I am a Military Recruiter and would like to clear up some misconceptions.

Originally posted by Juston

Bottom line people. If someone wants to enlist, they do it on their own free will.

If that is so, wouldn't that make your job redundant?

[ponder] if only we could get rid of the recruiters, maybe it would be a start to dismantling the military-industrial complex[/ponder]

Originally posted by aorAki

Originally posted by Juston

Bottom line people. If someone wants to enlist, they do it on their own free will.

If that is so, wouldn't that make your job redundant?

[ponder] if only we could get rid of the recruiters, maybe it would be a start to dismantling the military-industrial complex[/ponder]

yeah, just like if someone wants surgery they don't need a doctor

Originally posted by Ridhya
If there was no military in place, there would be a LOT less animosity in the world, considering America's meddling with assassinations and training of contras and supplying weapons, etc in the affairs of others. Thus making them angry towards Americans in general instead of just the policy makers. Thus making them want to kill you.

You do not need recruiters. You have one of two things. Conscription or volunteer. Conscription when you are DIRECTLY UNDER ATTACK, and volunteer for some sort of emergency force. Thats what would be ideal.

Besides, like the Japanese General said in WWII, you could never invade the US, there would be a rifle over every hill! You guys love your extensive gun collections.

If there were no military in America, we would be speaking a different language and there would NOT BE an ATS!

Military has it's issues just like anything else in life. There is good and bad for every aspect of life... not just military.

Have you served in the military? I would imagine that a person who had their body parts blown off WOULD be a "little" put out with the military. However, that person signed up knowing that... if he or she read the paperwork... which I did.... and decided to NOT join because I had issues with the military. However, I know hundreds of persons right now who have been shot, crippled, etc... in the military and are proud of that. They carry it around like a badge of honor. I treat it as such myself and give them the courtesy and respect due to anyone who put their lives on hold and in danger to give me my freedom of speech... YOUR FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

So, keep hate mongering... but underneath it all is the knowledge that no matter how much you "hate" military ... they are the ones who made it possible for you to hate them. THAT's a FACT!



[edit on 19-6-2009 by mhinsey]

Hey Juston, Is it true that American Military recruiters get a -whats the word? bonus or commission for each new applicant? or is it recruit?
This makes for a lot of desire to get enrollees...
I also heardonly the best get to be recruiters so good on you.
Thanks!

Originally posted by on_yur_6
reply to post by Karrotz

 

I take offense about your opinion of who joins the military. Basically you said it was dumb jocks. You sir are very wrong. The military has people from all walks of life. The make-up of individuals is so diverse that there really is nothing like it in the civilian world. You are forced together as a new family in the military. Once you are out everyone separates into their own groups again. In the military you'll be among the smartest and dumbest that society has to offer. You'll experience every type of ethnic background. When you are at sea or deployed overseas and you have nothing to do but talk, you'll learn a lot about people.

I joined because of my love for aviation and wanting to serve my country. I was 21, extremely athletic, and smart enough for the Navy to want me in the nuclear field. Your opinion of who joins the military is very wrong.

The Navy offered me the nuclear field also since I was in the top 2%. That's kind of funny. There have been about 3-4 references of top 2% or high percentile being recruited for nuclear field.

lets see here...

when i enlisted, i was promised E-3 out of boot camp! i even got the required 4 people to enlist with me during my DEP program, ran the littl PRT they had, scored a 94 on the ASVAB, went to MEPS early, had the college and so on. I was promised a chance to goout and do something adventurous. That i would learn how to sail and fight and see all sorts of cool things...

Truth is this. I learned how to fold clothes. i learded 3 knots in bootcamp... 3. thats it. i learned flags and how to march and all that, but my weapons training consisted of a laser pointer attached to a plastic pistol. no martial arts at all. the physical training was weak. go run a mile and a half do some push ups and sit ups. at least when i went we had to run in our boots. now they get training time out cards and only run in sneakers. what happened to the good GQ? oh but i know how to make a 45 angle on my sheets, and how to fold my utilities so that everything is square. but that is boot camp right! oh yeah, i went to my a-school... i trained on an airforce base for another 8 weeks. more b.s. followed by sissifying of our sailors. dont wanna work today? go to sick call! but the REAL fleet will be awesome right? fighting and serving and all that jazz! bring on the adventure! not so much... i learned how to mop, strip and wax, paint... oh and those exciting port visits? you go get drunk, liberty call ends by midnight, and your there for a few days... not to mention your only allowed to go to a few places. then come the yards... whoopee yards!! 12-14 hour days of grinding sanding, ear shattering noises, lowering the p-ways by a good foot or too and making you wear a hard hat that makes you 6 inches taller and see how many times a day you knock your head on the overhead. not to mention al the asbestos exposure. i did tanks and voids for 6 months crawling around in the bottom bilges and moon voids in rusty nasty conditions... what an adventure that was... boy howdy! then comes shore duty!! i actually had more meaningful experiences on shore duty than on ship. then C school, where a second class gets treated like a recruit for 9 more months... YAAAY!!! then MORE shore duty. why you ask?

perform to serve. Now you have to ask permission to re-enlist, al the way up through i think it is zone C right now. so the navy makes you financially dependant on them through base housing and medical (which is HORRIBLE but you have no real choice) and then says, we cant afford you anymore! get out! so thankful you wasted the last 10 years of your life that you could have actually been going to school and getting ahead!

oh but the navy gives you college! yeah and lets just see how much time you get to go to college while on a watch rotation until your chain of command says they cant support you being off the watch floor, do clep or quit.

I have been in the navy for almost 9 years now. I am still in because there is no real way to get out and make it comfortably. i have a wife and a child. i struggle paycheck to paycheck because the navy gives me enough money to barely make it, and now they want to cut back another 4400 E-5s over the next 6 months. i am an EP sailor, good high on my PRT, i have a critical NEC, 2 and a half years experience as a detatchment LPO as an E-5, my test scores are off the chart, top of my class in both A and C school, maintain my PQS's and have qualified early on all my quals, the navy has spent over 200,000$ on my training in my career, and now i am either gonna hae to get out or crossrate and go get trained all over again... crossrate as an E-5 up for E-6?! yeah right. what rate can i go to?? i dont feel like chasing turds around a ship...

and yet... i dont ever recall any of this information from my recruiter. It was all fun and awesomeness as he told it.

Get over yourself OP. Stop trying to glamorize something that isnt. I hope you choke on each name you enlist that you didnt tell the what real navy is. :fl

OFF TOPIC: But please someone answer my question, this is the second time I posted it on this thread....

First let me start by saying I respect all military. Much of my family is enlisted or was and I am proud of every one of them and you. Now I have a question: I know a young girl who wants to enlist in the Navy. I think it is great, but problem is she has been on antipsychotic medicine in the last six months and went into rehab less than a year ago she also went off antidepresents 2 months ago. I worry about her mental ability to handle stress. I thought (and I could be wrong) that these were disqualifying issues. I think she lied to her recruiter about it. Will they find out? Could the recruiter get into trouble for letting her in if they found out about it and something happens to her? Like a break down or attempted suicide? I was just worried about her and am confused. as to let the recruiter know. I do not want to ask any of the family that is or was enlisted because I do not want to share her personal stuff with people that know who she is. Thank you so much.

reply to post by Melissa101


I sent you a U2U. I hope it helps.

reply to post by Melissa101


I do not believe she can enlist under her mental condition. My cousin was released from the Navy Boot Camp for similar reasons. And the level of stress she would go through may push her over the edge, on the other hand it may be exactly what she needs. But on a moral responsibility you should inform the recruiter or whoever of her past and current situations, especially if you know she will lie.

I am not affiliated with the military, but I hope I helped. Good luck.

Justin,

I did something I rarely ever do... read the first page and skipped to the end to comment.

I wont get into the politics everyone else is wrapped around but I will say this;

As an active duty United States Navy Chief Petty Officer and former Recruiter in Charge in S.D. I want to thank you for a well written accurate post. Well done shipmate.

Originally posted by cbianchi513
reply to post by Kryties

 

Ignorance? I got that directly from the context of this thread!

One poster admitted that they were unwilling to "lose the pipe" in order to join...

Can you come up with a finer example of psychological addiction?

To me, that qualifies as "metal weakness".

Not in MY Corps... No thanks.

I think "fatbody" is self explanatory... Try checking out your local Wal Mart for a shining example or fifty.

Sorry I can't be "politically correct"... I calls em as I sees em.

Well quite frankly science shows that marijuana has no psychological or physical addiction. the army has distorted views on how people should live their lives, i wasnt a piece of their property and dont intend on being a piece of property that is why i didnt join, i didnt put down the pipe because i decided that defending my country can be left to the criminals and college dropouts.
that to me is a sign of mental weakness, failing at school so my only option is to go to the armed forces.
hmph if rather be a doctor saving people than killing innocent civilians.
i'd rather use my mind and be part of the solution, rather than part of the problem.

reply to post by Juston


Juston and gnoses,
Thank you guys so much for taking the time to help me. S & F.......
Melissa

OH my Thor, please forgive these people I share thy land with for their ignorance

Originally posted by Iblis
Conscription is a god-awful method of fielding a military. Just ask Russia. There's a reason everyone tries for a professional, volunteer-based armed forces.
FYI: Going into a recruiter's office and signing documents is a voluntary act.

Correct. Thats why, maybe if you actually READ what Ive now written several times, I said conscription is for when you are under attack (ie. being invaded. But seriously who wouldnt volunteer then anyway?)
And been to Russia? I thought not. I have. Their soldat are the only ones in the world I fear.

Originally posted by mhinsey
If there were no military in America, we would be speaking a different language and there would NOT BE an ATS!

Military has it's issues just like anything else in life. There is good and bad for every aspect of life... not just military.

Seems to me you already are. Spanish ring a bell? Oh you probably meant Chinese or something. Because Im sure you become peaceful and the next day California is crawling with 'Chinamen', right? Peaceful nations (ie. militarily weak) nations tend to have better relationships, they dont just automatically get invaded. And moreover
Please POINT OUT where I said you should have none? Jeeez guys try reading my whole posts instead of one sentence and then posting how stupid I am. 'Demilitarised' still has a military just not active, like a reserve force, and is not used for invading. How can I be more clear??

Have you served in the military?

Yes, have you?

which I did.... and decided to NOT join

Oh, now I see why your opinion holds more water than mine.

I treat it as such myself and give them the courtesy and respect due to anyone who put their lives on hold and in danger to give me my freedom of speech... YOUR FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

Good, we(most of us) deserve respect. And Im sure going to Afghanistan to secure prime oil-pipeline land is giving you your freedom of speech. Oh, and Americans do not give me MY freedom of speech, despite whether or not they give you yours.

So, keep hate mongering... but underneath it all is the knowledge that no matter how much you "hate" military ... they are the ones who made it possible for you to hate them. THAT's a FACT!

What am I hate-mongering exactly? Being a soldat? That explains why I decided to become one, right...
I hate the military, I find it unnecessary, if every nation had just a defence force I would be ecstatic, but ignorant people like you are led to believe we need an attack force to smite our enemies, thus creating war instead of defending against it.

Ex army here, The solders of this country are just trying to do there job. They love this country and most are willing to die for it or to save the life of the man fighting next to them. They are not the cause of problems most speak of here. They are used and manipulated by the politicians and thieves in Washington. That is where your anger should be aimed.
The last time I checked you need support of congress to go to war not the support of the troops. But they do there job. And do it well because that is what they are trained to do. I thank god for all the men and women who have fought and died so that you can bitch about how tough your life is because they forgot to put a straw in the bag for your drink at the drive through or some trivial BS like that.

reply to post by Juston You're seriously trying to defend getting kids to join the PNAC war machine? Yeah, you're just a good guy doing his duty, right? Heard that before...

Originally posted by Juston
reply to post by TwiTcHomatic

 

What?

It's an album cover. By a music group called Slayer. I happen to like their drummer a lot. By the way, I notcied there is a skull in your avatar as well!

Furthermore, I never said that I am on here trying to persuade anyone. Just offering up what I can.

To Wylee:

If a possible recruit came in tomorrow and asked you if he/she would be truly fighting for our county's freedom if sent to Iraq what would you tell them?

I would say that depends on their ideals and values.

Bottom line people. If someone wants to enlist, they do it on their own free will.

\

I would say that depends on their ideals and values. Bottom line people. If someone wants to enlist, they do it on their own free will.

SAME here! we all do!.... so stay out of the damm schools and colleges !!

and btw... a family member of mine is getting out after 5 yrs...he says it's creepy to see the amount of ppl that can't use common sense and that's what's killing MOST of our troops in IRAQ and AFG !

You may try and tell us how nice the recruiters are, and grated some of them maybe and I know a few on my right hand that I can count that are; however, I personally KNOW a recruiter that used to be in the ARMY Reserve that changed his MOS because they TOLD them to LIE and showed them how to do it!

DO what ever it takes!!

He picked up his books and left.

btw: .. sporting a band like Slayer with this

The band's lyrics and album art, which cover topics such as death, deviants, genocide, insanity, Nazism, necrophilia, religion, Satanism, serial killers, suicide, and warfare, have generated album bans, delays, lawsuits and strong criticism from religious groups and the general public.

hanging over heads doesn't seem to be much of an encouragement to the parents of the 16-18 yr olds as being a slogan to sign up ASAP! or

any amount of encouragement to rush right out and sign up.

STOP THE LYING!!!!!!!!! No Matter what you say .. it will ALWAYS be a LIE until you change your MOS or drop!!!

[edit on 20-6-2009 by Komodo]

Originally posted by badmedia
reply to post by INJUNJAY

 

How are they fighting for my freedom when I've lost more freedoms since this war than I have at any other time in my life?

I remember hearing - they hate us for our freedom, and they hope to bankrupt us like Russia. But yet, it turns out the people who said that were the ones who ended up taking our freedoms and bankrupting us, not the people we are fighting.

It's easy to claim they are fighting for our freedoms. But shouldn't we be making sure that is what they are actually fighting for? Is it not a bit wrong if someone offers to die for your freedom, and then you end up having them die so you can gain a bit of profit and control in a region instead?

So before you say we should shut up because they are dieing for our freedom, how about we first establish if they are actually fighting for our freedom.

I don't know about you, but where I come from giving away the things you are supposedly fighting for is contradictory to reason.



[edit on 19-6-2009 by badmedia]

Nice response, your always a good read I agree with your post entirely

I can't believe this thread.

You all should be ashamed of yourselves, PERIOD.

You know, when all hell breaks loose, and you guys are busy wetting yourselves, you're going to begging for the military to come and protect and/or save you. I hope they take names off of this site and save your sorry butts last.

So let me get this straight:

-- You're mad at the military for war? Learn the process - they have no say whatsoever. You think they ask each soldier his/her opinion? What a joke.

-- You were promised things during recruitment you didn't get? SHOCK! This same complaint can be applied to credit card companies, mortgages, insurance companies, etc. LEARN TO READ THE FINE PRINT.

-- Recruiters claim it's all fun and glamorous? You're being asked to train for the hardest physical job in the world, possibly fight in a war, and serve in various countries all over the world -- and you need to ask if this is fun? More than 5500 soldiers have been killed in the last seven years alone -- does that sound fun?

What would you like them to say: This job sucks and will kill you in one of three ways: physically, mentally, or in combat. And the people you are PROTECTING will turn their backs on you and call you dogs?! Sign here.

I AM PROUD TO SAY THAT I HAVE 4 FAMILY MEMBERS THAT HAVE SERVED IN THREE WARS. And ALL 4 of them, yes all four, have never been more proud of their service and would do anything to protect OUR country.

Is it for everyone? No, of course not. BUT TO THOSE THAT CHOOSE IT -- THANK YOU

[edit on 20-6-2009 by lpowell0627]

I had to chime in here.
My husband of 11 years enlisted in the Air Force. Served in Desert Storm. After he served they paid for his college education AND paid him not to work until it was completed. He raised 2 babies without the mother while attending school and although he didn't have to he also worked at FedEx in the hub.
Today he not only has his BA, but his engineering degree (PE) and his Masters in Business. He makes a 6 figure income working only the standard 40 hr week.

The military assisted in our decent lifestyle today.