I understand your opinion, Bruce.

I think, though, that it's cynical pandering to manipulate a population's vote in the manner that is being repeatedly done in the USA, by appealing to people through their idolization of military power and military experience.

Such pandering is characteristic of aggressively militaristic societies that are bent on further conquest. If you study history, you'll find lots of evidence to support what I'm saying.

Is a soldier truly placing his country above himself when he fights in a war? Perhaps. But not necessarily. He may just be someone who just needed employment, so he went into the armed forces. He may be someone whose family has a tradition of serving in the military, and he thought it would be a good career. How can you know for sure what is going through a soldier's mind when he first enlists and when he's eventually put under fire? He may just be trying to survive when that happens. If so, how does that equate to placing his country above himself?

You see, people are assuming a great deal when they assume that soldiers are necessarily more self-sacrificing or patriotic in their intrinsic nature than civilians are. They're judging the book by the cover.

Soldiers, like other people, come in all types. Some are idealists. Some are pragmatists. Some are organization men. Some are individualists. Some are criminals or fools. Some are stupid men. Others are brilliant men. The job description does not determine the character or motivations of the man, and it should not be used to imply that he would make a better politicial candidate than a man with a different job description.

It's no reason to elect a person to political office. You elect a person to political office because of things like:

intelligence
ability to communicate effectively
experience in governing and leadership
honesty and good character
emotional maturity
self-confidence and ability to lead
steadiness and reliability when under stress
stated policies and ideas
physical health and vitality sufficient to do the job
evidence of sanity ;-)

Agreed?