The US Army is now bribing kids to risk death

[detlef]

It shouldn't be particularly surprising to anyone with an attention span any longer than a gnat's that the military is having some trouble finding recruits these days. Volunteers/recruits were plentiful back in the early days, post-9/11. Now that the War on Terror has been mismanaged into oblivion, those recruits aren't so plentiful anymore

Comments

[detlef]

Recruiting is a demanding job, a job that a lot of guys will do just about anything to avoid. The way the Marines are set up now, after a certain period in your career you have to do what is called a "B-billet." There are a choice of options, but restrictions apply to all of them and you could get stuck doing something you just don't have a heart in.

They run recruiters ragged, not just because it's not easy to get recruits in these days, but because they tie performance to promotional opportunities. Obviously that makes some recruiters less scrupulous than others in how they get kids in (my recruiter included).

I don't know how it was when your uncle was in, but I think the era he was working in probably did lead to more job satisfaction. He certainly didn't have to negotiate the demands the "all-volunteer" military place on recruiters, both professionally and morally. Kids didn't have the opportunities back then that we enjoy now, and he very likely was giving some of them a chance to get something they never would have had otherwise. I'm sure those kids would probably look back on his guidance with a sense of gratitude a lot of us who have come in during the last decade will never have regarding our recruiters.

Old Marines are some genuinely wonderful guys. Our country asked a great deal from them (and from other members of the service, too), and they were there to give it. I'll never be able to thank them all, but know that I'm thankful for your uncle's service to our country and that as long as the Marine Corps remains an organization conscious of its history he'll always be appreciated.