[Sistermadly]

Originally posted by 33girl
Sorry, but I just do not buy this.

Good, cause I'm not selling anything.

I don't care how dire your situation is, there are other ways out.

Hypothetical (but not far-fetched) situation:
A young man lives in an inner city neighbourhood. His grandfather moved north because there were lots of manufacturing jobs at automobile plants in the 1940s and 1950s. His father worked in the same plants, but around the 1980s and 1990s, the plants started laying off workers -- including his father --because they were moving their operations to other countries. Other high paying labour jobs have done the same thing, or have relocated to the suburbs where there is no access to public transportation (the working poor are the greatest users of public transportation in the United States).

The young man has hopes for college, and studies hard, but doesn't quite qualify for scholarships. Because his father lost his job with the plant, they can't afford for him to go to college. There are no jobs in the inner city that would pay him enough money to finance his education.

He goes to a movie with friends and sees ads from the US Military that talk about giving him money for college. They use phrases like "the toughest job you'll ever love" and "The few, the proud, the Marines" or "An Army of One". They show lots of shiny and cool technological equipment. They don't talk about post-traumatic stress disorder, or having your limbs blown off when you step on a land mine in a jungle or some desert battlefield.

He's sold - here is a way for him to finance his education without having to take out student loans (that will put him and his family into an even deeper financial hole). He can sign up for four years and then he can go to college. He signs up during a time of relative peace -- thinking that the worst thing he'll ever have to see is Columbus, GA -- all because of his limited access to educational and financial resources.

(Now flip the script and change it from a young man in the inner city to a young man in the rural Midwest who has seen the collapse of the farm economy. Same problem -- different demographic.)

One of the women I work with has a son who just entered the armed forces last spring and is being deployed. He doesn't want to go, she is upset and everyone is saying how terrible it is. GUESS WHAT? HE SIGNED UP!!

I sure hope he comes home mentally and physically sound. I'd hate to think you'd be this callous if he didn't.

We've become too complacent and too many people think the military is an easy way out.

I never said it was an easy way out. After all - they do say it's "the toughest job you'll ever love". What's to love about bombing innocent citizens from thousands of miles away? What's to love about sticking a bayonet in someone's chest? What's to love about seeing your best buddy from down the block lying on the ground with his guts spilling out?

What's to love about giving your blood, sweat, tears and mental health for a job that pays so poorly that you might end up living on welfare (this happened to a friend of mine who was married to a regular joe in the Army). Oh yeah - you'll get a free college education, but your family is on food stamps! Gee, thank you Mr. Army Guy for protecting our liberty -- we're sorry your family is on the dole.

My father-in-law was a POW in a German war camp in WWII. He very nearly gave his life for his country, and to this day is one of the biggest critics of the military and military action. I'd much rather listen to his take on what war does to people than to some President-select who never served a day in his life.