Youth after Friday prayer today was loudly talking to his friends and making fun of how lame Yemeni soldiers are and how him and his passé should prep to fight alQaeda because AQ will certainly crush the ill excuse of an army the nation has and soon AQ will march to takeover cities. Older man joined conversation and...
Man: I agree with this young man. I mean, the sorry state of Yemeni soldiers is no secret.
Youth: Exactly! They couldn't even defend their bases or themselves let alone defend us.
Man: Well I'm glad that youth like you have a sense of responsibility and are serious about taking matters into their own hands.
Youth: Well of course, we are defending our families, our cities, our country.
Man: Rumor has it that the authorities are fed up with current army/security and will soon start recruiting for new REAL soldiers to fend off AQ.
Youth: Really, where when and how can we apply?
Man: Application forms and details from has on outskirts of city where you will see long lines of applicants. Sad that most who've been camping out there for days waiting in queue won't be accepted.
Youth: Wait what? Hmm...well not sure if it's worth a try.
Man: Trust me it is. Even though you only get a single set of uniform, an old machine gun with a few bullets and some basic training, the food is lousy, When Available, and pay is less than $200/month, being a proud cadet of the new Yemen army is definitely worth it.
- Youth visibly shifting uncomfortably now -
Man: Believe me, the 8-12 hours shifts manning checkpoints under blistering sun in the middle of nowhere is small price to pay for time you will eventually be sent to fight bad guys like AQ while being outgunned, outnumbered, and going all Rambo...exciting isn't it!?
Youth: Erm, yes of course, ahm, it was a pleasure meeting you sir, but we have to go now.
Man: oh, I'm sorry, did I put you off? I hope I didn't say something that may have steered you away from applying. I realize there's a real chance of you getting killed but you seemed able and willing to take up patriotic role and what better way to go out than while defending your country.
Youth: Sir, with all due respect, this is worse than a death wish. Nobody in his right mind will enlist.
Man: Oh, but I know of about 400,000 ppl whom have enlisted to pretty much the same, fighting bad guys since forever, and lately with all odds stacked up against them, still bravely jumped right into the middle of the worse death zones (AQAP) and willingly giving their lives for their country, for their families, for you and me to have a better and safer tomorrow.
Youth: Yes, I realized you were talking about the Yemeni army and I...I didn't mean to disrespect the soldiers or anything but -
Man: No buts. Don't confuse your entitlement to an opinion with ignorant insolence. Have the decency to appreciate that no matter what true motive soldier had to enlist, be it unemployment or patriotism, he is putting himself in harms way and will serve and die towards achieving a goal that we both seek too but unlike him are afraid to pursue due to the extreme and harsh path provided.
