Who hates a broke salute??

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 16 Feb 2015 00:53:32 -0500

Maybe it's just me, but does it absolutely drive anybody else crazy when you see a broke, half-butt salute from a civilian?? What about veterans past and present?

Response by CSM Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 16 at 2015 1:04 AM

CSM Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 16 Feb 2015 01:04:13 -0500

I don't know about civilians saluting and if they do I don't pay it much attention.

There is however a serious issue with current military members saluting, both from the officer and enlisted side.

Seems the return greeting of the day these days is something like "What's up", "How ya doin", or "Hey". The proper rendering of the salute is pretty pathetic also, half-assed just like you said.

All services need to clean it up on both the officer and enlisted side.

Response by TSgt David Holman made Feb 16 at 2015 1:56 AM

TSgt David Holman — Mon, 16 Feb 2015 01:56:36 -0500

It doesn't hurt near as bad as seeing the salutes I have seen from some young officers/enlisted guys. There were two guys who stood outside the parking area for one of the Anchorage malls taking donations for a local veteran assistance unit, and both would salute if they new the person was military. One was extremely sharp, the other was a "half salute/half wave"...

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 1 at 2016 1:49 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 01 Jun 2016 13:49:31 -0400

Knew an LTC once who had the most jacked up salute I've ever seen. He would lean forward from the waist and salute with his hand vertical, index finger in the middle of his forehead....

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 8 at 2016 8:36 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 08 Jun 2016 20:36:30 -0400

They've probably been watching to many John Wayne movies, literally. The Dukes salutes were always limp like he had no bones in his hand or something. He'd just throw his hand up in the area of his eye and go on being The Duke.
Also, some of the motivational videos like the "I fought for you..." video about veterans. It mostly takes place in a theater with some veterans in it talking about what they did to make kids respect history more. Some, supposedly, young soldiers come in and the old vets see them and come to attention facing the new soldiers and salute them. The young soldiers return some of the most awful salutes I've ever seen. One female had her hand with the index finger somewhere over past the bridge of her nose. In this video civilians were rendering salutes some more passable than the soldiers salutes. I realize these are actors but 5 minutes coaching couldn't hurt.
Here's the link to the video I referenced:
https://youtu.be/h4A3olxMjoU

I Fought for You - Happy Veteran's Day!

A moving video honoring the men and women who have served and sacrificed so much for our freedom - we salute you!

Response by PO1 Rudy Dowdy made Jul 20 at 2017 3:43 PM

PO1 Rudy Dowdy — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 15:43:23 -0400

I don't mind kids or teens. Or even old scouts. As long as they use the scout salute.

Response by SGT Philip Roncari made Nov 1 at 2018 1:20 PM

SGT Philip Roncari — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 13:20:56 -0400

I would expect a “broke ,half butt “salute from a civilian, from a Service member past or present,expectations would be much higher.

Response by SPC Joseph Garwood made Nov 13 at 2019 11:34 PM

SPC Joseph Garwood — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 23:34:39 -0500

I cringe when I see someone trying to salute and if they are military I just want to fix it for them.

Response by CPL Chester Cabler made Nov 16 at 2019 7:54 PM

CPL Chester Cabler — Sat, 16 Nov 2019 19:54:57 -0500

I absolutely do. To send a salute properly rendered in a true sight to see. I know it may not mean a lot to others but to me it does. I still salute 30 years after serving.