Teenagers, the U.S. Army Wants You

any sentence that begins with but my recruiter told me .... is followed by gales of laughter by anyone within earshot. some may snidely reply.. did you get it in writing? but most just laugh. your rights and freedoms afforded you in the military under ucmj are hidden and obscure. in fact there are veterans who volunteer to serve their fellow soldiers by teaching them about hidden benefits and programs that no one else will tell you about. most of our troops are constantly trying to juggle bills. and the help their familys have while they are at war is a sham. just because they risk their lives for freedom ( and regardless of why our government is there that is why most of them are) they should be the ones to vote first on wars. that being said where do you think they would get their facts before voting? i have two brothers there right now and all they see, is all the good we are doing for those poor people. in fact if you are not in a combat m.o.s. you dont see many atrocities or horrors ( at least not the ones committed by us) all you see is us helping children and civilians and all the ancillary good we are accomplishing in our oil crusades.

The Army recruiters are at my school it seems at least once a week. They just stand there quietly broushures spread out on a table. (Because, really, broushures do the injuries, PTSD and, oh right, death you could possibly suffer from your service in the army justice.) I've never been approached by a recruiter and have never seen anyone else approached by them. But just their very presence, the phone calls, the whole thing is so imposing.

I read all these comments and Its been really interesting hearing from the people who are for the recruiters recruiting at schools and those who are against it. I have commend grenneyedd, WorldPeaceTV and Walk_In_Storms, you three have had the most compelling comments I've read here.

I wanted to just chime in a bit, I used to live in Navy Land Virginia Beach, VA which was a place where everyone and their mothers where in military families. I went to a minority filled, diverse, high school and our NJROTC was filled will many kids who really enjoyed their training and some who just took the class because the mom or dad had probably egged them on. Now at almost all of the events in our school, there were always recruiters but really with the amount of kids who were in ROTC classes they didn't have to do much work really.

I just always found it so shady how they would come to schools that where in middle to lower middle to lower class areas. I lived in the suburbs but by no means was I one of those kids with funds in the bank to send me off to my college dreams, like many of the kids that went to school with me. Granted these recruiters go to some higher class schools they're less likely to make their quotas of people joining b/c their parents have been saving to send their kids to college, so why risk their lives just for some money for college. Now for those who lived in higher income families and still wanted to join I truly commend them because they joined, despite everything going on, because they were INTERESTED in the military life, not just for $.

My father was a military man but by no means was I a kid of a military family really. I didn't get those benefits; we were just a normal family really. But he would talk about how 'back in the day' people when into the military to shape up, get themselves out of trouble, and avoid jail in some cases. The military wasn't all about getting some dough; it was about the discipline that it instilled in the misguided. Thats what made it really honorable, especially during peacetime too. Its like sometimes I wonder, if they're willing to spend money on the housing of proven and convicted felons (I'm not even going to talk about those who are jailed for long periods of time when they were innocent all along, I'm talking about people who are proven with DNA, eyewitness testimony etc that that person committed the crime they were convicted for.) instead of keeping them here why not enlist them in the armed forces. This could be something that we could do instead of selling off our poor youth to fight in our wars. Send the criminals that are just sitting in our prisons doing nothing with their lives, instead of killing em off, send them to fight. But that’s just an idea of mine, it sound better then sending off our youth.
But to conclude: School Recruiting = Shady now a days.

well at least it was career day, at my school they stood in the middle of the hallway every tuesday......

Its like the cigarette companies, hook'm while their young.

If you don't want to do it....guess what?

Say no.

OMG that's so easy. Why didn't I think of that? Oh wait....

i was sent mail trying to get my son to enlist. i would rather send him to mexico instead just so he wouldnt have to enlist. you put your name on a list then theyve got u. the military lies to these young people just to fill their quotas, well my son will be safe from all that drama even if i have to lie about his whereabouts. ITS NOT HIS STINKING WAR AND ENUF YOUNG FOLKS HAVE DIED FIGHTING FOR SOMETHING THAT ISNT VERY CLEAR TO THE PUBLIC EVEN AFTER ALL THE TIME SPENT THERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Clay unless you're 25+ you received the propaganda from the other side of the board.

The military is the new "carnival"
Join up meet people, see the world, learn a trade that you will probaly never use in civilian life.

The promise of school is probably the biggest hook these days.
Just don't get Discharged. At All.

Teens join because of economic hardships, pending felony convictions and problems at home. It's a shame the poor are taken advantage of, and even worse that its with our children. Keep a good poor population and you have your troops to do whatever any criminal leader wants.

The system needs changing for sure.

Military recruiting today targets a specific demographic. It seems shady but the students they recruit are looking for opportunities that the Army is supplying: Those who can't pay for school, and those who aren't competitive enough to get scholarships. It's the military taking advantage of the situation.

I go to Corcoran high school in Syracuse and recruiters were there A LOT this past year.
I remember on one particular day they had a table set up in the lobby next to an Anti War group's table. One of the Army recruiters went up to their table and started arguing with them and saying that they weren't supporting the troops and were Anti-American.

Syracuse is a troubled city. Almost all of its industries and companies have shut down or moved elsewhere. There's really nothing there for anyone in terms of jobs so I'm sure the Army loves it in Central New York where a lot of kids from the Syracuse City District live in poorer neighborhoods and see no other alternatives available to them, so they think that if this way they get to go to college for free- why not?

They have college people come to school the army is just another option after school. They should be able to recruit people as much as any college. Some people cant afford college, and without the army they could never attend.

If the army is going to recruit it shouldn't be at a school.

I was a Marine recruiter. Let me tell you, I have no love for the whole system of recruiting. It's shady. Alot of the servicemembers doing it are good enough people. The pressure is, however, enormous. Alot of good people do things, anywhere along a continuum, for which they do not feel good about. What's worse, alot of the people in positions of authority have become what are known as "career recruiters". These often are some of our more morally bankrupt servicemembers. Having these fancy-dressed used car salesmen in charge does not enhance the honor or ethics surrounding the recruiting effort. Generally, Air Force recruiters have the best chance at not compromising their standards. They are, after the Marines, the smallest, are known to be the "easiest", and enjoy much greater success recruiting women. I have a broad definition of the word "lying". There is the straightforward standard lie. But then, there are the lies of ommission, downplay, and embellishment. I was one of the most honest recruiters and I still feel that I lied routinely. It's an ugly world, military recruiting. The system should change. As for me, as many problems as I knew the Marine Corps had, I can honestly say that for my first 7 years I still felt a sense of honor. As a recruiter (years 7-10), I felt tainted. I felt a little bad about myself and alot bad about my unit.

Um...that's not a valid reason for invading the country out of nowhere. I was not fed propaganda, I was fed facts. It's entirely possible Bush was just finishing what his daddy started. In general, Iraq had nothing to do with Osama Bin Laden. He went to Pakistan from Afghanistan, so we invaded Iraq. -_-

In general Bush is an asswipe.

No one makes you join the Armed Services. There is much more pressure on high school kids to have sex and do drugs than there is to do something positive with there lives and make something good out of themselves.

The army is good for paying tuitions and stuff. But those recruiters would annoy the hell out of me!

I am 16, and what are we fighting for if it's not for oil, lies, and greed?

Yeah kids, head off to Iraq and fight for oil, lies, and greed.

I was an 18 year old freshman at the University of Florida when 9/11 happened . I droped out after that fall semester and joined the Marines. At the time I was immature and irresponsible, I did well in school but I had no real drive to do much other than party. My time in the Marines made me grow up and take responsibility for my actions. It also gave me a different view of the world I have traveled more than I ever would have if I didn't join. I have been to Hawai'i, Iceland, Greenland, France, Bahrain, Germany, Iraq and tons of places in the U.S. that i would have never seen if not for the military. I'm currently a senior back at UF and the G.I. bill is paying for most of my education and living expenses where before i was using loans. so I do think the mitary can be good for lots of people its just not right for everyone. it doesn't mean that they should stop recruiting and informing these highschool students of whats out there.

i already signed and the experience and benifits are awsome. Only problem is cant smoke pot, but what ever had to give it up one day anyways.

You would think that if the army was such a wonderful entity to be a part of, people would be knocking down the doors.

The fact that recruiters can be likened to "telemarketers" should say something...

Why after a minimum of 4 years enlistment would you even have to be concerned about going to school?

Shouldn't you be getting an education during your enlistment time???

Your just signing up to be a corporate citizen for the largest corporation, the U.S. government.

Remember this, Once you sign they OWN you.

Look up "indebted servitude"

Obviously there's no Me in army.

Good luck sheeple....

I agree with FuckBush, Jeromecon is sort of confused as to what a real war is and what the illegal invasion of another country is.

"fbush "i understand your fustration but an army where the soldiers get to choose their battles wouldnt be much of an army ,would it

As a teen that gets mail from the Marines, National Guard, and the Navy several times a week, I can say that I'm really not convinced. There are loop holes when it comes to getting school covered, as well as some of the bonuses.

I do feel a sense of public duty, but I'd rather fulfill that with some time in the Peace Corps or Americorps.

the army is a good way to earn a good paycheck, healthcare for your children and they pay for your school when your out. Say what you want about the Iraq occupation but the army is a good place to start out your adult life.

i would be more than happy to defend our country, but i will not fight for their lies, their greed, and their oil

Did you know that Recruiters can get whatever information about you they want through you're school?
Fortunately you can opt out here:
http://www.militaryfreezone.org/opt_out

they called me a couple times. i said i wasn't interested and i'm not out of high school, nor 18. we're just cattle to them anyways.

Perhaps, but I don't agree that they should be targeted by recruiters at a young age. My cousin got targeted by a recruiter for the Marines and he used very questionable tactics and just flat out lies to get my cousin to enlist.

I think teens that decide to go into the U.S. Armed Forces are smart. If teens can decide to get pregnant at that age, they should damn well be able to decide to serve our Country.