Forum: Story Discussion and Feedback

It is a quirk of mine that I am almost always a stickler for what particular branch of the armed forces a person is in. (Not to civilians who don't seem to have a clue, and are just trying to be polite.) Fellow members of the armed forces, or authors, I am not so tolerant.

I do realize that for some people the term "Army Brats" may be broadly (Ab)used to refer to kids of any member of the armed forces; in particular those that have (or had) to move from instillation to instillation every year (or at most several years) to year. {Standard tours at a particular location for the US Army are 12 to 18 months. However, reenlistment perks, or a variety of other means can result in staying for 3 years or more. I knew of a superb Mess Sergeant who finagled 15 years of 17 years in the same unit! Win a lot of awards, be able to negotiate your reenlistment, and have multiple Generals who enjoy eating in your Mess Hall and "miracles" can happen! I wonder if he served the rest of his career there...)

The blurb for https://storiesonline.net/s/30347/sister-swap by G. Younger says "Army Brats" but is set at the United States Marine Corps Base of "Twenty-Nine Stumps" (official name Twenty-Nine Palms) and the author seems reasonably familiar with the base. It is Possible although extremely unlikely that a US Army Platoon Sergeant might be assigned to a USMC base... In the story it is mentioned that his ex-wife's father is a General... But then why not nearby Fort Irwin, a US Army base (home to the NTC: National Training Center) an even more desolate Hellhole even further from civilization with fewer amenities.

The US Armed forces now consists of the Military Branches of the US Army, US Air Force, and US Space Force, and the Naval Branches: US Navy, US Marine Corps; the US Coast Guard is also a Naval Branch, although part of Homeland Security during "peacetime"...

I have noticed that US Navy and Marine Corps personnel tend to be more anal-retentive about specifying the difference(s) between Military and Naval.

I have talked with (mostly) military professionals from Canada, the UK, Australia, Germany, France, South Korea, etc. (Canada technically is a "joint force" of Army/Navy/Air Force.) (I mean professionals in terms of long service Regulars, not conscripts or others who only serve for one term, and thus are less likely to know or care about such terms.) Mostly it was Army personnel of dozens of nations, and Marines from the UK or South Korea.

I know there are numbers of people on the forums from various nations, some of whom served in various armed forces, or are at least somewhat knowledgeable about them. There are also quite a few people who are "detail oriented" (aka Anal Retentive) about specifics and details.

I have found that "Army Brats" (or Marine Corps Brats" etc. are often more specific about distinctions between the branches and the military/naval distinction than some (many?) veterans. Some members of my VFW Post only served for 2 years in the armed forces, but one of those years was in Vietnam, or 3 years, but served in a combat theater for Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom, etc. Whereas a Navy Brat has a father and/or mother who probably served for twenty years (give or take a decade) and was likely enthusiastic about their branch (at least enough to reenlist multiple times) in particular for the annual Army vs. Navy football game! A military (or naval) "Brat" is a child/teen whose parent(s) were in the service and lived on or adjacent to a military or naval instillation for a significant amount of their lives before age 18, and usually had to move frequently.

I am not "picking" on G Younger in particular. For all I know at this time the kids are "Army Brats" and their father is for some reason stationed at a USMC base. He is usually quite knowledgeable about details he puts in his stories. I concede that the term "Army Brat" may be used loosely. I am asking other peoples' opinions.

I am asking about specificity in terms of the various branches, as well as military vs. naval services/branches; as well as "Army Brats" vs. "Marine Corps Brats" etc.

In my own stories I am very specific about Branches/Services, etc. (except I may have particular characters "get it wrong" when they are speaking).

The actual term most commonly used by those other than in the Army is "Military Brats". I have never heard of or met anybody that was in a military family other than in the Army use anything to signify what branch their parents were in. And most times, it was pretty obvious by where they were.

And the term was also generally used by those who's parent was a careerist. In other words, serving two or more enlistments and not just a single one then getting out. As otherwise it was rare to see them moving from place to place.

And for them it can explain their somewhat strange childhood. Growing up in multiple cities and states, and even countries. Even for my daughter why when we moved back to California she spoke with a soft Southern accent, having lived for the past 4 years in North Carolina. Or that my son was born there, but never had such an accent (he was 3 when we left).

And many simply tend to use that in a self-referential way, as a great many really have no "home town". My dad and his brothers and sisters lived all over the country, from California, Washington, Alaska, Alabama, Montana, North Dakota, and Georgia. None of them ever really had a "home town", as every 3 or 4 years they were moving somewhere else. To them, the military is their "home town".

And in many ways, I am the same. I have moved on average every 4 years or so, the longest I ever lived in a single area was my 10 years in LA after I first got out. But ever since then, every few years I was moving again.

US Air Force

I asked my wife what she and her siblings were called. It was either 'Air Force Brats' or 'Military Brats.' Depending upon the post, it would be possible for multiple branches to be represented, especially if someone was in training and that was THE post where the training took place. When I was stationed at Ft. McClellan, all the branches sent their NBC people there for training. Here at Tinker, there's quite a Navy presence for an Air Force Base.

Also, the blurb has now been changed to military brats.

In the UK, I think the term is 'Pad rats'/ 'Patch rats'. Pad/Patch being the name given to the married quarters, which generally were/are outside the 'wire'.

Edit: Added '/are'