Military Question

www.army.com... seriously, its a good site. and if you have the option, finnish school first. one of my older bros was inlisted and the other was an officer, both say go the officer route if it is an option.

 

http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/joiningup/a/recruiter1.htm

This is a good about.com guide about joining. It tells both sides of the coin. The person who wrote this is not a recruiter so he has no vested interest in you joining or not. He is also not a radical anti-military type. Either way, he will give straight info and not the bs you get from some recruiters or fanatics.

 

No problem. With the services desperate to find people, some recruiters will do anything to fill their quotas. This is a big descision and should be made with care. I have had friends from JROTC that got screwed over by the Army recruiter and have had friends have great experiences with the local Air Force recruiter. I'm sure most are good guys, but it's important to hedge your bets incase the recruiter you happen to talk to is a ******bag who only cares about his numbers and not your future.

 

Well, for pu$sy's you can rank them this way...

Air Force
Navy
Army
Canada
France
Marines

For real men it would be

Marines
British Marines
Suicide


DrS 24 MEU (SOC)

 

I'm not a fan of the military unless you already have a degree and are looking to add it to your resume. Going for college money or skills is a bad idea.

Here's a little food for thought....
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Bah, hardly accurate. All the men in the Airforce and Navy are gay.

 

A slightly more realistic graphic:
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

But seriously, the question is: what are you looking to get out of the military? For an easy and safe hitch, go Air Force. The downside is that promotions are relatively slow, because people tend to stay in.

If you're looking for college money, play hardball with the recruiters. Play them off against each other: "Sergeant Rock offered me this deal..." They have options, and the game is to get your name on a contract for the least possible outlay. Your mission is to get as much as possible for your signature. I hope I don't have to tell you that anything not in writing is worthless.

My family has a long Navy tradition, but I went Army. Think about it, stuck on a ship for months at a time, you might as well be in prison. At least after my 12 hour day I was free to go into town and do as I wanted on the weekends. I did three years in Germany, and loved every minute. Then I got out and used my college bennies to get a degree.

 

LOL!

 

Enlisted and an aircraft mechanic on F-16's. Went on 7 temporary duty assignments, 3 to Nellis in Vegas and that was great, 4 to Holloman AFB in New Mexico and they were awful and 1 month in Japan at Misawa AB which is a naval base which was a lot of fun. Altogether it was great. In hind site I could've done the same thing in the Marine Corps but I didn't want to spend my life on a boat; Navy was out for the same reason. I was stationed at Hill AFB in Utah my full 4 and it's alright.

You can move up if you're in the right career field depending on the service. Some fields people stay in for career, so those particular jobs it is difficult to move up. The Army is good if you want field action and don't mind working with some not particularly bright folk though in the officer ranks most are fairly bright in all services. Any further questions PM me!

 

What's hilarious is 30 yrs ago in my high school, the ROTC instructor WAS a 'Sergeant Rock'. Rock was his last name.

 

Service academy. "Free" college edu-ma-cation. Hope he/she realizes the flipside: At some point, you actually have to kill people, which, umm, is not sexy like on TV and in the movies.

 

Don't rule out the National Guard I'm currently in the NG and proud to serve. I started out as a cannon crew member on a 198 Howitzer Cannon worked my way to gunner in 8 months, and have had a ton of opportunities. I've been solider of the year for the field artillery in AZ, I'm on the Honor Guard, and also obtained my airborne wings. I gave up corporate America to work full time on the Federal side and haven't looked back since. I have an MBA that the Guard paid for and I'm currently in OCS. It all about what you make of it, the reason I joined was to serve my country and do my part in the WOT. Freedom isn't free and people died so we can freely express our opinions, while I don't agree with some of the posts in this thread everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Just my .02. But that is what I’ve got from the military so far.

-Chris

 

I scored well enough on the ASVAB (military SAT test) and DLAB (language test) that I attended the Defense Language Institute in beatiful Monterey, CA. I was a MOS 98G Sigint guy. I got out and then got a BA and MS while serving in the Reserves (doing lots of TDY during summers and Xmas break). It was the right choice for me because I had two years of Community College and didn't know what I wanted to major in.

For those in thier late teens and early 20s who don't know what they want to do, the military is a good place to figure it out. Play your cards right and it can prepare you for your next stage in life. At the same time, you can be like the screw-ups in the military who live paycheck to paycheck, driving more car than they need, and generally not thinking ahead, and come out of the military with nothing to show it. The choice is up to you.

 

the oldest service is still the best. coast guard. great duty stations; read US. unbelievable challenges. a saying in the guard is " you have to go out; you don't have to come back. most importantly, positive vibes. the coast guard saves lives, not takes them. people are really appreciative when you save their lives. you also protect the enviroment, as well. you can really feel you've made a difference where it counts; here at home.

 

How did you get this?

I have been in the USMC for the past 10 years.

 

Truer words were never spoken. I went from E-1 (private) to E-5 (sergeant) in 30 months. Because I took it seriously, and always did my best. SO many privates I dealt with had that high school punk attitude: "but sarge, we just work in the motor pool, why do we have to practice all this combat stuff?" They were too cool to consider that if TSHTF (excrement impacted the rotating air mover) they just might need to know that stuff. You might read about the battle of the bulge. And they all had the best stereo, etc that their paycheck could buy, and if I told them to get a haircut the week before payday: "But sarge, I ain't got no money for a haircut!" Then they wondered why they didn't get promoted.

When I got out I was on the promotion list for staff sergeant, which meant I could have stayed in for twenty years even if I never got promoted again, but babysitting punks was not my idea of fun.

Navy? My uncle is the ranking chaplain for everyone in the Navy and Marines from the west coast to the coast of Africa. His next promotion, if he stays in, will be to rear admiral. His father (my grandfather) was a gunnery officer during WWII. Navy means being on ships for long stretches. Unless prison appeals to you, I wouldn't recommend it.

But really, you have to tell us more about your personal situation if you want a recommendation. Have a college degreee? Close to one? Enlisted guys like me don't think much of officers, but by all means it's easier than being a real soldier.

 

Oh right, the experience thing. I'm in college Army ROTC currently. If it is something you want to do, you'll find out quickly. If its not, you'll find that out as well. You have to actually want to go into the service to make ROTC work. Otherwise the amount of time it takes away from, and the amount of socialization it can drag away from you will make you wonder why the **** you're doing it.

As far as the enlisted vs officer debate. I'm not going to argue the point. The NCOs are the reason why the US army is as good as it is. The Officers just run things while the NCOs make it run. If you go the officer track the pay is better, if you go the NCO track... ok.. I'm not sure what the benefit is but I know its there