“Two reasons we love the military:

1) Heroism, as I define it, is to make a great effort toward a good purpose, the greater the effort and better the purpose the more heroic. Soldiers in the field work round the clock at low pay and at considerable risk (a great effort) toward the purpose of protecting us (which if we like ourselves at all is a very good purpose). They are unquestionably heroic.

2) They are us, our relatives, our friends, we know them. Contrast all that, by the way, with other parts of the government and you’ll see why there is such a difference in perception.

– Jon Osborne