"When you try to find funding for a VVA function, it doesn't seem like it's any trouble at all. People come out of the woodwork with their money to help out because we went over and fought a war"
About this Quote
There is a sly, almost uncomfortable optimism in Ermeys observation: in America, the fastest way to open wallets is to invoke service. He is talking about a VVA function (Vietnam Veterans of America), but the engine underneath is broader - a culture that has learned to perform gratitude, sometimes more fluently than it learns to sit with the messy reasons a war happened or how veterans are treated once the applause fades.
The line "people come out of the woodwork" is doing more work than it looks like. It frames generosity as sudden and reactive, less a steady civic commitment than a reflex kicked off by a familiar story: they went, they fought. The phrasing also slides past the harder clause: Vietnam, in particular, is the war Americans spent decades trying to forget, then tried to redeem through gestures toward the people who bore it. Fundraising becomes a kind of moral laundering. If you can write a check for the function, you can feel, briefly, like youve done your part.
As a soldier, Ermey isnt theorizing; hes reporting a practical truth with the bluntness of someone who has watched the pattern repeat. The intent is partly appreciative - hes recognizing genuine support. The subtext is sharper: its easy to honor veterans symbolically because it asks less than interrogating policy, providing long-term care, or admitting national error. Money shows up fast for ceremonies. The harder funding, the quieter funding - mental health, housing, the slow grind of benefits - is where that same crowd is less likely to come out of the woodwork.
The line "people come out of the woodwork" is doing more work than it looks like. It frames generosity as sudden and reactive, less a steady civic commitment than a reflex kicked off by a familiar story: they went, they fought. The phrasing also slides past the harder clause: Vietnam, in particular, is the war Americans spent decades trying to forget, then tried to redeem through gestures toward the people who bore it. Fundraising becomes a kind of moral laundering. If you can write a check for the function, you can feel, briefly, like youve done your part.
As a soldier, Ermey isnt theorizing; hes reporting a practical truth with the bluntness of someone who has watched the pattern repeat. The intent is partly appreciative - hes recognizing genuine support. The subtext is sharper: its easy to honor veterans symbolically because it asks less than interrogating policy, providing long-term care, or admitting national error. Money shows up fast for ceremonies. The harder funding, the quieter funding - mental health, housing, the slow grind of benefits - is where that same crowd is less likely to come out of the woodwork.
Quote Details
| Topic | Military & Soldier |
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