I guess I should preface this with the statement that I have not served, which is the greatest regret of my life, but thought I would share about my family's past and current service.
Both grandfathers served in WWII. One was drafted and became a waist gunner on a B-24 over Europe. His pilot wrote a book, which gave me a fascinating look at his time in the Army, although my grandfather was only mentioned once in a list of the crew, as he was an enlisted man and therefore did not mingle with the officer pilot, and was in one or two of the crew photos. He didn't talk very much about his service and I regret not being able to talk to him about it before he passed a few years ago. One thing he told my father during Vietnam is that if he (my father) got drafted, it was his duty to go, but if he wanted to enlist that he should first finish college and go into the officer corps. My father was not drafted and did not enlist. My grandfather said that in war men see things that they should never have to see (a thought that causes my heart to wrench) but he was no pacifist and understood that war is at times necessary. That has done a lot to shape my view of war and world events.
My mother's father served in the Navy around the time of WWII, but I don't think he saw much action. He doesn't really talk about his time in the service either.
My father-in-law served in the Air Force, as did his father. My wife's brother is active duty Air Force (he says, "If you want to serve your country, join the Army; if you want a job, join the Air Force!") and was deployed to Afghanistan for about 18 months; her sister's husband is active duty Marines, spent some time in Afghanistan, and is currently deployed to who knows where (he works in intelligence, so he is often "not at liberty to discuss" such specifics).
I have the utmost respect for those who have served or are currently serving. As I stated earlier, I, however, have not served, which is my greatest regret in life.
