[ARCHIVED THREAD] - 23% of 18-24 year olds qualify for military service only 9% interested (Page 7 of 9)
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Quoted: So the only basis of your argument is you might have been in the military longer? If you are talking about current dynamics in the military, I’d be inclined to listen to somebody who commissioned while Bush was in office and is still in, than somebody who never served at all. So, yes? |
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Quoted: How did it get that way? When did the right decide it was an institution that wasn't worth fighting for? Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: The left hates the military, the right hates the military. We're on our own. The right doesn't hate the military, they hate what it has become thanks to the Federal Government. How did it get that way? When did the right decide it was an institution that wasn't worth fighting for? We're so used to losing institutions and not being able to take them back that we just reflexively give up quick now. Look how surprised people were when youngkin took virginia. |
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Quoted: We're so used to losing institutions and not being able to take them back that we just reflexively give up quick now. Look how surprised people were when youngkin took virginia. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: The left hates the military, the right hates the military. We're on our own. The right doesn't hate the military, they hate what it has become thanks to the Federal Government. How did it get that way? When did the right decide it was an institution that wasn't worth fighting for? We're so used to losing institutions and not being able to take them back that we just reflexively give up quick now. Look how surprised people were when youngkin took virginia. The right would rather hate things than fight for them. |
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Quoted: The right would rather hate things than fight for them. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: The left hates the military, the right hates the military. We're on our own. The right doesn't hate the military, they hate what it has become thanks to the Federal Government. How did it get that way? When did the right decide it was an institution that wasn't worth fighting for? We're so used to losing institutions and not being able to take them back that we just reflexively give up quick now. Look how surprised people were when youngkin took virginia. The right would rather hate things than fight for them. I don't think that's true for a second. When the right does see that something works and they can do it, along with their everyday lives, we bite down. Hard. It gets treated like work and people go for mastery at it. People need to see viability. The failing of the right is that conservatism just shows how to conserve something. On it's own it doesn't give you a solid principal and standard for *what* to preserve. |
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Do I think we should lower standards? No. Absolutely not. We need to lower service number requirements. We dont need a standing Army of 500,000 Soldiers of middling quality. We need an Army of 350,000 STUDS. The equipment and technology will handle the rest. I couldn't agree more. We are well on our way to some of our formations damn near being jobs programs instead of useful military units, in the style of a few un-named European countries... |
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A general sentiment by quite a few posters in this thread is that we shouldn't play world police and let China and Russia do as they please in their respective spheres of influence. In many discussions I've had over the years, I've actually found few people who truly object to many of our "world police" roles. The police, in theory, stop bad people from doing bad things to other people. And then leave. What the police do not do, in theory, is promulgate jobs programs to reduce such crime, or take on responsibility for economic development, or engage in ministerial-level politics in support of internal government affairs, and all the myriad of non-military tasks we've had those same operations undertake. We've asked our policeman to be our policeman, fireman, garbageman, investment advisor, teacher, clergy, social counselor, etc. That mire has been a dismal failure for us, over and over and over. |
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Which Bush?  If you are talking about current dynamics in the military, I’d be inclined to listen to somebody who commissioned while Bush was in office and is still in, than somebody who never served at all. So, yes? Which Bush? Ha, I enlisted and then later commissioned under Bush41 and am in until Jan of 2023. Do we have a dinosaur emoji? |
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Time to replace people with robots 
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Quoted: If you are talking about current dynamics in the military, I’d be inclined to listen to somebody who commissioned while Bush was in office and is still in, than somebody who never served at all. So, yes? Given that I was talking about corporations universities and schools I kind of think the basis of your argument is, well frankly, random or a non sequitur. As far as the statement about representation combat casualties multiple studies support the statement. But facts are an exaggeration because you might have served longer |
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It may seem strange to boomers and older people but look at it from the perspective of Millennials and younger people. It's not like the military has been allowed to do anything to defend America from invasion during their lifetimes. Nor is the military allowed to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic" so I can't blame anyone who doesn't want to take an oath they will be punished for keeping. |
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Quoted: I hit 20 years of Army service on Saturday. My 17 year old son wants to continue the family tradition of service. I told him I would not support him joining the Army. Air Force maybe, but the woke agenda, horrendous leadership, high op tempo, and horrible maintenance make the Army ready to collapse on itself. I wouldn’t start over today. It depends on your career field sometimes. Office weenies go to those all the time. I was in the Air Force. Worked on B-52's. We would have required classes we were scheduled for. We were short handed the day I was scheduled to go take the class. The Chief called me in the office and said "You took that class already, didn't you?" I said no sir I haven't taken it yet. He repeated himself with more volume and the stare knowing you were looking at 30 days of picking FOD up on the ramp by yourself. Sir, I was mistaken, I did take that. He pulls out a form already signed showing my attendance. Lol. I would rather have a Colonel pissed at me than a Chief Master Sergeant |
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It's not just a job - it's a really shitty job. That you live at. And can't leave. Yeah that'll wear on you. |
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Peoples desire to fight and die in unjust/unnecessary foreign wars is usually low when the economy is booming. Why make $30k as a grunt when you can get a sales job out of college making $60k Personally would never encourage my kids to join the military. Short of a foreign nation trying to invade our soil where it’s life or death I don’t think it makes sense. My kids don’t need to fight I oil wars or wars that are just dick measuring contests for wealthy elites |
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Quoted: Peoples desire to fight and die in unjust/unnecessary foreign wars is usually low when the economy is booming. Why make $30k as a grunt when you can get a sales job out of college making $60k Personally would never encourage my kids to join the military. Short of a foreign nation trying to invade our soil where it's life or death I don't think it makes sense. My kids don't need to fight I oil wars or wars that are just dick measuring contests for wealthy elites |
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Quoted: Because sales jobs are boring and meaningless. Flying planes, driving tanks, and fighting wars is fucking awesome. Quoted: Quoted: Peoples desire to fight and die in unjust/unnecessary foreign wars is usually low when the economy is booming. Why make $30k as a grunt when you can get a sales job out of college making $60k Personally would never encourage my kids to join the military. Short of a foreign nation trying to invade our soil where it's life or death I don't think it makes sense. My kids don't need to fight I oil wars or wars that are just dick measuring contests for wealthy elites Can we fit all the above in with all the transgender and racism and sexism training? |
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Younger kiddo loves outdoor things and treasures his challenge coins. Has some surplus gear that he wears every day whenever he gets a chance. He'd be a natural candidate for the service, and we have a family history of service going back to 1774. My grandfather, my dad and I all served. Unless our country changes direction, I'm going to encourage him to do something else. We're not a force protecting the freedom of speech and keeping communism away from our shores. I don't think making the world safe for corporate pride month is worth risking his neck. |
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Quoted: Disabled vet here. I have told all my kids they are not allowed to join the military nor should any sane person these days. Fuck that liberal noise. Go acquire a solid skill, become self employed, live your life on your terms, and profit. One could gain a real leg up on that path with a successful enlistment, of course. |
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Quoted: Yep, my biggest regret has been joining the US Army when I was 17. I should have joined the Spanish Foreign Legion instead. Quoted: Quoted: I dont blame them. The military is gay as fuck Yep, my biggest regret has been joining the US Army when I was 17. I should have joined the Spanish Foreign Legion instead. What do you do for the Army? |
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Quoted: I wonder how many of that 23% are being discouraged by their GWOT-vet relatives? I just spent last week holding a family member's hand while she died of cancer that even the VA agrees is connected to her Iraq service (burn pits). I don't want to subject my daughter to that. Yep dont be a cog in their machine. They dgaf about you and yours just their raytheon/lockheed portfolios. Less than a year after the afghan withdrawal already beating the war drums for some eastern european shithole. |
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Thanks |
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Financial incentives are only part of the equation. They are offering bonuses for retention and recruitment now and still can’t meet the goals. I think most can agree there are multiple factors going into this and I’m not sure congress can fix it with legislation even if they really tried. (I don’t think most of them care) Pay Benefits Quality of life Retirement changes (high three to a 401k) Nearly two Decades of fighting non stop with everything televised Civil assistance missions that no one sees any results from Operational tempo Veterans Administration shenanigans Leadership more focused on ensuring all the boxes for (insert woke reason here) are checked rather than focusing on skills and stuff for the actual mission Add on the recent pull out of Afghanistan mess and all of that other stuff mashed together makes people who are serving, have served or are thinking about serving questioning everything. Yet congress and others sit around and go “my gosh we can’t figure this out so it must be a problem with recruiters”. They think they can legislate, train or otherwise fix it with more $. I wouldn’t be surprised if they start stop loss in the next few years or increase the time in service for retirement. |
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Quoted: They are qualified because the standards are lower. Quoted: Quoted: I have a real hard time believing even 23% are qualified... They are qualified because the standards are lower. My son just enlisted. Still a poolie. Said one who already went to Boot Camp has dropped already -- couldn't pass the IST(?). I guess they don't have fat body plt anymore? Eh, mil is fucked up these days, but he'll get some right of passage training and some other training and a lot of experience that he couldn't get anywhere else. I bet also there are still pockets of the mil that don't put up with the gay tranny shit. |
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Quoted: My son just enlisted. Still a poolie. Said one who already went to Boot Camp has dropped already -- couldn't pass the IST(?). I guess they don't have fat body plt anymore? Eh, mil is fucked up these days, but he'll get some right of passage training and some other training and a lot of experience that he couldn't get anywhere else. I bet also there are still pockets of the mil that don't put up with the gay tranny shit. He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. |
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Quoted: He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. Quoted: Quoted: My son just enlisted. Still a poolie. Said one who already went to Boot Camp has dropped already -- couldn't pass the IST(?). I guess they don't have fat body plt anymore? Eh, mil is fucked up these days, but he'll get some right of passage training and some other training and a lot of experience that he couldn't get anywhere else. I bet also there are still pockets of the mil that don't put up with the gay tranny shit. He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. 100 percent. It's not lost despite what the people who aren't in think. |
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Quoted: Maybe the youth aren't as stupid as we thought. Who would want to go in to serve for the leadership we have now? And risk getting pulled into WW3. For sure. Civvie jobs pay more, less danger. Probably the same amount of wokeness and PC, particularly in the larger companies. |
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What's that old saying. God created men. Colt made all men equal. I fat F can still shoot you just as dead as a skinny guy can. Just saying....they may not be able to run and gun but they can still pull that trigger from a defensive position. But really under the current administration there's no way in hell I'd enlist. Glad I did my time already. |
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Quoted: 100 percent. It's not lost despite what the people who aren't in think. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My son just enlisted. Still a poolie. Said one who already went to Boot Camp has dropped already -- couldn't pass the IST(?). I guess they don't have fat body plt anymore? Eh, mil is fucked up these days, but he'll get some right of passage training and some other training and a lot of experience that he couldn't get anywhere else. I bet also there are still pockets of the mil that don't put up with the gay tranny shit. He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. 100 percent. It's not lost despite what the people who aren't in think. Agree as well. He has school friends who aren't doing shit now and then a bunch going to college just because it's the thing you do. I'll post pics once he graduates boot in Team or Mil forum. Looking forward to it. |
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Quoted: Cynical take: Hey, when they manage to kick it off inside the union their recruiting in antifa and the left will skyrocket after they put out adverts of new recruits driving a tank through a ranch style house with a nice picket fence with normal looking kids outside playing on the lawn.  Our adverts will have them being push out if a helicopter into school of sharks. |
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Quoted: He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. Quoted: Quoted: My son just enlisted. Still a poolie. Said one who already went to Boot Camp has dropped already -- couldn't pass the IST(?). I guess they don't have fat body plt anymore? Eh, mil is fucked up these days, but he'll get some right of passage training and some other training and a lot of experience that he couldn't get anywhere else. I bet also there are still pockets of the mil that don't put up with the gay tranny shit. He'll absolutely find some like-minded individuals. The military is still the best place to bro out with good dudes and do cool shit. Don't doubt it. But sounds like it's slowly changing and of course some(most?) of the upper echelons are shitbirds trying to turn it into a social experiment. |