Class of 2014 and military service:
With lousy job prospects staring them in the face, 2014 H.S. and college grads will walk out into a world of low wages or worse; unpaid internships promising a rewarding future, but guaranteeing nothing. With loans to repay, limited options and dwindling resources, the United States Military might seem like an opportunity to gain valuable experience and make a few bucks, while giving the fresh recruits time to make up their minds about the rest of their lives.
Sounds like a plan, until one considers the realities of what serving one's country entails. In reality, the pay really sucks when you consider what's expected of you. Considering you'll be expected to sacrifice life, limb and sanity for people you hardly know, you'd think you'd be making some serious bank. Considering the risk to one's life, limb and sanity, you'd think the health benefits would be top notched and readily available to any and all who was willing to give it all. But nothing could be further from the truth.
In today's all volunteer military, the United States government gets exactly what it paid for. Since the United States military didn't pay much for you, why would it invest much in you. If maimed, mutilated or mentally mangled, it's far more cost effective to recruit more young impressionable desperate types, than to spend millions trying to put what's left back together again. The ugly truth is, you could be left facing a lifetime of red tape, government bureaucracy and 20th century medical record keeping, while loved ones pretend your not a burden. Is that any future to contemplate coming out of the gate?
In anticipation of those who'd challenge this post for challenging the honor of serving honorably, we only ask you to ask yourselves why so many commercials are being run begging the public for donations to support America's fallen heros. If the United States government truly honored the honorable, the public wouldn't have to dig deep to fill the gapping gap between what the United States military promises and what it actually delivers. In short, joining the United States military after witnessing how those in power have used and abused it, is only for the lost, the lonely and the losers in life.
It's a shame guys like me will never be invited to give a commencement speech to the fresh faces of tomorrow, because I'd tell the smartest of the smart to see the world on their own Goddamn dime. Don't be a sucker!
The Podcast:
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