood” might be applied to nearly every conflict in the history of warfare. It also speaks to a recognition of how social inequality is bound up with military service. Sociologists can and should pose questions here about why and how this history continues to repeat itself. Why do mostly working class men continue to volunteer for military service? What do they get out of it?
On the policy side, what are some of the social policy dynamics in play here that help drive this predictable outcome (education policy, social mobility dynamics, economic incentives). Are working class people simply easy marks for wealthy con men, who recruit them to fight and die in wars, which help them secure their moneyed interests? Is that what they’re thankful for when they say “Thank you for your service?”
What about the middle class? Are they simply thankful that their stock portfolios profit so they can pay for their kids to go to fancy schools and not have to worry about military service (that’s for other people’s kids). Thank you too!
Think about it. What’s in it for the working class, given that it’s clearly not money, power, and wealth? Are working class people to some extent the chief agents of their own oppression? By being staunch advocates for nationalistic and patriotic values, are they not to some extent creating the basis for an emotional appeal to others like them, thereby socially reproducing themselves as a social class that is always and potentially ripe for military recruitment and exploitation?
There is a long standing tension that lies at the heart of sociology; the relation between “Agency” and “Social Structure.” It cuts to the heart of questions like: Who has power? Who can resist? Who is a victim? Who gets used and discarded?
And so, a critical sociologist might rephrase question: Are working class people merely victims of overwhelming structural economic forces? Or are they cultural dupes? Or are they empowered agents making individual choices, trying to maximize their opportunity within a range of other options, as they alone are the ones that typically serve in the military and fight the wars? The real answer, I’m afraid, is that it’s complex; it might be all of these things.
War Gives Us Meaning
“War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning,” is a book written by Chris Hedges. Hedges is a former combat journalist who writes about his wartime experiences as he reflects on the power of war to create existential meaning for people. Such meaning, he argues, is difficult to attain when people are struggling with life in dead-end towns with low wage jobs and little hope of social mobility. Under such circumstances, narratives of rugged individualism, American exceptionalism, and the American dream are difficult to sustain. But war can change all that. The “myth of heroism,” says Hedges, is a compelling social force that can entice young people to head off to war. According to him, “War is a Drug:”
“for those who swallow the nationalist myth, life is transformed….collective glorification permits people to abandon their usual preoccupation with the petty concerns of daily life…..they get to see themselves as players in a momentous historical drama….this vision is accepted at the expense of self-annihilation.”
This is one rationale we might consider to explain why poor, young, working class men and women willingly and even eagerly commit themselves to the cause of war. Perhaps it explains why, even when they retain some awareness of the fact that the cost benefit equation rarely works out in their favor, they are nonetheless willing to risk life and limb.
The decision to go to war then, while it clearly driven in large part by economics, is also motivated by affective (emotional) dynamics that cannot be measured or justified with rational economic actor modes. As Hedges infers, the meaning-making process is a lot more complicated. This is why we must aim to understand how there may be more powerful motivating factors not limited to economics, which motivate military service among working class men. Sebastian Junger, also a combat journalist, also takes up the issues of meaning-making in his book “War,” which accounts for his experiences in the Korengal valley, Afghanistan, where he and fellow journalist Tim Hetherington spent time embedded with a small unit of young male American soldiers. Junger in the following passage makes a point of distinguishing war from combat:
“combat is the smaller game that young men fall in love with, and any solution to the human problem of war will have to take into account the psyches of these young men. For some reason there is a profound and mysterious gratification to the reciprocal agreement to protect another person with your life, and combat is virtually the only situation in which that happens regularly.”
Military service (combat in particular) offers a young person the “whole package,” which is to say, the perfect combination of public service, glory, heroism, social honor, street cred, and coolness, all wrapped in the flag. Service provides people with what they percieve to be an an opportunity to act honorably, rather than only attend to their own selfish interests, much ike a firefighter or police officer. Gender, furthermore, is also part of the equation, as these kinds of jobs are traditionally respected as appropriate masculine career alternatives for working class men who lack the means/desire to aspire to become a banker, doctor, or lawyer – instead of getting rich they get to protect their loved ones from the “bad guys.”
This narrative, once again, can be particularly compelling for young people who perceive they lack access to appropriate good-paying jobs, Some might volunteer service to escape their past as “fuckups” – joining the military gives them a way to redeem themselves at the same time as it potentially opens up doors to college. The latter issue is a point of contention in the United States, where it’s increasingly impossible for a lot of young people to go to college without incurring a life of debt peonage.
Junger goes on to say:
“these hillsides are where the men feel not most alive – that you can get skydiving – but the most utilized. The most necessary. The most clear and certain and purposeful. If young men could get that feeling at home, no one would ever want to go to war again, but they can’t.”
Interviews with veterans establish that for many of them, military service gives them an opportunity to “get back in the game.” It helps them feel useful and purposeful through employment that supplies them with a certain level of dignity, which proved hard to come by in low wage jobs.
No Way Out
Matt Damon’s character in the film Good Will Hunting speaks to the struggles of the working class in the following video clip, where he illustrates how a lack of jobs in a difficult economy creates problems for poor and working class men and women, many of whom feel they have no choice but to turn to military service as their only means of escape.
Discussion Questions:
How does your social identity as an American, or for that matter an American man or woman, potentially influence what you think about veterans and war?
Do you think war is “natural” – an unavoidable necessary evil? Or do you think that most wars are engaged as a matter of choice? [Note: there is actually interesting research on this very question].
Do you think wars are conducted for reasons having to do with values (i.e. freedom), or do you think those values are used by powerful people to get others to fight their wars, so they can accomplish their own objectives, which may be independent of the stated values or, for that matter, any specified national interest?
Do you think it is the special destiny of the United States [American Exceptionalism] to bring freedom and democracy to other parts of the world?
Have you ever felt like you are personally “missing out” because you didn’t opt for military service or because you have not fought in a war? How might your gender influence the way you feel about this.
Does serving/not serving make you feel like less of a man or woman?
How might your social class position influence the way you think about U.S. martial power — do you think your material position has any bearing on what you think about veterans and war?
How might your social class position influence your ideas about whether or not you or your children might volunteer for military service?
Money isn’t the only reason and often it is not a primary reason for serving in the military. There are other perceived benefits related to self-esteem and status honor. These benefits are potentially more compelling for working class people, because they permit economically weak individuals make relevant claims to social power. What do you think?
Do you think the government should provide non-military funded service options for young people, particularly those who want to attain a college education, as a means to facilitate social mobility and career success. In other words, should we financially reward young people for serving their communities, rather than only providing them with benefits when they are willing to risk their life and/or kill people?
Is military service a disguised form of socialism—a government jobs program —that employs the unemployable when markets fail to provide?
Have your beliefs about any of these issues changed over time? If so, how?
Robert De Niro and Christopher Walken in Michael Cimino’s film “The Deer Hunter.”
Does serving/not serving make you feel like less of a man or woman?
In my opinion, why would serving or not serving make anyone feel less of a man or a woman. Whether you are serving or not you should not feel less than what you are or what you do. For me, if I served, I would feel more like a strong woman who has a duty of serving for her country and I would strive to accomplish my goal. I do not serve as of now, so I still feel more of a woman who is strong with different goals to accomplish in my life. Any one who feels less of a man or a woman needs to have more visions of fortune than less fortune cause there are definitely more thoughts to be more than less. People are powerful individuals and the ones who think less of themselves because they serve or do not serve have to wake up and manifest good vibes for the better.
I primarily joined the Air Force for money and medical benefits. As a son of a Philippine immigrant who came to America in the 1970’s, my service did bring much pride and honor to my family. My parents loved to tell everyone in their small Beaver Falls restaurant that their son was on national television, on the stage at the NFL draft, or that my son rang the opening bell at the NASDAQ. My mother worked as a breakfast cook most of her life and she was passionate about bragging about her son. I always felt embarrassed, but even more now that I know the government paid tax dollars for patriotism that I personally benefitted from. I would be lying if I told it didn’t feel great to be on the stage, at Radio City Music Hall, with thousands of people yelling…USA!!! USA!!! I would never have that opportunity without the Air Force, and my service in uniform has had it’s alternative benefits.
I don’t believe war to be natural. There is no scientific proof that us humans have an inherit to collectivity kill other groups or individuals. I think it is matter of choice to engage in these wars. The circumstances that we live in and the resources that are being fought for, such as, money, power, land, can be why we would make an impulse to do so. I believe war happens because of a groups desires and needs to gain power for their country. However, war is usually inevitable because humans cannot reach an agreement, not because it is a natural state.
Coming from a military family, I don’t believe I have missed out because I didn’t opt for military service or because I have never fought in a war. I think this because when I hear my Dad talk about when he was a Marine, it doesn’t seem like I missed out on anything I want to experience. Being in any military service and going to war, isn’t for the weak minded. Till this day, he barley speaks upon his experience to me but just from some of the things he’s told me, it would not be something I’d be interested in.
The government looks for people who are working class or lower because they know they’ll need the money and benefits that the military can provide for those who don’t have it at their finger tips or those who cannot find a job. Being that my dad is a Army Veteran I’ve gotten the speech of just go to the military and you won’t have to worry about college tuition. The military is not for me and I knew it wasn’t so my dad never pressured me into it. Not serving in the military does not make me feel like less of a woman. I would love to have listened to my dad and followed in his footsteps by going to the military but I don’t feel like I’ve missed out on anything because I didn’t go. The military should provide another program or service that benefits those that want to go to college. The government treats Veterans like garbage because their lives are no longer on the line for them.
In other crim classes with Dr. Trappen, I have learned about how sometimes social class position can potentially lead to different rates of criminal and delinquent activity. I think that enlisting in the military could be a unique option for people within unstable social class positions. It can possibly help their children or even themselves gain that discipline, self-esteem, and a newly founded status of honor. If my children were participating in criminal or delinquent activity because of the social class that I have provided them with that option wouldn’t be unlikely to cross my mind. I’m also sure it has crossed the minds of other Americans to put their children on the military path or try and get them to volunteer. There can be many benefits to doing so other than just having their children gain the discipline they need. It could be life-changing and put them on a path to a greater life one that they might not have had.
The military preys on those who need a way out of a certain lifestyle or hopes for a better one. It is clearly seen with promises of signing bonuses and free education that the recruitment system is targetting a certain demographic. The new lifestyle that one signs into is ironically less “free” than what is advertised. A cookie-cutter type system is in play here. Firstly, of course, uniforms and the rules of them are very strict and identical from soldier to soldier. All housing is the same, everyone eats the same, trains, learns, etc. It is other-worldly when thinking about the environment of the U.S. In a way, some freedoms are taken away when serving. Lastly, the irony of the government that is running the military system. The U.S. government is famously known for historically despising socialism and in fear of it being implemented in our government. Yet, a recyclable system of targeting a demographic to fuel the military-industrial complex is working 24/7.
I think the feeling of “missing out” for not going to war can be felt by military members themselves, depending on what job they’re assigned. I was a missile maintainer for the six years I was in the Air Force and never once deployed, to my disappointment at the time.
Among most of my peers, there was a palpable sentiment that what we were doing wasn’t all that important or glamorous compared to other jobs. On another level, there was a feeling of “we got screwed.” From our perspective, the Air Force promised us adventure, meaning, purpose, but didn’t deliver. Some expressed that they wish they had joined the Army or Marines instead. The phrase “I joined the Air Force to see the world, but instead I got stuck in North Dakota” was repeated so many times its literally become a meme among enlisted airmen.
The propaganda peddled by leadership that “you ARE just as important as the troops” was mostly ineffective. In other attempts they would try to appeal to our egos, saying things like “you’re too smart to waste catching bullets, we need you here,” which worked for some. Married airmen, especially those with children, were noticeably more content with the job and uninterested in deployment, recognizing the risks.
However, this wasn’t enough for the overwhelming majority of young, single men in the field. After being raised on Call of Duty and in a society that glorifies “war heroes,” most of us didn’t imagine we would spend most of our so-called service shoveling mud and snow off of launch sites and routinely changing paper filters on missile coolant systems. Of course, while we did experience a level of exploitation, the idea that maybe we should be grateful we’re not being ordered to die like so many others are rarely, if ever, crossed our minds.
Yes, i feel war is natural as it is needed to establish and keep boundaries, We are “American’s” have fought for OUR rights as a people. War is anatural as it tends to occur when others tend to threaten our rights.
Sometimes war is protect the greater good letting those know that we will protect our rights and freedoms that we as a nation had to fight for. Why else do others fight to come to the Unities States of America? This is a great country….
The USA established boundaries back to WWI and long before to fight for those who are and were weaker so they could break free. I feel for those men and woman who fought and lost their lives fighting for others from another country. While i wonder why at times we go into counties who seem to not want us there. War is natural evil sadly as a people it seems to be easier to fight to find conflict rather than common ground to come to a solution.
Do I feel less of a woman because I did not serve or fight for the military? Absolutely not. I think the men and women who chose, as well as those who were forced by a draft are courageous and selfless individuals but that in no way lessens who I am as a person. I could not have imagined turning 18 and being ordered to go to war simply because my “lottery number” was pulled. It saddens me to think about those who were drafted at 18 and also died at war at the very same age, an age not even legal to drink but legal enough to die for a country who forced you to fight for them. I actually feel fortunate that I did not serve. I have seen the devastation being in the military or at war has brought to some people’s lives and that is a pain I would never want to go through. A lot of people I have spoken to about their tours don’t feel like they are more of a man or woman because they served, sadly, in certain times of their present lives, don’t even feel human at all anymore. Touring takes a part of you that you can never get back and those parts differ in individuals. It can take a person’s heart, meaning of life, their understanding of what it is to feel normal, their sense of security, their mental health and many other things. In some cases, men and women may return home, their physical body may return home but mentally the military has taken their life from them and they will never be the same. Moreover, the treatment of veterans is sickening in some cases. It is sad to think that the same country you fought for just allows you drown once you return home. So, no, it does not make me feel less of a woman because I did not serve, it makes me feel fortunate and thankful for those who did.
First of all, Americans focused on importance of military services and war on duty. Their global perspectives are to celebrate American exceptionalism and the American Dream. They focused to a gun fight but think nothing valued for individual’s rights and to reach their goal, they are willing to make a certain amount of sacrifice even its human.
Second of all, global capitalism divides social class and it bears upper class people maneuver working class people into joining a military service. Upper class politically manipulated working class by suggesting a benefit of joining military service. I also strongly agree with “myth of heroism.” They sneakily use psychological thought of young people. According to Hedges, “for those who swallow the nationalist myth, life is transformed….collective glorification permits people to abandon their usual preoccupation with the petty concerns of daily life…..they get to see themselves as players in a momentous historical drama….this vision is accepted at the expense of self-annihilation.” Young working class men hope to transform their life and hope to have a better money to support their family as well by sacrificing themselves.
Lastly, they could provide a policy that help lift working class people out of poverty whether than a policy that related to a military service. More specifically, they should provide non-military funded service options for young people. The educational policy that help lift young working class people to study equally with young upper class people. Military spending understandably generates concerns for the other social expenses and benefits. It should not be the only way to earn social benefits by joining a military service, but also they should have the right of choice to have various social benefits and the government should concern about this problem. They should practice better welfare policy and create a policy not only for them but also for everybody includes working class people.
First of all, Americans focused on importance of military services and war on duty. Their global perspectives are to celebrate American exceptionalism and the American Dream. They focused to a gun fight but think nothing valued for individual’s rights and to reach their goal, they are willing to make a certain amount of sacrifice even its human.
Second of all, global capitalism divides social class and it bears upper class people maneuver working class people into joining a military service. Upper class politically manipulated working class by suggesting a benefit of joining military service. I also strongly agree with “myth of heroism.” They sneakily use psychological thought of young people. According to Hedges, “for those who swallow the nationalist myth, life is transformed….collective glorification permits people to abandon their usual preoccupation with the petty concerns of daily life…..they get to see themselves as players in a momentous historical drama….this vision is accepted at the expense of self-annihilation.” Young working class men hope to transform their life and hope to have a better money to support their family as well by sacrificing themselves.
Lastly, they could provide a policy that help lift working class people out of poverty whether than a policy that related to a military service. More specifically, they should provide non-military funded service options for young people. The educational policy that help lift young working class people to study equally with young upper class people. Military spending understandably generates concerns for the other social expenses and benefits. It should not be the only way to earn social benefits by joining a military service, but also they should have the right of choice to have various social benefits and the government should concern about this problem. They should practice better welfare policy and create a policy not only for them but also for everybody includes working class people.
The government in my opinion intentionally brainwash the low-income teens to believe war is their only option for social mobility. I recently asked my cousin what his future consist of and he said he was planning on signing up for the military, his older brother just recently completed his boot camp training when I asked why he said he feel as though it is his only way out, when I asked why not college he stated college is not for him and he will have more opportunity in the military. This literally drove me to tears, the fact that these teenagers will rather risk their lives and feel the military is their only way out into achieving social mobility fills me with complete shocked. My cousin is struggling getting pass high school and feels the need to prove to the family, but why do majority of working class teens automatically lean towards the military as a means out not fully understanding the consequences that can be obtain through it.
This is, unfortunately, a very sad story that plays out in working class and poor households across the country. The answers are not simple. But the combination of family upbringing, economic instability, failed schools, the culture of masculinity, militaristic culture in the U.S….all of it combined has greater impact on our most economically vulnerable citizens, who see it as a way to buy a lottery ticket that offers somewhat better odds of winning.
The discussion question “Do you think war is “natural” – an unavoidable necessary evil? Or do you think that most wars are engaged as a matter of choice?” is a really interesting one and struck me when I read it initially. I think it is a loaded question and like most things concerning the topic of war would get you a million different answers based on a million different political, social, economic and gender based views. For myself however, I would say that war is no longer natural as the face of politics, technology and quite frankly the world/society has changed. I think that war was natural during historical periods before colonization of the New World. I’m no historian but I do think that with the Revolutionary and most notably the Civil War, war itself became no longer a natural necessity but a means of capital gain and capitalist survival. I believe that at this point war became a true choice because not only did the nature of war change but the motivations. War is no longer primal or simple but complexed within the world of politics and capitalism. For instance, the war in Vietnam was not one based on imminent danger to the United States because of attacks but rather a choice to intervene in a government to protect our resources and capital. Personally I am against war and I believe that in an age of globalization and communication war is no longer the necessity it used to be (barring the issue of nuclear weapons which have me baffled a bit). I think that with institutions like the UN war could be drastically reduced, this may be wishful thinking and I don’t see an era of peace in my lifetime honestly but I do believe that diplomacy has worked and could work but diplomacy is not nearly as lucrative as war. I think this is why war is no longer a natural thing but rather an active choice made by people who could lose something. I don’t believe that war is about physical safety always but rather monetary. It is an active choice.
Have you ever felt like you are “missing out” because of not having chosen military service; or because you have never fought in a war? Does this make you feel like less of a man or woman?
How might your social class position predict how you think about U.S. martial power — in other words, do you think that your material position has any bearing on what you think about war, how it’s used, and whether or not you or your children might serve?
I don’t think I’m missing out because I’ve never fought. Although when I hear people talk about the amount of respect for those that serve the country, I’m not sure how I should feel about not feeling the same way they do. I think my social class position affects my views because I know that if i were to tell my parents I wanted to enlist, they would reply, “why? we don’t need the money. choose something practical and useful to do” War is seen like a death sentence and a last resort. If we were financially unstable, my parents wouldn’t have as big of an objection. This mentality will also apply to my kids as well. War is a quick access to power for those who feel like they lack it and a source of income and education as well so because we do have access to education and we don’t require another source of income, going to war is out of the question.
Honor and an individual’s sense of fulfillment in the United States is often achieved through joining the military. The military is one of the methods from which people feel as though they have created an impact on the nation and although this is true, it is sadden to know that an individual’s only option for success can at times only be achieved through joining the military. Of Course being in the military does have a positive outcomes such as a sense of honor and public benefits but it also comes with a very high price, as people who join the military are essentially risking their lives everyday. For that exact reason I give my respects to those people who risk their lives, since I cannot see myself doing the same thing. Although I do admire their courage, I do not feel as though I am less than another woman or that I am “missing out” on something big. What I do feel is that people who go to the military are skilled people who find enjoyment in what they do and try to believe that they choose this path out of desire rather than out of need. Because military can ultimately be a process from which people rely in order to attain more success I do believe that it can be considered as a safety net for people who may not be doing so great in life. But I do not believe that we need to go to war because of our morals as “Americans”. I believe that it is unrealistic to force other countries to be like ourselves when we fail to educate and grant equal opportunity to our community.If we cannot take care of ourselves how can we help others who need to be “saved”.
I don’t believe it is the special destiny of the United States to bring freedom and democracy to other parts of the world. However, war is not a freedom for the people of the United States. The poor and working class, a lot of the time, will enlist in the military as a way to create a job for themselves and give themselves something so they feel useful to their country because they are fighting for “freedom” but fighting a war to bring freedom to countries that don’t want it is wasteful. It is a way for politicians to justify their spending in the military without considering the consequences. As Matt Damon’s character explains in the clip, the military is an alternative for people who cannot get a job. He even brings up the issue how it is the political leaders sending the military to these places to start war but they don’t fully understand or care about the repercussions because it isn’t their children who are doing the fighting. A person’s social class and position can directly affect their decision to enlist in the military. Some people may do it because everyone in their family has joined but others feel the need to do join because they feel it is their only option. I don’t feel like I am missing out because I have chosen not to join the military. I do believe that the military is not for everyone but it is depressing to see people enlist just because they feel it is their only option.