Military Training

Which branch would you joing?

  • Marines

    Votes: 16 20.8%

  • Army

    Votes: 27 35.1%

  • Navy

    Votes: 6 7.8%

  • Coast Guard

    Votes: 10 13.0%

  • Air Force

    Votes: 11 14.3%

  • None. No military. Never. No

    Votes: 7 9.1%
  • Total voters
    77
GLP:

Sorry if this sounds a bit harsh, but I call 'em like I see 'em.

You are a parasite.

You want the training, pay, insurance, travel, experience, status, respect of your countrymen, G.I. mortgage assistance and educational benefits that come from being a soldier (in any branch of the military) but you do not want to do the job of a soldier.

Stay out of the military - the military does not need parasites. Go to college instead; you can get training there, and you will be surrounded by other parasites who think like you.

Come to think of it, I'm not sorry.:D
 
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Stay out of the military - the military does not need parasites. Go to college instead; you can get training there, and you will be surrounded by other parasites who think like you.
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So people who choose college over the military are parasites? :confused:

I think the point to be made is not so much that going into the military or going into college are good or bad choices in and of themselves, but that going into them for the wrong reasons represents rather unwise, self-serving decisions and thinking that potentially holds serious repercussions both for the individual in question as well as those with whom they may serve.
 
I DO NOT want to join the Marines or the Army, so those are out. I can't see risking my life, and more than likely getting shot and killed over something I dont agree with in the first place. However just to see what people would say, I added those as choices in the poll.
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I would go one step further than what some others have said. Don't just forget the armed services. Forget America entirely and move to France--we have too many weak-minded, self-centered people here that are overly concerned with safety as it is!

So people who choose college over the military are parasites?
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Unless they are physically or mentally unable to do otherwise: yes. What would you propose to call people that reap the benefit without paying the price?
 
So people who choose college over the military are parasites?
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Nope - people who think like GLP are parasites.

BTW, I chose both college and the military (USAF, '85-'89); looking back, I would have stayed in - if I had known then what I know now.
 
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Phetro:
Unless they are physically or mentally unable to do otherwise: yes. What would you propose to call people that reap the benefit without paying the price?
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I would call them parasites. But the questions was
So people who choose college over the military are parasites
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Perhaps I misunderstood the way you are phrasing your answer to this question but it looks like you just called everyone who is phisically and mentally fit but chose college a parasite. I chose college but not necessarily over military. I just got caught up in other things and got busy with my life. I was this close to signing my name when I was seventeen but I was still in highschool and my parents said wait another year and I listened to their advise. I still wanted to do it but I got accepted to a really good school and decided to take that route. I would have gladly spilled my blood to protect the freedoms that we have and to defend this country. I also have the utmost respect for those that have, are, and will serve.
 
Honestly, I was thinking about how GLP wants join the military for just it's training and it's not entirely his fault for this attitude. When I first read his post, I was like man this guy's priorities are messed up. His loyalties would be only to himself and what he can benifit from the military, like the training. However, if you seen the ads for the military they basically push this selling point. So in a way I do understand where he's coming from, even though I don't agree with it, it's partly the ads that the military puts out. "earn money for college" "Get training for now, get training for later." Sounds familiar? Maybe once he does join he'll realize that there is more to the military than the benifits they can offer. I think most of the noobs that joined the military after 9/11 was to defend this country, that was my main reason but now the military is hurting for enlistments so they are selling the benifits instead of the true reason for serving. On a side note, the Air Force is laying off company grade officers right now. They call it Force Shaping and this happened because they recruited way too many officers after 9/11.
 
What would you propose to call people that reap the benefit without paying the price?
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I would call 50 percent taxes the price my man. I am literally spending half of a workday working for the government. Many European countries have compulsory military service, but thats more out of necessity.
 
I am not and have not been in the military...

GLP,

The bottom line is you do not understand the meaning or value of civic virtue or responsibility. You want to pick and choose how you serve purely to your benifit. At the same time you want to become a LEO, probably for similar "me" based reasoning.

You would serve society by enforcing laws you may not agree with but will not serve society by fighting a war you do not agree with. I fail to see the logic here. It seems to come squarly back to "me."

Wars are not always wrong. They are always tragic, but not always wrong. Some things must be fought for and you do not have a choice. At the same time the society that refuses to fight for what it believes in will be trounced very quickly.

You seem to think many people are picking on you or flaming you. The problem is every thing you post only digs a deeper hole. If you really want to understand something about civic duty and service do some research.

Talk to some real vets, if they are willing to speak, about their experiences.

Watch and read Band of Brothers, especially the interviews and documentary.

Watch Gettysburg and read The Killer Angels.

Watch and read Black Hawk Down.

READ (Do NOT Watch) Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein. Given your age and it being "only science fiction" you may find it more palatable. This book did more to help evolve my thinking than any other.

Look at the actions of those on United flight 93. They were not soldiers but I challenge anyone to state those people did not believe in something more important than themselves.

You do not need to be a vet to understand civic virtue but it certainly seems more common in them. Perhaps those who volunteer already posses it or perhaps the service helps to develop in those who already posses it. It will not magically create it though in one with no higher moral code. I haven't served in the military, perhaps it is my loss. I registerred, like every 18 year old and would have gone if called but did not volunteer. At the same time I have spoken to enough vets to understand that people who go through such hardships quickly learn there are things bigger than themselves.

Until you understand a little more do not be surprised when people pounce on you for wanting the government to give you what you want for service on your terms. That is NOT what service is about. Print these pages and read them again in about 10 years after you age and mature, you may be shoked...
 
Uhh, Handy -

I think you are jumping to a conclusion that my post does not support. Regarding GLP, I said:
You are a parasite.

You want the training, pay, insurance, travel, experience, status, respect of your countrymen, G.I. mortgage assistance and educational benefits that come from being a soldier (in any branch of the military) but you do not want to do the job of a soldier.
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And then I said:
Nope - people who think like GLP are parasites.

BTW, I chose both college and the military (USAF, '85-'89)
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My point was that people who try to take all they can from the military and give nothing in return are parasites.

The purpose of being in the military is to serve your country; the military is not the peace corps, the job corps, or some elaborate work-study program to get "free money" for college.

The military exsists to go to war and kill the enemy, period. Anyone who is not willing to go to war and kill the enemy has no business joining any branch of the military.

GLP - and everyone else - should either commit to doing the job of a soldier or stay out of the military. The military needs soldiers, not parasites.
 
steelheart, thanks for the clarification.

ironrice, you raise an excellent point, in that much of the recruitment advertising conducted by the military these days appears to emphasize exactly those aspects of military service for which GLP is being criticized for wanting despite his personal misgivings about war itself. I think that the Army commercials and literature I see are particularly consistent with regard to this, whereas advertisements for the Marines seem more oriented to the traditional tenets and motivations of military service. While I don't see this as a justification for what rightly is viewed as GLP's 'parasitical' attitude, I can see how that attitude is fostered and reinforced by this type of advertising. Furthermore, a great many people have enlisted in various branches of the military for the 'wrong' reasons throughout American history, i.e. to escape poverty, to seek adventure, to gain training, etc., yet the military institutions of this country certainly have not ground to a halt as a result, nor have those individuals necessarily been the worse for the experience. That having been said, I still would say that GLP probably is better off out of the military, and the armed forces may well be better off without GLP.

Phetro, you stated in response to the question I asked of steelheart:

Unless they are physically or mentally unable to do otherwise: yes. What would you propose to call people that reap the benefit without paying the price?
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I propose to call people who are physically and mentally able to enlist in the military, but choose not to for whatever reason, yet continue to reside in the United States and enjoy its benefits, myself and the vast majority of American citizens. Thank you for labeling us as parasitic. There are many other ways to serve one's country than military service, and somehow I doubt that flooding the military with people who'd rather be elsewhere is a wise decision, except maybe in times of dire national emergency. :mad:
 
^I want to join for the training, real life experience, and to help me get where I want to be. Thats why I want to join the Coast Guard for this particular job. Its the closest thing to Law Enforcement that I know of in the Military, and the training would do me a lot of good, and it would look really good on police applications. I dont want to join forever. 4 or 5 years, tops.
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That training and life experience isn't free. If you're not willing to do the entire job don't ask for any of the training. There are many who've taken the good with the bad and don't care if you're against war or for war, if you join the military that means you are willing to make whatever sacrifice is neccessary. If you're not willing we don't want you. Go to Vo-Tec, go to college, go work at burgerking, but stay out of the military if you think teamwork has an I in it.
 
I think War is pointless and stupid. Im a firm believer that it is 100% unnecessary, and that the World would be a better place without it. So why should I go and possibly get killed for something that I dont even agree with?
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You want to know pointless and stupid? My brother-in-law was killed while a gunner's mate aboard the USCGC Blackthorn. He had served all of two years. Coming out of drydock in Tampa Bay, on a clear, moonlit night in January 1981, an oil tanker came about into his vessel near the Sunshine Skyway bridge and sank it. Half the crew died. He left my sister a widow at 19, with a toddler and another one in her womb.
You want to know another thing I think pointless and stupid? Your thoughtless, selfish, insulting rants about things you aren't even cogent enough to understand, let alone appreciate.
The military is, especially now post 9/11, populated by the finest people this country produces. From the limited exposure I've had to your perspective, you do not, in my opinion, appear to be one of them.

Dave
SGT USMC
1979 - 1984
 
If you aren't a soldier at heart...

Stay away from the services...

They all expect you to serve without political bias...

YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO SELECT THE WAR...
You will do as you are told and you will not question your orders...

"Obey NOW and bitch later."

I should be able to live my life how I want to.
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SFB... you join the services and you give all that up... totally different laws in the Uniform Code of Military Justice

If you aren't patriotically motivated you don't fit in today's all volunteer military...

As they say, "Come big... or stay home."
 
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Coast Guard

Sorry to tell you, but the Coast Guard IS a branch of the military. This is especially true in a time of war. They were part of the Treasury Department during peacetime, but in wartime, they belong to the Navy. I think now they are part of Homeland Security during peacetime.

As far as being a slave, the Coast Guard is still run in a military manner. Their law is the UCMJ. They have a rank structure and someone will be above you, giving orders. In wartime, they fight and die like any other branch. If this is not something you can handle, then look for training elsewhere.

Personally, I feel that military service is a privledge and an honor.
 
GLP, stick to video games. You don't belong anywhere near the armed forces; let alone LE.

If you attitude is that all you want is peace; why do you want a job where you carrying a weapon? Why not get a regular job; or go into the fire department or such where you won't be called upon to "make war".
 
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