Quote:
Originally Posted by Saccogoo
Don't give me that bullshit. I've been in the military. I've lived in military towns. (Spend 13 years in Colorado Springs and you'll know what a military town really is - at every level of the military. I have acquaintances ranging from low level enlisted to O7's, from educational roles to combat.) And you've got a military who has basically ignored or, more accurately, tried to sweep under the rug, suicide, domestic violence, crime rates for the past seven years. The Department of Veteran affairs has virtually ignored any potential post-traumatic stress syndromes associcated with servicemen and women that have served in the various military branches, particularly those serving in combat or combat support roles, since the invasions and subsequent occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq.
In 2008 active duty suicides were at an all-time high, up 11% from 2007, and actually eclipsed the civilian suicide rate for the first time ever. However, most suicides by military personnel occurred more than a year after they returned home from duty. And considering that this is from a 2005 study: "At least 120 Americans who served in the U.S. military killed themselves per week in 2005, CBS News learned in a five-month investigation into veteran suicides. That's 6,256 veteran suicides in one year, in 45 states.", it's substantially worse now, where even the usually truculent Army admits to 2008 being the highest ever for suicides. As well, the Omvig Bill that was passed in 2007 which was supposed to help the VA prevent potential suicides has been made worthless in that it no longer requires the VA to screen patients for suicide risk factors or track veterans that were deemed to be "at risk" of committing suicide.
So, tell me if my "biased opinion" is contrary to the facts.
And the fact regarding re-enlistment is that we are in an exceedingly bad economy and the military represents one of the few employers happy to make good offers to newcomers as well as current employees. I personally know a guy who was National Guard, got deployed to Iraq and "re-upped" over there just for the $100,000 that the Army gave him, in cash, and tax free (because if you stay in while in Iraq, it's tax free money). Not many companies out there that are giving those types of signing bonuses, especially to non-educated employees.
And as far as an opportunity to learn about yourself, I guess if you want to learn if you have the moral fiber required to put a round through some "suspected" combatant while occupying a foreign country in order to safeguard it's geological resources for American corporate interests, I guess that's a hard lesson to learn. I would think that someone could learn a lot more about themselves and other cultures by serving in the Peace Corps or the like, but some people I guess need to learn about themselves dealing with the intricacies of international imperialism by learning how to pull a trigger when you've got the barrel of a gun pointed at another human being.
Personally, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to find military personnel using forums/bulletin boards like this for recruiting tools. The Army is great! You get to learn about yourself! We pay for college! Yeah team!
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PTSD
is a huge problem, and the facts speak for themselves; you are correct. But then again no shit wildman, I still serve. I dont need you or an article written by some hack with an axe to grind to tell me that. Great statistics from above- can the vaunted CBS news, or you, for that matter prove that all 6,256 veterans who killed themselves in 2005 served in Afganistan or Iraq? There are about 24 million vets in the U.S.
And to claim that the ONLY reason us witless fucks reenlist in a combat zone is for the money, and we have nothing better to do with our lives is arrogant, condescending, and shows how blissfully unaware you are of the motivations Soldiers have. You know nothing of what stirs a warrior to serve his country during wartime. Nothing.
You want to use google-fu and post stats on military suicide rates, murder, and drug use; then knock yourself out. But to try and dissuade a person from joining because of these reasons (your personal views on the war, notwithstanding) insults them as well. This is a thread about joining the Army Reserve; go troll in the D.C forum.