Military Salute: Difference between revisions

[[File:salute_1300salute 1300.jpg|frame|American and British army salutes, respectively.]]

The '''Military Salute''' is a long-standing tradition of military forces around the world, and it is obviously the most visible and known gesture of military protocol to the average civilian. Its history is old and prestigious: medieval knights, after a battle, would open their maskshelms with the right hand towards other knights, showing that they were an ally (by revealing their face) and that they were being non-hostile (by using their right hand, which is the one used to wield weapons). This gesture eventually evolved into the one known today, and it is both an acknowledgment of kinship and a sign of respect.

Salutes are usually rendered by an officer (be it equal or lesser rank than the salutee) or enlisted soldier to an officer of equal or higher rank. TheIn officersome forces, whilethe notsoldier obligatedoffering the salute must continue to returnsalute the superior officer until the officer either returns the salute, almostor is no longer universallyin doessight. Not returning the salute is a serious show of disrespect and condescension, which reflects poorly on the salutee. This also has another interesting effect: initiating a salute towards an officer of lesser rank or an enlisted soldier, while not considered insulting (generally), is considered weird and out of place. In the United States armed forces and the armed forces of those countries which award the Victoria Cross, there is one exception to this rule: if you are a recipient of the Medal Of Honor or the Victoria Cross, you ''WILL'' be saluted by any member of the armed forces, regardless of rank. So yes, this means that [[Badass|badasserybadass]]ery is worthy of saluting.

Saluting is [[Serious Business|SERIOUS business]] for any member of the armed forces, and its misuse or improper execution are considered a serious ''faux pas'' at best and a serious ''insult'' at worst. If you're a soldier and you render an improper salute, expect a small lecture on proper execution and a SEVERE butt-chewing ''if you're lucky''. Worst-case scenario, you can even be taken for disciplinary action and get hit where it really hurts: your paycheck. As mentioned above, the salute is a sign of respect and kinship, so any kind of corruption, change or mockery in the salute reflects very poorly on the saluter.

Also, a very important characteristic of the salute is that it is a ''privilege'', not a right. While civilians may salute as a sign of respect for a soldier, this is more about soldiers gracefully accepting gratitude than the civilian actually being acknowledged in kinship. In fact, military prisoners convicted of a crime ''cannotmust not'' salute: since the salute, as mentioned above, is an expression of kinship, saluting someone while being imprisoned is akin to saying the salutee is as much of a criminal as the saluter, which can end in a WORLD of shit for the saluter. However, enemy prisoners of war CAN be saluted according to their rank, and it is seen as a sign of respect and fairness for a soldier of the imprisoning army to salute the imprisoned officer.

There are also situations in which saluting is NOT recommended. When in the field or in a forward operation base, soldiers are instructed not to salute, since it identifies the officer/VIP, which can [[Boom! Headshot!|provide a sniper with an easy target.]] Some military forces also dictate that salutes should only be used while wearing headgear and doing so while bare-headed is at least improper protocol.

* '''National symbols''': TheIn some countries, the flag should be saluted when one passes it by while walking, and one should stand in attention and salute when it is raised or lowered, or when the national anthem is played.

* In the ''[[Akira (Manga)|Akira]]'' manga, after {{spoiler|Akira reawakens and destroys Tokyo a second time}}, Colonel Shikishima is one of the survivors and wanders around aimlessly. One of his former soldiers recognizes him and salutes him with tears in his eyes.

* [[Lupin the ThirdIII|Inspector Zenigata]] salutes Count Cagliostro when he reports in ''[[The CastleofCastle Cagliostro (Anime)|The Castleofof Cagliostro]]''. Cagliostro doesn't even acknowledge it, being the [[asshole]] he is.

* This is common procedure in the Time-Space AdministrationAdministrative Bureau in the ''[[Lyrical Nanoha]]'' series. It's done for effect in one scene in Episode 13 of [[Striker S]]''StrikerS'', when Nanoha and Fate tell Hayate that they're helping her with her division because that's what friends do, then salute her and tell her that they trust her as their superior officer.

* ''[[The Rock]]'' features this several times, but it becomes symbolic. First, it is tragic (saluting a burial detail), then it is a sign of respect and purpose, then it is {{spoiler|noticeably less and less present, until it is gone completely, signifying the breakdown of order and revealing the true nature of most of the terrorists.}}

* In the film version of ''[[We Were Soldiers]]'', and officer chews out a soldier for disobeying his order to stand in formation with his military honors visible. The soldier goes to get his honors and comes back ''[[Full -Frontal Assault|buck naked]]'' and with TWO Medals Of Honor around his neck. The officer salutes the soldier, ashamed of both chewing out a soldier who had earned the highest military honor the nation bestows ''twice'' and the fact that he HAD to salute even when being completely insulted by the naked soldier.

* The ''[[Master and Commander]]'' film has a plot point where a character failing to salute a disliked lieutenant is flogged.

** The event that starts things rolling is the brutal punishment a not-too-bright inmate receives for saluting the general. When the inmate still insists on saluting, the colonel running the prison {{spoiler|has him killed in an 'accident'}}. This convinces the general that the colonel is insane and has to be stopped.

{{quote| '''B.O.B.:''' Well, that's rude! What did we do?<br />

{{quote| '''Dawson:''' Ten-hut! There's an officer on the deck.}}

* In the ''[[Discworld]]'' book ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Men At Arms|Men Atat Arms]]'', Detritus initially had trouble with saluting and would frequently knock himself out by hitting himself in the head.

== [[Live-Action TelevisionTV]] ==

* In ''[[MASH]]'',* Hawkeye, Trapper John, and BJ tend to mockingly salute Frank Burns. [[Played For Laughs]] most of the time.

** Also from ''MASH'', oneOne of the onlyvery few non-mocking salutes Hawkeye ever gave was to Radar when he was shipping out - Hawk was busy in the OR but gave Radar a salute in lieu of the going -away party that the casualties canceled.

* [[Red Dwarf (TV)|A.J. Rimmer]] and his ridiculously [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al5bErqFrDQ overextended salutes]. The fact he's apparently completely serious just makes the whole thing funnier.

* Used often in ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' between the Doctor and Jack, although at the time neither were part of military organisations. (The Doctor is/was a UNIT employee but hates their constant saluting, and Jack has served in both World War 1 and 2. [[Time Travel|More than once.]]) Usually, it shows the respect between the two characters. The final salute given between them shows Jack's thanks, and Ten's final goodbye.

** In [[Doctor Who (TV)/Recap/S32 E2/E02 Day of the Moon|The Day of the Moon]], Rory poses as an American military officer and salutes NASA security. He gives the British salute by mistake, which goes neatly with his inability to fake an American accent.

* ''[[Band of Brothers (TV series)|Band of Brothers]]'': When one of the characters declines to salute a superior officer with whom he has personal issues, he is gently reminded "We salute the rank, not the man."

== Pro[[Professional Wrestling]] ==

* ''[[Team Fortress 2 (Video Game)|Team Fortress 2]]'': The Soldier, {{spoiler|who was never in any branch of the military and thus has no basic training to fail}}, "salutes" by making an L with his left hand.

* ''[[Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater]]'' and ''[[Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots|4]]'' has the [[Manly Tears|Teary-Eyed Salute version]] in front of {{spoiler|The Boss's grave.}}

* In the ending of ''[[Resident Evil 0Zero]]'', Rebecca and Billy, having [[Fire-Forged Friends|come to respect and trust another]], exchange a salute after Rebecca helps fake Billy's death.

* A [[Subverted Trope|subversion]]: The Nazi salute (arm stretched forward, palm facing down) is so distinctive and reviled, any use of it in fiction, instead of focusing on the protocol of the saluter, will instead be used to signal [[Character Alignment|the character's morally dubious [[Character Alignment|alignment]].

** This gesture was commonly ([http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_salute:Roman salute|though mistakenly]]) believed to be an ancient Roman salute, which was why the Italian Fascists adopted it (and the Nazis took it from them). Expect to see it in films set in [[Ancient Grome]], especially if they were made before World War II. In fact, that gesture was originally the one used by [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellamy_salute:Bellamy salute|American civilians giving the Pledge of Allegiance]], until the Nazis put it dead out of fashion, at which place it was replaced by the modern right-hand-over-heart gesture.