An Iraq war veteran is defending the Trump administration’s decision to ban transgender individuals from serving at any capacity in the US military.
Wounded Warrior J.R. Salzman posted a lengthy set of tweets describing his own personal accounts following the president’s Wednesday announcement.
Ultimately, Salzman feels a soldier needs to be tough “mentally, physically and emotionally.”
I served in Iraq in 2006. For the first five months I was on a 12 man firebase out in the middle of nowhere in the desert.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Everyday was Groundhog Day. Wake up and do the same patrols, the same shifts, every single day. It was so damn hot. 150° in the gun trucks.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Tracer fire would go overhead occasionally at night. IED's on the road were a daily threat. We got resupplied food every 8 days.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
QRF was an hour away. After they made the minimum three gun truck rule after the guys got kidnapped, life got harder.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
The stress of being out there and doing the same job every single day eats away at you. The younger guys had problems with that overtime.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Any tiny little personal issue they had suddenly became a mountain. And that shit came out on that fire base. And they snapped mentally.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
After stepping on each other's nuts living in the same can for five months, guys were at each other's throats. The stress made it worse.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Guys would literally snap over a dear John letter. Their personal issues came out and they were instantly combat ineffective.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Now take someone confused about whether they are a man/woman. Take those psychological and emotional issues and put them in that environment
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Take someone who is right off the bat not uniform or part of the same team. Give them special treatment because of their identity.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Take that person, put them in that stressful war environment and watch what happens. It's a fucking ticking time bomb.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
You have to be incredibly tough mentally, physically and emotionally. War is not a fucking video game. It tests every ounce of your being.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
You can't teach someone to be a fearless warrior in a fucking PowerPoint. You either have it or you don't. You can hack it or you can't.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
We had guys who couldn't. When faced with combat situations they crumbled. They had mental and emotional issues. They were a liability.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
To be successful at war, you have to become a warrior mentally, physically, and emotionally. You can't fake it and go through the motions.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
In war if it comes down to kill or be killed, and you hesitate, you're dead. It's a simple as that. It's not a fucking video game.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
War is no place for people who are mentally, emotionally, or physically confused or in turmoil. You have your shit together, or you don't.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
And if you don't, you'll just get people needlessly killed. Political correctness has absolutely no place in the military.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
Enough for now. This one armed veteran has a business to run. Unlike Iran, the country that took my arm, Obama didn't pay me millions.
— J.R. Salzman (@jrsalzman) July 26, 2017
H/T: Kyle Becker
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