A friend and I were discussing (neither of us with the slightest experience in the matter) how sailors generally, and the Navy in particular, have changed in the last century.
Does the Navy (referring specifically to UK/ US) still facilitate a 'sea-dog' character, the likes of Robert Shaw in Jaws or any of the characters from Alistair MacLean's maritime novels, or are these romanticisations of the pre-WW2 Navy? Have technology and modern warfare strategies bypassed the horny-handed sailor of old, with his passion for rum, shanties and tall tales of exotic ports, or do examples of this still live on?
Although this is only a light-hearted debate we'd like current/ ex Naval staff to help us out here- thanks very much!
2007-01-18 00:37:41 · 7 answers · asked by DaveyMcB 3 in Politics & Government ➔ Military
lol. i left the Rn 9 years ago, there was at the time, still the proverbial salty old sea dogs(though few in number) knocking around, "rum bum and baccy" men. some have had beards that you would probably find a family of field mice in. never came across any with a wooden leg, eye patch or having a fixation with a great white whale. i always found these guys to have a great character, plenty of dits(stories) and always had a symptathetic ear as long as you had the money to buy them a drink.
i did however have the great fortune of serving under a very eccentric captain who had a parrot and a liking for training the ships guns on any russian vessel we happened to pass. hope this helps
ps it's a great job if you're young and single. i wouldn't have changed a thing.
2007-01-18 00:52:03 · answer #1 · answered by Troubled Joe(the ghost of) 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A good movie for seeing how the modern sailor acts would be Crimson Tide we are a very professional and disciplined lot except on our off time then we revert to our civilian side. The Old seadog died with the age of sail. Though some tradition endured for a time by the 1970's the navy had transformed into the modern culture it has today. In the modern navy it's smarts not braun that wins the day.
2007-01-18 05:22:09 · answer #2 · answered by brian L 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
28 years in the navy and still in. I like rum but don't have a beard or say aaarrrhh very much. Some enjoy being at sea and some are sea dodgers. Nowadays the salty dogs are the ones that do a lot of the sea time but no Robert Shaw's showing off their scars its now more technical and less brawn.
2007-01-18 22:11:27 · answer #3 · answered by saltydog 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I was in the Reserves for a couple years and my brother was in the Navy for a couple years. I met some older guys, a warrant officer that I particularly remember, that was kind of an old "sea-dog" character. Overall though I'd say no. From my brief experience the military is as politically correct, if not more, than a lot of non-military organizations these days, which doesn't leave much room for that type of behavior.
2007-01-18 00:55:06 · answer #4 · answered by DGS 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I did 22 yrs in the RN and I have always seen the ‘Salty Sea Dog’ as an insecure person; afraid of the outside world, and secure in the small confines of a ship and loyal mates. They do not only exist in the forces but are limited to a small life and a routine they fear to venture out of.
Any rounded person is able to balance the job and the beauty that goes with it along with a family life and a shifting base of friends. No matter what age they live in.
2007-01-18 06:22:01 · answer #5 · answered by baje3000 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I spent 6 years in the US Navy and I thought this was pretty funny even though there's no such thing as a Seaman First Class. You won't find a much more patriotic person than myself and I don't find this little story offensive in any way.
2016-05-24 03:03:57 · answer #6 · answered by Alejandra 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Psst, it`s now 2007.
2007-01-18 00:42:13 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋