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dogma wrote:One thing: if you are joining the military in order to pay for college down the line, make sure you read the terms set out in the GI bill. They are not favorable.

9/11 GI bill is paying me 22k this year, and I only rate 80%.

It is also the responsibility of your superiors to try to make a career grunt out of you regardless of your declared future plans involving the defence force or not. I have family members who wanted to 'go places' within the military... now my cousin is still driving the same green trucks he was ten years ago, and has never shipped anywhere.

From what I've seen the 'force can make or break people... but basically they are a stepping stone. The key is not to let them use you as one.

DEUS VULT wrote:
9/11 GI bill is paying me 22k this year, and I only rate 80%.

That would cover about half of my undergraduate tuition.

Covers me almost completely. UC system works out like that. So yeah, graduating debt free with the Post 9/11 GI bill seems to be a fairly good deal in my case.

You also benefited from a long deployment.

dogma wrote:You also benefited from a long deployment.

One of the best experiances of my life. Talk about reality check.

I don't know if it's because I've not read enough posts, but it does seem to me that the US posters do seem to take the whole idea of joining the military far too seriously. I've seen reams & reams of posts discussing the pros & cons of which arm of the services to join, analysing it from every angle.

A big part of the Brit attitute seems to revolve around either:

Option A: I'm bored with my life / job and need a challenge - join up
Option B: I've got no job prospects - join up

Thought about joining up while I was in school (I wanted to be a tank commander - preferably a medium or light tank, but I would not have minded a heavy tank ). Then I hurt my back and so would not have been able to cope with training/etc.

And since I have not regretted not joining the forces. Don't think it would have suited me at all.

But I agree in the UK, the army is often seen as a "got nothing else to do" option.

Although there is an option C: Wanna to blow stuf up, hur hur

i was going to go to ADFA to become a intelligence Officer (i know oxymoron) as had been selected when i met a boy (we have been together 13 years now, married for 9 and have 2 kids) and i had to make a choice between life styles. I made the correct one for me.

My brother however is about to do his seccond tour in the gan and has been to Iraw twice, East Timor twice and Fiji and has no regrets, loves the miltary life.

Buff, military, i don't know how it goes in America or UK.... but i can tell how thing goes in Spain....

Well i was a professional (volunteer) Rifleman in the first company of the first batallion of my regiment (RIL Palma 47) , well, i did service during 4 years until my knees broke down givin' me a cronical handicap (begin running every day without the proper warming, thanks fether of sarges , durin those 4 years...) well, unlike US and UK, in Spain a soldier is seen as something just a little better than a criminal for the people of my generation, you can go with the uniform in the streets, but in some places is enough for being stabbed, or even shoot for a separatist simpathyzer (sorry, i don't know if its well written), i came out three years ago, but as far as i know i still have contacts inside, things are as crappy than before, an Obsolete way of command, awful officers, at least in my case (most of them are students of the university who don't have a fething idea of what's the army, apart giving stupid orders, and as far as i know that will become worse, i've heard rumours that those "officers" will have the rank of Captain), bad pay (by today a recruits pay is 1000 Euros at month, and thats a fething piece of gak at this days), apart of the rant before, it was one of my best times^^ i'm really upset when i remember, i didn't leave pleasantly....

Corvus wrote:So you're saying you wouldnt be at all interested in putting good ol bin Laden's brain all over his cave walls?

Cause I sure as hell would.

Ahtman wrote:Is that supposed to be irony about 'not drinking the kool-aid' while downing a big pitcher of conspiracy theories?

mattyrm wrote:

Ahtman wrote:Is that supposed to be irony about 'not drinking the kool-aid' while downing a big pitcher of conspiracy theories?

Indeed, the conspiracy theorists are way wackier than even Mr Kool-aid himself.

I see it this way, which is more likely?

a) Religiously indoctrinated terrorists with a burning hatred for Americans flew some planes into two buildings and burning jet fuel caused the structural supports to weaken then collapse from the top down.

b) Free mason affiliated CIA trained Muslim ninjas covertly entered the twin towers under the cover of night and placed explosives, timed to go off around the time that 17 close allies of George Bush were happy to kill themselves to assist him in his goal of invading nations that they have strong cultural ties with by flying hijacked planes into the twin towers and then Osama Bin Laden took the blame for it because Bush paid for him to stay in a secret location with Elvis and Bruce Lee.

Is it comforting to be good citizens and mindlessly parrot the party line? I really wish I could, but unfortunately my eyes have been opened.

Always wanted to join the Army, but only as an officer.

By time I finished University I already had a good starting job which paid more than an Lieutenant after 3-4 years service and couldn't face the drop in salary to join. Loosing the spare tire would have been a pain as well [It took me 4 years od uni drinking to get that!].

My brother did a tour in Afganistan a couple of years ago, I was a little jealous as he had a good laugh and had some great photos.

The end result I'm 34 never joined up, always wanted to and considered it my only big regret. Then we had our little girl and couldn't care less, I simply couldn't leave her if I had to abroad for 6 months or worse. Oh and I still have that spare tire

warpcrafter wrote:
Is it comforting to be good citizens and mindlessly parrot the party line? I really wish I could, but unfortunately my eyes have been opened.

Real men acknowledge the presence of Space Marines.

Also, I bet you feel quite comfy in your little conspiracy cocoon. Almost as though your mommy were hugging you.

I joined the army when I was 18, mainly bacause i didn't know what else to do and the advert showing the bloke skiing and windsurfing looked cool.
Even though there were some crap times, for the most part I look back at it as the best years of my life so far.
If you do join some of your best experiences will be whilst serving, you will also make friends, not mates, but true friends who will be with you for the rest of your life, however with the way the world is going you may also have to prepare your self for loosing a few along the way, especialy if you go Marines or Infantry.
When I joined I chose a trade, I figured that if the Army didn't work out at least it will have given me a valuable skill, as it turned out not only did I get some of the best training available but I stayed for the most part of 6 years.
Have a chat with the recruiters, but don't feel presured into making a decision there and then, the recruiters will tell you how awesome it all is, but have a chat with someone who has either served recently or is still serving, they will tell you what it is really all about.
Also make sure you pick a trade or branch that you feel comfortable with based upon what you want from it, there no point in joining logistics, just because some random uncle once did,if you dont like sitting in trucks all day and eating pies. Similarly if you dont like the prospect of strange tanned gentlemen shooting at you on a regular basis then steer clear if infantry/marines.
Most important decision is to make sure you are doing it for yourself and not to impress anyone or prove something.
Good luck mate

Both grand fathers served in WW2, one Navy in the Pacific, one Army in Europe. Dad served in Vietnam. It seemed as a kid I didn't want to be anything but a soldier. So I went into the Army via an ROTC scholarship. I now am a reservist and work for the Army as a contractor after a decade on active duty.

I met my wife when we were both 2LTs. She is still active duty. Oldest son is an infantryman and just went to his first unit, next son goes to North Georgia this fall on an ROTC scholarship.

It is not for everybody, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.


Jake

dogma wrote:

warpcrafter wrote:
Is it comforting to be good citizens and mindlessly parrot the party line? I really wish I could, but unfortunately my eyes have been opened.

Real men acknowledge the presence of Space Marines.

Also, I bet you feel quite comfy in your little conspiracy cocoon. Almost as though your mommy were hugging you.

It's not as little as you think. http://www.abovetopsecret.com/ has over 2,000,000 registered users, and it's just one of many such websites dedicated to denying ignorance. You should try it sometime. It's liberating.

warpcrafter wrote:

dogma wrote:

warpcrafter wrote:
Is it comforting to be good citizens and mindlessly parrot the party line? I really wish I could, but unfortunately my eyes have been opened.

Real men acknowledge the presence of Space Marines.

Also, I bet you feel quite comfy in your little conspiracy cocoon. Almost as though your mommy were hugging you.

It's not as little as you think. http://www.abovetopsecret.com/ has over 2,000,000 registered users, and it's just one of many such websites dedicated to denying ignorance. You should try it sometime. It's liberating.

But how many are schizophrenics are signing up multiple times?

warpcrafter wrote:It's not as little as you think. http://www.abovetopsecret.com/ has over 2,000,000 registered users, and it's just one of many such websites dedicated to denying ignorance. You should try it sometime. It's liberating.

Since we're making the conclusion that the number of people who believe something makes it more true I would like to point out: God is real. There are 2 billion people who believe in him after all.

9/11 denial is like Holocaust denial. The only way anyone can make either a conspiracy is to completely ignore all evidence to the contrary and come up with some asinine scheme that makes no sense and doesn't logically follow. (EIDT: OMG IT'S A DAN BROWN NOVEL! ) Doesn't matter how many "ignorants" sign up for it. It's no more true now than it will be centuries from now.

Besides, everyone the Eldar were behind 9/11. Those crafty little alien devils. I'm gonna go make a website for it and make 2,000,000 user accounts now.

Back on topic; I thought about it but I don't have the constitution. Physically, I'm panzy. I probably couldn't beat a kitten in a fist fight. That's why I keep my army of cyborg ninja pirate hamsters handy

warpcrafter wrote:Is it comforting to be good citizens and mindlessly parrot the party line? I really wish I could, but unfortunately my eyes have been opened.

I love this line of reasoning:

"You're being lied to! Don't believe anything! Believe me! Someone online told me some stuff and I believed him! You are all sheep but I'm not! Your all sheep because you believe the governments lies but I'm sane because I believe Youtubes lies!."

I could respect your point more if it was to not always believing something just because you were told it, but you eat up just the opposite as much as the people you criticize. One of the principles of the herd is that they don't think they are in the herd. When someone tells you that you aren't being a sheep or use terms like sheep, they are talking to the sheep. So when they come to get your wool, try not to act to shocked.

LordofHats wrote: Physically, I'm panzy. I probably couldn't beat a kitten in a fist fight.

That is why it is called basic training and AIT (or whatever your countries equivalent term). They teach you how to do that stuff, you aren't expected to be a professional soldier before you sign up.

Spent 2 of the best years of my life in a Canadian Forces Reserve Regiment. You know the saying "The best gifts are non-material"? Well it's true. You'll learn things that will forever make you a better person. Militaries operate on the premise that no matter how good you are, there's still room for improvement. That attitude will carry over into your civvy life too, and you'll notice yourself putting more effort into everything you do. Trust me, if you're fit for service, sign up. It's a tough life, but you'll be thankful that you did it.

metallifan wrote:Spent 2 of the best years of my life in a Canadian Forces Reserve Regiment

In the US we call it the Girl Scouts.

I was going to join the air force after high school, but I decided I'd rather draw comic books so I went to art school and ended up teaching myself how to build websites, so school was useless for me. And I'm still paying off my school loan 17 years later...

I know. It's okay, when we come to attention, or change stance, the right leg has to be lifted to be parrellel to the ground, letting the lower leg and foot hang freely (MUCH harder than it sounds)

If your leg is out even a bit they call it "Cow-kicking" and say you look like an American. First time I heard it, I damn near lolled in the middle of parade (drill)

Ahtman wrote:That is why it is called basic training and AIT (or whatever your countries equivalent term). They teach you how to do that stuff, you aren't expected to be a professional soldier before you sign up.

You misunderstand. When I say panzy, I mean panzy. No amount of boot camp would turn me into something capable of running through the desert carrying over a hundred pounds in gear. I hear it builds character though. Too bad it can't boost bone density lol

LordofHats wrote:

Ahtman wrote:That is why it is called basic training and AIT (or whatever your countries equivalent term). They teach you how to do that stuff, you aren't expected to be a professional soldier before you sign up.

You misunderstand. When I say panzy, I mean panzy. No amount of boot camp would turn me into something capable of running through the desert carrying over a hundred pounds in gear. I hear it builds character though. Too bad it can't boost bone density lol

Go into the dental corps, not Infantry/Special Forces and you'll be fine.

warpcrafter wrote:It's not as little as you think. http://www.abovetopsecret.com/ has over 2,000,000 registered users, and it's just one of many such websites dedicated to denying ignorance. You should try it sometime. It's liberating.

Two million is nothing; that's not even 1% of the American population. Even if it were significant, all that it proves is the tendency of like-minded idiots to congregate. As Ahtman said, you are part of your own little herd.

Regardless, you can continue drinking your tonic of choice. I'll sit happily over here, next to rationality.

I have an appointment at my local Navy recruiter for wednesday. I might try and reschedule it for Friday so my dad can come.
Seeing as there are military members on dakka, can you give me any advice on what to expect?

I wanted to join the military until I went to military school and found out that I have a severe authority problem.

I have, however, been a contractor in Afghanistan since 2004. I've been shot at more times than most soldiers and I'm not armed so I can't shoot back.

Signed the Papers when I was 17. Served in the Air Force through the mid 80's and from what I hear these days, almost every single enlistee still cusses their recruiter. Why? Because your recruiter is a used car salesman in uniform. He will lie, cheat, steal, and violate every rule of decency to sign a genius up as a cook if that is the job that they are having trouble filling.
There are all sorts of programs and jobs out there that you might like better or be better suited for but the recruiter will deliberately keep such information from you in order to fill his quota of basic grunt jobs.

Don't get me wrong, the military is a great chance to expand your horizons, to learn useful skills that will stay with you for life and to set a foundation for future carrer opportunities. I just think that the average US citizen looking to enlist should be better informed about existing educational programs and available career fields. All I am aying is that you have the right to ask for a complete list of available career feilds and to tell your recruiter that you will wait for the job you want to open up. You can also use this as a negotiation tool to get better signing bonuses. If you are going to sell yourself to the government, get a good price.

Golden Eyed Scout wrote:I have an appointment at my local Navy recruiter for wednesday. I might try and reschedule it for Friday so my dad can come.
Seeing as there are military members on dakka, can you give me any advice on what to expect?

Are you going in to talk and sign papers? If so I can tell you to be dang sure you have the aptitude for what you're signing on for. Back in my boot camp days we had a guy in my training platoon that had a guaranteed enlistment to be in aviation electronics.
At the end of boot when they were letting everyone know their assignments, he pulled field radioman. He talked to the DI's about it and they told him that even though he had an enlistment guarantee, his tests taken after induction proved he didn't have the aptitude needed. As a result, he was placed in the next related billet.
To tell the truth, I would have been nervous if this guy had even been assigned to clean the gakker since he was dumber than a box of rocks. My training platoon had about a 30% attrition rate and I honestly can't fathom how this guy made it all the way through.