I wonder where we are going…
This is an excerpt from a rather long discussion about whether or not a veteran should recommend to kids today to go in the military…
I said that if someone told me they wanted to join the military I would do nothing to discourage them. Though certainly not a good comparison, I would not discourage a young person from doing what they wanted to do, especially if they are of a parental household that could and should provide good advice tailored to their young person’s interests, aptitudes, and abilities — Tradesperson, Professionalperson, Militaryperson, whatever.
But am I an expert on the military a person is about to join and therefore could/should provide expert advice? Hardly. Not in reference to today’s military, and any retiree of 1993 who counsels based on his or her experience is padding the books.
I also said that if in a different context, someone simply asked for my advice regarding possibly joining the military as a choice I would not counsel in favor of it. Thin line, I know, but it would be my responsibility to gauge depth of intent. You want to do it? Probably have good parental advice on life’s matters? I’ll not speak against it. But if you are merely asking advice on joining a current day organization, nay, a way of life, well, there are a lot of choices out there who may have fewer hidden objectionable factors. Not that way in my time, but certainly that way as I see things now. In years past I could not have imagined that response to ever come from me in my lifetime. It went against all of my former observations, analysis, and standards of a most-of-my-adult lifetime of service. But it is not what I see today; it is discouraging, unacceptable, and painful.
Sadly, I agree with the person that said this…
I am forced to agree with the final paragraph you quoted. In fact, I actively discouraged my daughters from making the decision which I made in 1972, leading to my enlistment in 1973. YMMV, and all that, but it’s not the same military which I joined then.
My son just finished Army AIT (Advanced Individual Training). It was month after month of hell. Nothing but mind games, gross incompetence, casual negligence, petty revenge, and random chaos. And that’s from the officers and NCOs, not the trainees. They’re losing about 10% of their students to being chaptered out for psychiatric discharges, because they’re driving normal people insane. Not to mention the four that died of the vexxine.
Rev- Sad, but true.
McC- So sorry to hear that, but I can’t say I’m surprised.
Hey Old NFO;
My family has served since the revolutionary war, we had both sides on the war between the states and I did 6 years, my brother did 29, it is something that we do to pay the debt as citizens of the Republic. My son has no interest and my Aunt who’s hubby served as a squid commented that “we have paid the debt enough, and from what I have seen perhaps it is good that your son doesn’t want to join.” Initially I was disappointed but after seeing the rank incompetence and malfeasance that I have seen, I am glad that he isn’t in. When I was in in the 1980’s and early 90’s we knew what we were doing, but Bill Clinton’s administration injected the rot and it started to spread, and Obungler’s Administration accelerated the spread. I am afraid that we will get our ass handed to us if we go up against a peer or a near peer force because of the rot and I keep thinking of the French circa 1939 where they had a well equiped Military,better than Germany but they had a rot of the spirit and no martial drive and got conquered in 6 weeks.
Is Biden an Idiot, a Senile Lunatic, a Delusional Walking Embarrassment to our Country Yes, you can bet your last dollar on it . And so is everyone who voted for him
I am more fearful for my nephew who is now in the Fl NatGuard than when he was in the Air Force. For one, he spent all the time in the Air Force (construction crew, you know, to fix airfields and stuff) sitting on base with no money for fuel, while as soon as he got out to the NG he was deployed over and over and over again. Now he’s gone career Nat Guard, but… with the elitist incompetents in charge in DC (I refuse to besmirch Washington’s name) I fear for his life, not from an IED or a bunch of very scary Puerto Ricans (he said he was more fearful in PR than in Iraq) but from the command structure and when the idiots will nationalize the Nat Guards and yank them away from the governors. And stupid stuff like the clot shot.
I’ve a grandson in the South Caroline NG. 5th Generation Army. His father was a 68W (Medic) out on a disability discharge when he died, age 41, from complications of service injuries. I’ve a granddaughter in High School NROTC. She recently made Ensign, as a 16 year old High School Junior. She wants to attend the Naval Academy.
If and when they ask my advice, I give it in the form of questions. The goal is to help them think out their decisions. Key here, their decisions.
I loath what is happening to our military with the poisonous “woke” rot making way. My response is to do my part as a citizen to fight it by going after the “wokes” in any nonviolent way I can.
I clearly remember my father and his brothers and brothers-in-law talking about the appalling mess the 1942-43 military services were. It was their efforts that turned it around. So this is my point. Will the services ever be what they should be if good people, patriots, don’t serve and fight to improve from within?
I was ion the military for 21 years; ’80 to ’02. I saw this feel-good crap starting in the early ’90’s. It pretty much started when the military began pushing women into “non-traditional” specialties. It’s gone downhill from there. Everything we’re seeing now in the civilian world was being forced down our throats back then. I waved a red lantern but was told to siddown and shuddup.
No, I wouldn’t recommend the military to a young person. I don’t like the direction the country’s headed in, and I’d hate to see them on the opposite side of the battlefield…
Not the only organizations a young person can attempt to be a part of for learning, that will likely seriously mess that young person up.
It’s basically a combination of trust, with the breakdown in America’s peace consensus.
Used to be, religious leftists would pretend they weren’t at war with everyone else, and the go along to get alongs would be aware of possible right wins enough that they would not utterly commit to supporting the religious leftists.
“Don’t hang around stupid people” basically means not associating with the bureaucracies all in on this, unless one is fairly grounded, and has an exit strategy. And kids these days are even worse at telling folks who cross the line to fuck off than the rest of us are.
So, yeah, I specifically would suggest to younger people that they avoid certain of the organizations that may have done me good when I was younger.
All- Thanks for the comments. No disagreement over here.
As far as I can determine, my family has served in every war since the Revolution except the Spanish-American War. A further number of us were peacetime soldiers.
Eight-plus years ago, my son was near graduating high school. He wanted to join the Marines. I talked him out of it, and I explained my reasons. They revolved around the degradation of all services under a large number of Presidents, starting with Carter and moving forward. I also told him that while I’m sure my great grandparents were less than sanguine about my grandfather volunteering for WWI, nor him of his son volunteering for WWII, nor my parents of me of volunteering during a time when it looked like we might actually wind up fighting the Russians on the plains of Europe, they all at least had faith that our President had the best interests of the nation at heart. (They may or may not have been correct in those beliefs, but that’s a different topic.) I told him I had no such belief about our then-current President. Feel free to do the math and figure out who that President was.
And now we have one that is even worse? No way would I counsel a kid to join today. My advice is go to tech school. My son did and now makes nearly 6 figures a year as a welder.
Free- Thank you for the comments, and agree with tech school!
Wearing my “ARMY VETERAN” sweatshirt in Wally World today a woman thanked me for my service. My response was that I was honored to serve. She commented on the present state of affairs in the military and said her son had volunteered and had served three years but declined to re-up because of politics in his chain of command.
We’re losing the good ones.
The strap-hangers will remain.
Strap-hangers? …More like sheep…
GB/Tom- Both???
I’ve been guiding people toward trade school for years.
I fear that I would not like what has become of the vo-techs.
The National Guard recruiter is coming to the house this afternoon. My Kenneth will turn 17 this month, and he is pumped about the possibility of going to BASIC summer of 2022, between his junior and senior years, then going to AIT when he graduates in 2023.
It’s not a BAD plan, considering that he doesn’t have the academic drive for college. If he can get a good school, might be able to get a career out of it. Air Traffic Controller was a sweet MOS years ago; don’t know what they have available now, in this neck of the woods.
He will be fifth generation enlisted, if this pans out for him. I’m not sure it will, though.
Nolan- Concur!
Bob- Most of them are gone!!!
Pat- I hope it works out for him! I hope and pray…