There is a definite misconception, that and the whole dark/twisted humor most vets have doesn't quite jive with most civilians (though oddly enough I think most on here get it)
I've walked away from more fights now than I ever did in the service or before. I think it is more of the "I don't really care," than anything else though.Most guys I know (SF, Seals, Ranger) are quick to walk away from trouble, to let someone call them all sort of names, or "Win" the verbal argument.... Because we have nothing to prove anymore. I know that is the way I feel. It is hard to do so, but in the end I know I'm doing the right thing.
I will avoid a confrontation right up to the point I believe I can't and then I'm going to end it as humanly possible when that happens.
I don't talk to anyone about it. PERIOD.This whole PTSD thing is being handled like a crutch for everyone. It justifies everything, so its used constantly.
I made the mistake once, to someone I thought I could trust . . . . I had to leave that job.
YupI have some bad dreams, I get aggravated quicker, I may react in a more aggressive tone, and I don't take smart asses trying to bully or push me around. But that doesn't mean I'm going to go straight to violence... I still have my sense of right and wrong and repercussion/consequences.
War changes everyone who has gone through it. Some more severe than others. My thoughts are that you become a survivor of it and move on with life, or you just use it as a constant crutch, like the whole racism thing is....oh poor poor me....blah, blah, blah.