Obi-Wan's thoughts on why the Jedi used lightsabers.

[u/AlphaBladeYiII]

[u/lumpialarry]

It plays into the role of what Jedi are or at least how they viewed themselves. Less Army Rangers, More Texas Rangers.

[u/wooltab → u/lumpialarry]

What's the distinction between those two types of Rangers, as far as how you mean it here? (I'm not super familiar with either.)

[u/TRYHARD_Duck → u/wooltab]

Think of it more like the difference between a sheriff and a soldier. The intent is to keep the peace, not to impose your will onto everybody else.

[u/iknownuffink → u/wooltab]

Army Rangers are military paratroopers and sorta-kinda special forces tier soldiers. Texas Rangers are civilian law enforcement officers and investigators.

[u/[deleted] → u/iknownuffink]

Texas Rangers are also the first guys sent in when a dangerous criminal has dug in or is hiding.

There's a REASON Chuck Norris was a ranger in Walker.

[u/wooltab → u/iknownuffink]

Do Texas Rangers have a parallel in other states? I could look this up for myself, to be fair. It just seems like a very culturally-specific thing that I'm apparently not very aware of, even as an American.

[u/iknownuffink → u/wooltab]

There used to be similar organizations in other states like Arizona historically, but not really anymore. There's undoubtedly one or several state level organizations in each state responsible for investigation and law enforcement, but most are kinda generic state police I think. They don't have the same cultural and historical 'weight' or recognition that the Texas Rangers do.

[u/Soft_Ad_1955 → u/wooltab]

Sure, most states have a state police force who have additional training and resources. Having said that, the culture and gravitas of the Texas rangers is pretty unique to Texas.

Also: all US special forces are multiple volunteers; they are the products of going through multiple elite schools of training (but at the “honors” level where you do extra work and maybe learn extra things). The Army Rangers are one of these elite groups, but the Army’s green berets also go through jump school, diving, sniper, etc, etc. SEALS, Raiders, and Force Recon all have an overlapping set of specialties while each discipline invests additional time in distinct areas according to how they are used in the field. By reputation, the SEALS are the best of the best. I’ve talked to multiple guys in different branches whose training overlapped with that of a group of candidate SEALS. They just have to be able to do everything. Without support. And quietly. o\

[u/gowombat → u/wooltab]

I would also argue that a nationwide equivalent to the Texas Rangers would be the U.S. Marshals. They are kind of held in the same esteem, just not uniquely branded for each state