Modern Warfare Mask Lands French Soldier in Trouble

[Kargathia]

I won't pretend to know anything about French military politics, but aren't the French Foreign Legion mercenaries?

Technically, yes. They're professional soldiers, and aren't even required to have the French nationality.
As long as you're physically competent enough, and understand enough French to understand an angry guy shouting at you, you'll be fine.
It's the French solution for putting (often colonial) hard-asses to good use. Historically it ended up being a unit filled with adventurers, fugitive criminals, and ex-soldiers from the various North African countries once colonised by France.

They are not anywhere near being Mercenaries. They are fully part of the French Army, there's no question about that. The particularities of the Legion is that, yes, they will allow anyone to join, no questions asked. They will change your name if you request so, give you the French nationality, and protect you from prosecution.

It's no longer the case that former colonies constitute the bulk of that force, now you have a lot of Eastern Countries types and even French nationals who just want a new life.

As for the "French surrender lol" jokes, I never really got them. Every single country the Germans attacked was overwhelmed by the Blitzkrieg - except for Russia because they were throwing cannon fodder. UK was saved by the Channel. The German army was the most powerful military of the time. The French army had lost more than 1 million soldiers in WWI, you don't refill that many of your troops in 20 years. There are many people who could expand on the reasons, and none of them include being a coward. Anyone who knows more than 2 chapters about military history know that France had no other choice but to surrender - they had been defeated. And then fought back as the fiercest resistance you've ever seen. What the US experiences in Iraq is nothing compared to what the Germans suffered in Occupied France.

Correct on all counts, hence the "historically", as I was slightly more informed on reasons behind, and historical composition than on whomever joins it nowadays.

As to the mercenaries thing: it's a regular army unit recruiting what could very well be described as mercenaries: professional soldiers signing up for a set duration, nationality not important. The unit itself, of course, is definitely not mercenary.

And yea, French surrender jokes are nothing more than British snideness at France's performance in WWII, disregarding the fact their own army was routed, and could only be extracted at the loss of virtually all its material.
France has one of the strongest and proudest military traditions of any country, stemming from the middle ages, further reinforced by Napoleon revolutionising pretty much every single concept imaginable when it comes to warfare. The mere existence of "France" is tribute to them doing pretty damn well while being nearly constantly at war for close to a a thousand years.

EDIT: reread previous post, and I think my syntax wasn't entirely clear. "Adventurers and fugitives" definitely was not restricted to "from various French ex-colonies".

 

[MatthewJ]

pretty cool, im always in stuff like this. got into airsoft because of what i do as a hobby http://www.airsplat.com/airsoft-video-games.htm and its pretty awesome