Is shirking your duty hereditary

Tom_Reingold said:
My grandparents escaped from Russia during the Revolution. They came from the part that is now Ukraine. My grandfather didn't want to fight in the war, and he didn't believe in the Bolshevik cause. I suspect his primary motivation was to save his own life. Was he shirking his duty? Maybe, but I don't care.
My grandmother left some family there, and in 1989, some of them immigrated here, making my extended family much larger, suddenly. One of my new cousins, whom I will call S, had for many years been bugging her mother, K, that they should move to the US. At some point, S's brother got killed in a military accident in Kazakhstan. As S's younger brother D approached draft age, K suddenly realized that D's life was at risk just by being of draft age, so they moved as fast as possible. Their journey was long and hard, even in 1989, passing through one of those immigrant camps in Italy. I'm glad they did it, even though you could say D shirked his patriotic duty. Everyone is now a US citizen.

 Thanks for sharing your "shirking" story.   Similarly, my grandparents escaped the Ukraine.  They left in the early 20s at the conclusion of the Russian civil war.

My personal bug-a-boo is with those who describe moving to avoid conscription as "shirking."  If someone is having a difficult time (such as pogroms, siblings killed in prior military action, or the desire for liberty is not fulfilled) in their country of origin, it would appear to  me that moving to avoid conscription is likely a rational act.

Understand the OP’s question but the question is a distraction. DJT wraps himself in a flag that he has done nothing to honor. This has nil to do with grandad.

annielou said:
Understand the OP’s question but the question is a distraction. DJT wraps himself in a flag that he has done nothing to honor. This has nil to do with grandad.

 Agreed.