The beard is a reference to modern American SF. The guys who go in wearing baseball caps with all the fancy modern equipment and commit war crimes.
The beard is a signal of coolness because US military regulations require people be clean shaven so they can use gas masks effectively. So if a soldier has a beard, they are showing off how they get to break the rules because they are special. And they get to do so so regularly they can go long enough to grow out a full beard without getting told to shave.
Which leaks out as "what the cool SF guys look like". It's not a lumberjack thing, it's a fascist militarism thing.
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Nah I was talking more about the hair. The beard is probably viking-inspired.
The beard is a reference to modern American SF. The guys who go in wearing baseball caps with all the fancy modern equipment and commit war crimes.
The beard is a signal of coolness because US military regulations require people be clean shaven so they can use gas masks effectively. So if a soldier has a beard, they are showing off how they get to break the rules because they are special. And they get to do so so regularly they can go long enough to grow out a full beard without getting told to shave.
Which leaks out as "what the cool SF guys look like". It's not a lumberjack thing, it's a fascist militarism thing.