A bit of talk about veterans in airsoft and veteran privilege since it's a hot topic floating around. I'll keep it short.

To the vets, be proud of what you did and proud to tell people. It may have been a brief period of your life or a whole career but either way, it was significant. You decide how important that is to you and your life after as a civilian. Don't let anyone tell you how important it is or isn't. You can choose to keep it in the back humbly and be that quiet professional. Or you can wear that vet hat proudly telling guys every day that you feel very much still connected to that life even as a civilian. You earned that right to be as quiet or as loud as you want about it.

Here's where things go wrong. It's not when you're too much of a veteran that it annoys people. It's when you decide to be a dick human being that you're messing up. Nothing to do with being a vet, a shitty person is going to be shitty, whether a vet or not. I'm not saying you need to fucking hold hands with everyone and be friends, but let people have their fun in airsoft. Bust some balls and joke around sure. It's what people do and no one will fault you for being a vet that does that. Society has become soft enough and needs some ball busting to keep it real.

But no need to get wound up because a kid is wearing some surplus uniform with old rank and patches on it. As long as he's not trying to be a poser, who really cares? Don't discard the new kids at the field because they have no training. Teach them something and make them better. Don't hate the gear whore that wants to look as you did at war. Bust his balls like you would bust the balls of the new troop but you never hated them. Remember they admire you and the world you were a part of. So don't get so sensitive when you see guys that want to look and play the part a bit.

To the civilians out there that never served or couldn't serve, the military culture is made up by a bunch of type A personalities. Their favorite past time is busting each other’s balls because there's a lot of stupid down time and waiting. So don't be so sensitive when vets sometimes give you shit. It's less about being dicks or bad people and more about the culture. You want to dress up and look the part. Hurt feelings every few minutes when vets open their mouth doesn't bring you closer to your impression folks. It doesn't endear you with the group you’re emulating.

Everyone just needs to check that sensitivity thing at the door, vets and civilian players alike. Vets playing aren't better for having served. They are different but not better. It's why we enlisted, for the preservation of the idea that we are all created equal. Civilians, remember you're playing a game that can't compare to the utter bull crap many vets have been through. No one would pay for that experience.

Being a shitty human being is universal and everyone can work on that. So is being a sensitive hurt feelings weakling. Since the world isn't going to all of a sudden declare universal love and understanding, you should learn to accept a happy medium.

Sorry, that wasn't short.

Just one grunt's opinion,

Javier "Darkhorse"

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About The Author

Javier "Darkhorse" Franco, formerly from This Week In Airsoft, runs his own Airsoft Blog on Facebook called "One Grunt's Opinion." This article has been posted here with the author's permission.