We Train Soldiers All Wrong!

We teach soldiers to obey. We parade them in formation, tune them to commands, and polish the reflex of compliance until it’s louder than their conscience. Then we scratch our heads when they break under pressure — when anger becomes the fuel instead of the tool.

This is backwards. The job isn’t to make killing machines; it’s to make people who can think clearly when everything is on fire. Soldiers need to be trained like elite athletes and therapists at the same time: physically ready, mentally sharp, emotionally regulated, morally anchored.

Imagine troops taught to loosen up instead of tighten up. Trained to make decisions, not to wait for permission. Taught to hold empathy for the people across the line — not because it’s soft, but because it saves lives, including their own. When a soldier can feel the humanity of an opponent, the enemy’s women and children become someone they protect by instinct. That changes everything.

We already have the research: resilience training, moral injury mitigation, sports psychology, trauma-informed fitness — all ready to plug in. Nobody’s paying attention because it’s easier to keep shouting orders than to build systems that make people whole.

So stop fueling rage. Purify the soldier’s heart with discipline that teaches compassion, with training that values judgment over blind obedience. Make the unit feel like family — not because it’s sentimental, but because trust is the ultimate battlefield advantage.

A soldier should come home unbroken — trusted, respected, and whole.

That’s what strength looks like.

And to all those who serve — thank you. And I fucking mean it.

Not like the sycophants who offer “thank you for your service” but vote against your interests.

From me to you, humbly: I don’t agree with the job you have to do, but I understand it needs to be done.

You choose to do it for the reasons you do, and as someone who can honestly admit I don’t want to do it —

again, thank you for your service.