After College

[kali]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

Their hiring in Iraq blue. What's keeping you?

650,000 dead civilians and counting who had nothing to do with 9/11. All payed for with our childrens and grandchildrens money.

Noble my "O Ring".

[blues2cruise]

Their hiring in Iraq blue. What's keeping you?

How about the fact that I'm 55 years old and have a crooked spine and some arthritis?

While I may not condone war, those people who serve the country do so at great personal sacrifice. Over the years the men and women who served, did so, so that we may enjoy many of the freedoms we have today.

When I was young enough to do the military, police or fire department thing, women weren't welcomed...and believe me I tried.

My Dad was a fire fighter, and if women had been allowed, I would have followed in his footsteps.

[Loonette]

They ALL, without exception "dog" about it. Have horror stories. Will tell you how awful and stupid it was.

And wouldn't take a day of it back if you held their genitals under thermite.


Make the decision yourself. Anything we say to you about it is a bunch of static. Personal politics will sway any information you get about it.

Good luck

Agreed... my brother has been active for about 17 of the past 20 years. When he first joined, he was young and poor and felt that he had nothing else to attempt in his life. He was in Iraq the first time (1992), and he saw things in Bosnia that would make you puke for a week straight. While he initially agreed with Bush's choice to go into Iraq this time, he now thinks it was a mistake - as does many, many of his fellow soldiers. Yet he serves because he feels drawn to it. Not for hero status and not because he thinks it's noble. He views it as a job (an important job - after all he is serving his country). But it's a low-paying job without any truly good benefits. Sure, you'll get medical care, but be careful you don't have a bum knee like my brother, because they'll drag you along with cortisone shots for 10 years as opposed to providing you with the knee replacement that you really need. Oh, and by the way - his medical plan won't pay for a vasectomy. WTF!! He's 41 yrs. old, and his fiancé, who is in her late 30's and has suffered many miscarriages in her life, does not want to continue messing around with their reproductive systems. They are content to not have kids of their own, but the military won't flip for a freakin' vasectomy.

Also, my brother was promised specific sorts of training though out the years, and thus far he has received nothing that he wanted. He's too old and worn out to continue jumping, so now he's in charge of a group that takes heavy equipment (mainly Bradleys) in and out of Iraq. The last time he took a Bradley into Iraq, he ran over a land mine that knocked him up into the turret, which smashed his already damaged knee. He could barely walk for weeks, but had to stay put until they could spare him to go back for proper care. At this point he's just doing time - waiting for retirement so that he can at least reap some of those benefits.

Rant over...

Anyway, I think that if you're really drawn to this type of service, then go for it. You might come out the other end feeling that you did what you thought was best to do, and that you served some sort of purpose in life. But it's not going to be a party, and everything that they offer you during the recruitment process is definitely wrapped up in the prettiest bow around. If you're just looking for an easy way out of some sort of rut in your life, then you may end up with a lot of regrets.

So good luck in your decision-making process. It is a big decision that should not be taken lightly, but you have to know what's best in your heart. Our opinions are just that, and you shouldn't put too much credence in them.

Cheers,
Loonette

[kali]

Their hiring in Iraq blue. What's keeping you?

How about the fact that I'm 55 years old and have a crooked spine and some arthritis?

While I may not condone war, those people who serve the country do so at great personal sacrifice. Over the years the men and women who served, did so, so that we may enjoy many of the freedoms we have today.

When I was young enough to do the military, police or fire department thing, women weren't welcomed...and believe me I tried.

My Dad was a fire fighter, and if women had been allowed, I would have followed in his footsteps.

At the rate the corporate storm troopers are dieing and Bush is expanding the war you may soon have your chance.

ARLINGTON, Va. — For the second time in six months, the Army is raising the maximum enlistment age for new recruits, this time from 40 to 42, recruiting officials announced Wednesday.

The increase to age 42 applies to both men and women, and older applicants are eligible for the same enlistment bonuses and other incentives available to any other applicant, according to Julia Bobick, a spokesman for the Army’s Recruiting Command at Fort Knox, Ky.

Congress gave all of the services permission to raise the maximum age for recruits from 35 to 42 in the fiscal 2006 defense budget authorization.


Does this sound Roman Empire to you?

A U.S. military 'at its breaking point' considers foreign recruits
By Bryan Bender The Boston GlobePublished: December 26, 2006

WASHINGTON: The armed forces, already struggling to meet recruiting goals, are considering expanding the number of noncitizens in the ranks, including disputed proposals to open recruiting stations overseas and put more immigrants on a faster track to U.S. citizenship if they volunteer, according to Pentagon officials.

Foreign citizens' serving in the U.S. military is a highly charged issue, which could expose the Pentagon to criticism that it is essentially using mercenaries to defend the country. Other analysts voice concern that a large contingent of noncitizens under arms could jeopardize national security or reflect badly on Americans' willingness to serve in uniform.

How does that song go...

Meet the new boss,
Same as the old boss....

[roscowgo]

God i hate politics.


But i love greasemonkey.



So I suppose it all evens out.

[MetricRider]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

How does missionary work serve the country? You are going somewhere to tell people they don't know how to live their lives and that your model is the right one. That just seems incredibly arrogant to me. If anything, it gives the rest of the world more reasons to hate americans. If you really want to serve your country in a non-combat capacity, join the Peace Corps.

[blues2cruise]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

How does missionary work serve the country? You are going somewhere to tell people they don't know how to live their lives and that your model is the right one. That just seems incredibly arrogant to me. If anything, it gives the rest of the world more reasons to hate americans. If you really want to serve your country in a non-combat capacity, join the Peace Corps.

Well, excu-u-u-u-se me for using an incorrect terminology. I was thinking of the people who go to third world countries and run orphanages and schools and medical clinics for no reason other than that they are selfless people who want to help.

Sheesh.

[kali]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

How does missionary work serve the country? You are going somewhere to tell people they don't know how to live their lives and that your model is the right one. That just seems incredibly arrogant to me. If anything, it gives the rest of the world more reasons to hate americans. If you really want to serve your country in a non-combat capacity, join the Peace Corps.

Well, excu-u-u-u-se me for using an incorrect terminology. I was thinking of the people who go to third world countries and run orphanages and schools and medical clinics for no reason other than that they are selfless people who want to help.

Sheesh.

Not to gang up on you on the missionary thing, but, try telling that to the the native American Indians north and south.

Asia and the Middle East are well aware that 1st come the bibles, then the booze, then the guns and army issued small pox infected blankets to keep the children warm...

How about honoring native traditions. No need for the state to use tax revenue to spread gods word like a viral infection.

"meme" coined in 1976 by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, refers to a unit of cultural information transferable from one mind to another. A meme propagates itself as a unit of cultural evolution and diffusion — analogous in many ways to the behavior of the gene (the unit of genetic information).

[kali]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

How does missionary work serve the country? You are going somewhere to tell people they don't know how to live their lives and that your model is the right one. That just seems incredibly arrogant to me. If anything, it gives the rest of the world more reasons to hate americans. If you really want to serve your country in a non-combat capacity, join the Peace Corps.

Well, excu-u-u-u-se me for using an incorrect terminology. I was thinking of the people who go to third world countries and run orphanages and schools and medical clinics for no reason other than that they are selfless people who want to help.

Sheesh.

PS. Thanks for the Lennon video

[MetricRider]

Serving your country is a noble thing to do. Whether it's military, police, fire, or missionary.

You have to follow your heart.

How does missionary work serve the country? You are going somewhere to tell people they don't know how to live their lives and that your model is the right one. That just seems incredibly arrogant to me. If anything, it gives the rest of the world more reasons to hate americans. If you really want to serve your country in a non-combat capacity, join the Peace Corps.

Well, excu-u-u-u-se me for using an incorrect terminology. I was thinking of the people who go to third world countries and run orphanages and schools and medical clinics for no reason other than that they are selfless people who want to help.

Sheesh.

I'm not trying to change this to a religious discussion, but I don't think missionaries count as selfless. They are going somewhere for the express purpose of proselytizing. They have an agenda, and their purpose is not selfless. The Peace Corp does all these things without including the missionary angle.