Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray
However, I feel that what the foreign troops do within their own walls should not really affect the locals.
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Sir,
To an extent, I agree. However, US bases tend to use large numbers of locals to do tasks that we do not want our Soldiers/Sailors/Marines to do. Hiring US citizens to come out and do these tasks is usually too expensive as they require fairly high salary incentives to live in austere environments. 3rd country nationals are often hired to perform some of these tasks.
However, it is usually (depending on the area - Iraq is not always a good place to do this) desirable to hire some of the locals to work on base, it gives them (and us) a chance to mingle & get to know each other - hopefully increasing good will, and provides an infusion of cash into the local economy. If you hire locals, the word they spread into the local area about your activities will influence everyone's opinion on you. Thus you should respect their local customs, even if it means forgoing the after work beer.