How to Spot a Coastie



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Five awesome facts about the Coast Guard

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I used to be in the Coast Guard, and I’d always get a lot of questions whenever I’d walk around in uniform. Questions like “How long have you been in the Air Force?” and “What time does my train leave?” These were all important questions, of course, but I rarely had the answers. "Uh...sure." Sometimes, though, people would realize I was in the Coast Guard, and they’d ask me questions about that. Most of them were pretty basic – “Is the Coast Guard like the National Guard?” “Is it really a part of the military?” Others were more complex. “Do you deploy to Iraq?” “Do you literally just stand there and guard the coast all day?” Much like how the Air Force is literally just a force of air. To answer (some of) these questions, I decided to put together a quick list: FIVE AWESOME FACTS ABOUT THE COAST GUARD
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That Time A Coast Guard Cutter Escaped The Air Force In Vietnam

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The Unwelcome Point Welcome loved her crew, and they loved her back. So much so that they gave her some ink. Serving in the rivers and shallows of Vietnam , Welcome and her crew were all each other had. So they would do anything for each other. Welcome had started her life the same as any Coast Guard patrol boat. She plied the waters of the Pacific Northwest in search of drunken boaters and sinking ships, never thinking she’d someday be sent away to war. But in 1965, everything changed. The U.S. had committed troops to Vietnam and now faced a growing insurgency in the South, fed by weapons smuggled down the coast in fishing boats. These boats would load themselves with several tons of guns and ammo and then – under cover of darkness – speed from international waters to the rivers and coves where they’d meet the Viet Cong.
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Seven Reasons The Coast Guard Is Batman

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I suppose in a way, the Justice League is kind of like the Armed Forces: a team of heroes who each use their unique skills and powers to complete missions that each of them would be unable to take on alone. The Navy is like Aquaman, Ruler of the Waves. The Air Force is like Green Lantern, who uses his magic ring to fly and shoot. The Army has the inhumanly-strong Superman. Or is Superman more like the Marines? Then the Army would be Flash. Or wait, is Flash fast like the Air Force? But Superman's fast, too, and he flies… Ugh. Maybe I should’ve used the Avengers… Okay, okay...maybe I can’t pin down a comparison for all the members of the Justice League, but there’s still one hero who’s not like the others – who doesn’t share their superpowers, methods, or their clubhouse. And even if I can’t match a superhero to every other military branch, there’s one thing I’m absolutely certain of: the Coast Guard is Batman . Here's why. SEVEN REASONS THE COAS...
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