Solid material, thanks for sharing di. I'm probably less cynical and angry than the average BODN poster, but the point about deployed conditions is valid. From the books I've read, stories I've heard, etc., deployments of yore were often wild and wooly experiences. These days, we go and spend months and months in desert sh1tholes with no booze, no conjugal visits, no p0rn, Maxim-type (clothed) pics ripped down from sh1tters and hooches, no sports or music to speak of (oh wait, I forgot, TiB tours!), no civvies, no leaving base, and very little freedom from the shoes (thankfully I've had some shielding from them being in my chili 24-7). And yeah, the fact that we're out there hacking the mission, protecting the good guys and killing the bad guys is what matters, but dudes would be a lot happier if they had some outlets. Having deployed only a few times myself, I have all kinds of respect for guys in AFSOC and elsewhere with double-digit deployments who have stuck it out despite the suck seeming to constantly build. I'm not a huge partier or skirt-chaser myself, but the stifling, super-PC influences in the AF today disgust me and certainly motivate me toward becoming one more dude who punches at his first opportunity.