I want to make that clear.

I've gotten the impression talking to some of you in private chats or in the comments that you are hesitant to engage here. This is a veterans community, but it isn't a closed one. Think of it as some type of performer who stays and mingles after the show and genuinely has a good time doing so. The veterans entertain, and our civilian supporters hang out after for Q&A and general BS'ing.

Trust me, we love it.

Veterans write here. We do it for ourselves. We enjoy writing and want to enterain. Some of us NEED to write. It processes experiences in a unique way. We want to preserve our experiences for family. And as /u/anathemamaranatha pointed out with his Comment of the Year, we have a DUTY to tell them.

Family of veterans write here. They do it for a lot of those same reasons. And they are honored guests here - telling the tales of often passed relatives, some of whom died in battle. That definitely isn't hyperbole.

We want to share our tales with the world. That includes those who haven't served.

So to all of you civilians who haven't served for whatever reason - you are WELCOME here. I personally want you to know that, and I know the other mods will back me up on that one. Feel free to not only read, but to comment, ask questions, etc. The authors don't mind at all 99% of the time. Engage with the storytellers. Learn from us, be entertained by us, enjoy our tales and commiserate as you can. We have quite a few civilians here who talk with us all the time.

And I like handing out stupid flair to people who ordinarily wouldn't have a chance to obtain it. Just ask /u/adventurous_class_90. :)