Under The Sea

I really enjoy submarine movies.

The Hunt for Red October, Das Boot (pronounced "Boat," as any good Germanophile knows), The Enemy Below, Crimson Tide, Run Silent, Run Deep. Heck, I even enjoyed "Down Periscope" with Kelsey Grammar and Rob Schneider!

And, just to get it out of the way, it has nothing to do with 200 men crammed into a giant phallus. Save your psychologies.

But I've been wondering why I enjoy them. Perhaps it's a guy thing; most of us like action or adventure movies, war movies, that kind of thing. I think one reason is the importance of strategy. You effectively have no eyes, you rely on sound (another relevant point for a musician), and there's always some sort of cat-and-mouse game afoot. But there's a special place for submariners in the order of things. They may go months at a time without seeing sunlight, more than a year before seeing land again, and there's that nagging feeling that, one little hole, and the whole thing will crumple up like a beer can on John Belushi's head. So there's a greater sense of discipline, of dedication, and duty. (Like that? 3 D's!)

Which seems like an appropriate place to wrap this up, on this 4th of July. No matter your feelings about any particular mission or war, let's appreciate those who have dedicated their lives to something greater than themselves, and put themselves in harm's way, in an effort to protect others from that harm.

Happy July 4th!