I enjoyed "Black Hawk Down" on TV last night. Especially in one of the last scene when after the soldiers managed, with much sweat and injuries, to return to base after the strike in the market place. One would imagine that after that horrifying period where the soldiers were mostly left to fend for their own while being atacked by the whole city, and thereafter being able to make it back in one piece, no one in sane mind would want to go back again to the place of attack to save comrades trapped there... but this guy when asked why he was crazy enough to do it again and again was simply "because of the guy next to you", or something in that line.
The ability to trust the person next to you with your life is perhaps one of the reason why I look up to the people in uniform, and may contribute in some bit to the reason why I joined a uniformed group in secondary school, and later on, now in university. However, maybe the 'elementary' level of such activities did not present any 'life & death' chances for me to build up such comradeship with my squadmates... well, the toughest period we had to endure together was just camp and scoldings from the instructors, and not forgetting the ever memorable punishment sessions. These activities did bond us to a certain extent, but was quickly forgotten when we parted ways. Family time was much more cherished. At the university level, everyone is so busy with their own life, self development and already had their own group of friends, so it was just a 'hi & bye' type of relationship.
Going to began my first real dip into the working world soon. I think such trust woud no longer be avaliable in the dog-eat-dog world we all live in.