do some ppl join the military just to escape from life?do some ppl just hate their life and ppl around them so much that they join the military to get away?
215094
My best friend joined the military to earn enough money for college.. sad huh?
141581
Many do not understand that, like you do.  I'm actually in the military now, serving in the Army and stationed in Afghanistan for the next year.  It's great to hear about your support for the military >^.^<
270748
Well, for me it was simple. I was young and needed discepline and guidence in my life. I felt like the Army would give that to me while at the same time, I was doing something that I could be proud of. I don't think people join just to fight. I think it is more about a sense of ownership in who you are and what you believe in with regerds to what this country was built on and stands for and what it really means to be and American. It's being a part of one of the largest "Teams" in the world with one goal in mind...hte protection of this great country and all who call it home.  \n\nWhile I was in the Army, my job was not to die for my country....it was to provide the enemy with the maximum opportunity to die for his. ;-)
122088
First of I find it very insulting as a former soldier for someone to say the military is just a bunch of troubled people and criminals. I personally served alongside some of the best this land had to offer. Keep in mind it's a volunteer military and they have stood up to defend YOUR rights. They're reason for doing so is they're own and moot.\n\nTo answer the question, Young people do alot of growing up between the ages of 18 and 24 (standard 6 X 2 enlistment). Sometime they're views and oppinions change. As a result some don't want to fullfill the long commitment.
332874
I served in the Air Force for 21 years and wouldn't trade that experience for anything.  I went in right after high school despite the fact that I was a good student and could have gone on to college.  At that point in my life (1975), I  just didn't want to go school any longer.  I spent the first part of my military career as a security policeman and after being promoted to Master Sergeant (E-7), I retrained and became a First Sergeant.  I traveled throughout Europe and the U.S., which I probably would not have done otherwise.  More importantly, I served with people who knew the meaning of honor and integrity.  In my eyes, there are no finer people in the world than those who serve in our military (and I would also include the spouses of those people.  They understand what sacrifice truly means.)\n\nAs for college, I eventually went back to school.  I got my undergraduate degree while in the Air Force (most of which the government paid for.)  After retiring, I went to law school using my G.I. Bill benefits.  I'm now a practicing attorney.\n\nI have two sons, both of whom are in college right now.  One has elected to join the Army Reserve and leaves for basic trainig in June.  While his mother and I are understandably nervous about that, and tried to get him to wait until he graduates to make that commitment, he feels that serving his country is something he needs to do.\n\nWhile I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy your military experience, I applaud you for your service and sacrifice.  My dad was in Viet Nam in 1967-68 and absolutely hated being there.  However, I never heard him complain about being a member of the military during the 20 years he served.\n\nCollege isn't for everyone, at least not right after graduation from high school.  At that age, most people have no idea what they want to do with the rest of their lives.  I think most young people would be better off working for a few years (or serving in the military or some other service organization) before going to college and spending the money for a degree in a field they may not even like once they get into it.
32033
RE-14 IS A BAR TO RE-ENLISTMENT,YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO GET  IN ANOTHER BRANCH OF SERVICE,HOWEVER NOW THE MILITARY NEEDS PEOPLE TO JOIN AND THEY CLAIM TO NOW ACCEPT PEOPLE WITH DRUG&ALOLHOL PROBLEMS AND PEOPLE WITH CRIMMINAL PAST
387495
I enjoyed my time as a Marine, I miss it and would love to go back but I have a family and cannot leave them for extended periods. If you join the US military you will be gone for extended periods and you will go to war. Since you do not have a spouse the development of your children could be compromised. I would tell you to stay home and raise your kids.
83375
you know i was talking to a soldier who was just waiting around in new york to be deployed and at first i was so proud of him,but then i noticed that he did alot of drinking and playing video games and chatting on the internet and roughousing and getting wasted with fellow comrades and little by little i stopped admiring him i saw he really didnt have a life some of the soldiers there were lonely , they were just kids playing around and one good comment he made about the army was that is was a place where adults can act like kids and that really dissapointed me because i took kim seriously at first but i see how people can go crazy in the armed forces because of many reasons and the people that do lose their life it is all for anunjust cause. do i think  they are heroes not the ones sticking guns in peoples faces , butif a slodier is saving a life , yes he is a hero  , but i dont know if they realize they can be heroes to themsleves if only they would step up and grow up because the matter they are in is serious because they never know when their time is up . yes some of them dont always do heroe things or save lives but they did something not any of us could have and you might feel negative because maybe you know this war sucks and the ego games guys play and you dont want to acknlodege the losers the bastards to being heroes . thats understandable..
200233
I was in NJROTC, and we wern't liked because of the association with the military. More liberal school have worse problems. I am now in the Marines, so just know that when you decide to go Annapolis or West Point, for the most part you will be appreciated for your service while at the same time getting spit on by the super liberals
129877
Well...I completely disagree with you. I dont think its because youre drinking though haha. We just disagree on basic things I think. See, I would like to see the army disbanded, you would like military service to be mandatory. I think there are much better ways to make people less lazy or fat or whatever than by forcing them to join the army. Not to mention that I've seen all too many people come back from the army totally f*cked in the head. I'm not saying youre f*cked in the head, nor am I denying that it did you good or whatever, I'm just telling my point of view. What it basically comes down to though, is, I'm a Buddhist. And as a Buddhist I have rejected all violence, making me a pacifist. If the government were to tell me I had to go into the army, I would leave. Simple as that. No government has the right to tell me to forsake my beliefs. Its a basic freedom you dig? Not to mention that I think this country has bigger and more important issues to deal with at the moment than mandatory military service...But thats just me and my point of view. Go ahead, you can call me a sissy liberal if you want haha.\n\n\nPeace
561456
My husband is currently in the national guard getting ready to go active duty.  We recently found out that if you are not active duty the military doesn't care one crap about you.  Just remember, those who yell the loudest in the military get things done the quickest.  my advice, annoy the crap out over everyone involved until they do something about it.\n\na military wife.
334630
I think all young men should sometime or another go into the military but right now is not a good time. Both my son's are in ( one in the Marines and the other Army ) My son that is in the Marines loves it very much but he was sent to Iraq and came back hurt and he still wants to stay in. So I think it depends on the person and how that person feels but please don't join for the wrong reasons !!! And Michael joining the military is NOT just to fight wars. It's all about loving your country and wanting to serve it.
493105
When our soldiers signed on into the military, they did so knowing and accepting that they might be sent to war. Now those that have signed up since 9/11, they know right where they will more than likely end up and still signed that dotted line over and over again. Our soldiers don't make a huge paycheck, they make very little actually when you consider they still have bills for their families back home. Throw in the fact that they themselves are out there getting shot at, fighting to keep our soil and families safer, they don't get paid anywhere's near what they should get paid. The ones that everyone is forgetting to blame is the terrorists, the same ones that flew planes into our buildings, the same ones that blew up ships and set bombs to our buildings. They are the ones that need to take the blame, not our soldiers or our government. This country has lost the reason that we are over there, they refuse to see what good has come from the troops hard work and thankless efforts. Yes, they shoot ppl, yes those ppl are being killed. Yet those that are shooting are getting shot at themselves and are watching as their comrades are getting blown apart by those "poor picked on Iracies". Talk to a soldier, talk to lots of them, you will find that even tho they don't want to be there, they also see the need to be there. If it was so bad, why do we have troops that are home safe and sound with their families reenlisting to go back?
300796
Military Recruitment has always been low.  This is nothing new.\n\nThink about it.  The pay sucks, the working hours suck, the mental and physical demands are enormous.  You spend years away from home, in some of the worse places in the world.\n\nWhen most of your friends live in a house or apartment, you live in a barracks with 2-20 other people.  WHen your friends talk about going on vacation to Mexico or Bahamas, you get to tromp through the jungles of Panama.  Your friends all work Mon-Fri 8-5.  You often work 5-7 days a week, sometimes 48 hours straight.\n\nThe military attracts the rare person, the one who wants to serve their country.  We do it out of a sense of duty.  In much the same way as people who go into Law Enforcement.\n\nAnd just like Law Enforcement, there is a strict requirement in order to join.  A High School Diploma is required.  A clean criminal backgrouns is required.  Drug use is not allowed.  And there is a test that you must pass.  People who fall below the 30 percentile are not accepted.\n\nAnd here is a shock, almost 50% of the people in the military are Democrats.  And the recruitment numbers are roughly the same today as they were under President Clinton.\n\nYou are talking about a career that does not appeal to everybody.  And not just anybody is accepted.  And to be honest, there are a lot of people I would not want to see in the military.  People who whine and propagandize are not welcome, because they do not know how to do anything, they only know how to whine.
655816
I used to roll my eyes at the military. I used to spew uneducated nonsense about how our country was a terrible place to live, and that I wanted to live someplace that was actually free. That was before I realized that soldiers sacrafice so much of their own freedom in order to make our country a great place to live. Thank you for giving your life to make all of us "civilians" free. Happy Father's Day, Big C!" You're doing a wonderful Job!
542728
wow coming from a female soldier that dose no serve breakfast or do laundry.  I drive and fire big guns.  If you really have an attitude like that you should not be able to enlist in the military we don't need people like you in the military.  It is people with attitudes like you that make it harder for everyone including the guys to do our jobs.  you really don't need to be in the military.  If you don't care if you die then you should just jump in front of a train do us all a favor
476017
I was in the Army for two years, and I was honorably discharged. For me, it was not a positive experience. When you join the Army, or any military branch, you go into a situation in which you are constantly controlled by others. In a very real way the military owns you, and can dispose of you as it wishes, just as it can dispose of its inanimate material.\n\nI don't exactly consider myself anti-military, as I believe we need a strong military force to defend our country. I am definitely not against, or negative about the personnel who serve in the military. I suppose my feelings are somewhat complicated. I definitely don't think military service is a "growth experience".  If you decide to join up you should realize you may very possibly be mis-used. I feel I was, and I was serving when a war wasn't going on.