On the value of service
Kahlil Fegan DSC AM
Repatriation Commissioner
I recently found myself reflecting on the words of the Pulitzer Prize nominee, psychology professor and veteran Dave Grossman, who uses a simile to describe the value of service men and women. David speaks of how most of the people in our society are like sheep. He means no offence in drawing this comparison, simply implying most people ‘… are kind, gentle, productive creatures who would only hurt one another by accident.’
He goes on to warn that there are others – the wolves – who always have been and always will be.
These others can have a propensity for evil. They are comparatively few but capable of horrendous acts. He equates them to wolves ‘that feed on the sheep without mercy’. Some may suggest drawing this similarity with wolves is horrendously unfair. Some humans can be much worse.
David then goes onto explain that while there are sheep and wolves, there is a special group who are neither. They are sheep dogs who, while peacefully walking among the sheep, have tremendous capacity for violence and the willingness to employ it.
The sheep dog will seek out and confront the wolf – without hesitation and with the knowledge that it may be harmed. It does this to protect the sheep. The sheep dog practices fighting, is ever vigilant and uncompromisingly loyal. It will never harm the sheep.
It is ironic that some sheep may not like or trust the sheepdog: looks a lot like a wolf, has fangs and capacity for violence. The sheepdog can be noisy and annoying, smells, sometimes chases its tail and digs holes. So, why should the peaceful sheep recognise and promote the pesky sheep dog?
Because the dog is often not appreciated – until the wolf shows up.
Like the sheep dog, our service men and women live constantly attuned to the possibility of conflict and prepare relentlessly for it – studying the controlled application of violence and training to fight and win war on behalf of the Australian people. They do this in full acknowledgement of the risks and sacrifices they and their families make. Like the sheepdog, when called upon they step forward willingly to defend others.
It is easy to accept the metaphor that service men and women are sheep dogs, but in reality they are so much more. Service develops in individuals and our society an immense but at times forsaken value.
I am certain if you ask most veterans what value they got from service they will speak of the satisfaction achieved from working as a member of a team through toil and trouble, and for a cause much greater than themselves. The sense of pride in knowing they have done something most others could or would not. The confidence that when tested physically and mentally, they will prevail, and that their done deeds reflect values like respect, integrity, courage, excellence and service.
The value of service is further articulated and encapsulated in our Australian War Memorial. Here, etched in stone and glass, you will find 15 quintessential qualities developed and displayed by Australians in war. The personal qualities include words like resource, candour, devotion, curiosity and independence. Social qualities include comradeship, ancestry, patriotism, chivalry and loyalty. And the fighting qualities of youth and enterprise are coolness, control, audacity, endurance and decision.
These are the qualities and values developed and engrained in our Australian service men and women, through service. These qualities and values cannot be bought or borrowed and take years to develop. They are as relevant today as ever.
This is what makes the sheep dogs among us such essential components of a healthy society. This is what we are offering our nation’s youth when they enlist. By promoting service, we are perpetuating these attributes in our society.
Yet the allure of service seems to be waning. Why is this?
Some may suggest the youth of today are too self-absorbed or weak. Yet the young men and women with whom I have served in recent years dispel this suggestion.
Some may not see the need to fight for Australia – they have grown up in peace and have become complacent.
Others may have been influenced by rhetoric suggesting all service men and women are damaged - the ‘broken digger’ narrative, but we know this narrative is a falsehood. (See my column in Vetaffairs, December 2024.) Regardless of the reason, as a society if we allow the allure of service to decline, we should not be surprised when the wolves ‘feed on the sheep without mercy’.
We are lucky to live in Australia, a beautiful democracy blessed with riches worth fighting for, however there are challenges not far from our door. A responsible society knows this, reflects upon it, and does all it can to invest in the sheep dog and developing the qualities and values I have outlined.
I encourage all of us who enjoy our nation’s riches to recognise and promote the value of service, and specifically those who serve, for we need them – before the wolf shows up!
Image: Troops from 5/7 RAR and East Timorese locals, 21 February 2000. (Defence)