| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 7:26:53 AM | | Bolink: Becker, Brian is his name...The Navy is I believe to be one of the safer choices at this moment in time, if he's going to enlist. My uncle is retired warrant officer Navy, and prior to my son enlisting received alot of info on projections of the fleets, etc. However the above poster that indicated to get every promise (and there will be many) in writing was really good advice. My best. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 7:48:54 AM | | Plainly put, Bush is damned near insane, along with being one of the most dangerous men on the planet and about as bright as a defective 2 watt bulb that man is also the C-in-C of ALLLLLLL branches of service. If your son is comfortable entrusting decisions that will affect both his personal well being, and the safety of his entire country in the hands of a man that hid behind daddy's influence during the vietnam conflict but has no qualms about making poorly informed decisions to send other peoples fathers/sons/brothers into hot zones...... By all means encourage him to enlist, otherwise advise him to wait a few years, maybe try college first to broaden his horizons and views before he commits himself to this. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 3:09:15 PM | If your son thinks "war is cool," then perhaps he doesn't understand that people involved in wars can get injured, lose limbs, or even die.
How Kool is That?!
I'm 56 years old, and went into the National Guard to avoid being drafted and sent to Vietnam.
I look back at US History, and have to say there wasn't a good reason for our country to be involved in a war since WWII.
Korea and Vietnam were just plain wrong.
The most recent Iraqi war is a mistake, and it didn't happen right after "9/11." It was like some sick, delayed reaction by a President who finally felt the need to stop appearing incompetent.
I say we should end the Iraqi war, immediately.
In the meantime, anyone joining the military should know they're liable to die. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 3:18:29 PM | My son is a pretty typical 19 year old. He's a gamer so most of the video games have guns and all, like doom I think it is. Also, can't think of a name, but all the war movies that have come out, he wanted to see them, we rented and watched them together.
I won't share here about our personal experiences, let's just say we've seen violent death up close and personal. I'd never want to be exposed to that again.
I really don't think that seeing all the violence on TV, in games and in movies gives the realization that in reality it is something tragic and hard to forget.  | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 7:48:23 PM | bucs you hit the nail on the head.
War is a tragic last resort. In any conflict you can be required to kill another and will undoubtedly also lose good friends. It comes down to whether your son believes the current conflicts are right and he is willing to put himself in that position to support his belief.
I'll keep further statements on my personal views abut bush and the whole reason behind the entire fiasco to myself. But it sounds like there is still plenty of talks the two of you need to have.
Best of luck with this. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/19/2006 7:56:47 PM | | loony Thanks I DO talk with my son a lot and I rented AND watched with him all the recent war movies. The realization of it I don't know it that sinks in or not. He has young friends his age and they're giving him advice, too. I don't degrade what they say, I do know that they don't care about him the way I do or can. If he does decide to enlist and is miserable, they won't be there for him. I always will no matter what he decides to do. I do want what's best for him just trying to make him think about what he's actually doing and trying to see what may be the potential realities of his decision. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 8:57:46 AM |
Heres the deal, your son is making a choice, let him make it. You can't control him your entire life. I myself am leaving for the army, I enlisted as a combat engineer it's not that big of a deal.
Excellent advice for all moms. I did a couple of years in the Army. Sometimes joining up is just something a man has got to do. There are many great opportunities and experiences to be had if he is motivated!!!. Respect his decisions and just be a proud mom. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 9:12:52 AM | | After reading all the replies some of you all dont have a clue what you are talking about. Im a Sgt in the Marines and have spent 4 years in the service thus far. Im not going to promote any branch of service but all of them are no picnic. There is only one reason to join and that is to serve your country. If someone joins for any other reason they are in for a rough time. Its low pay, long hours, and tough work in any branch. Yes there are great benefits. I myself am enjoying free college. All branches have men on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan. So he needs to understand that if he joins no matter where he goes he will be sent to a hostile environment at some point in his enlistment. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 11:25:46 AM |
I rented AND watched with him all the recent war movies.
While I realise that you do this with the best intentions ..... what the hell does hollywood know about combat? They tell stories, true/untrue, and a mixture of both, often as a form of propaganda. Servicemen/women that you know and vets of bygone conflicts would be a better source of input. Atleast he will go in with his eyes open and make a choice that suits him best instead of being fed a bunch of BS from and entertainment industry. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 5:22:45 PM | If he wants to go, let him. That being said, since he wants to join the marines, let me run the practical comparison:
Both will be going to Iraq or Afghanistan, no doubt. Sometime within an enlistment he will go.
Marine tours tend to be shorter (6-8 months vs the army year long)
A much wider range of job options in the Army, and you can specify your contract to a much greater extent.
Army tends to have better quality of life.
Marines are far more formally disciplined, and have a much greater personality built in.
Combat wise, Army meat-eaters (the combat arms, which I assume your son would opt for) tend to have records on par that of their marine counterparts, at least in the current conflict. Army leaf-eaters...not so much.
Army is better funded and has better gear.
Both services are running their people ragged right now.
Both have comparable education plans.
Marines have greater prestige.
Contrary to previous posts, army regulars are not just fodder, and marines are not mindless shock troops.
Realistically becoming an army infantryman, tanker, or scout is going to have the same level of physical fitness (well..the tankers don't always run so well) and male bonding attached as the marines in a combat role. That being said, there will not be the cult of personality surrounding the profession as there is with the marines.
Right now the army is more more concerned with making Iraq-ready soldiers with entry training while the marines are still concnentrating on trying to produce the image of a marine. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 6:05:08 PM | Video games have absoluotly nothing to do with your sons decision to enter military service, I myself played video games during my youth, and still do but what you have to realize is that these are a media outlet, They are fictional and i highly doubt your son is not able to see the difference between fact and fiction.
Actually, video games may have something to do with that decision. The free video game "America's Army Online" is a recruiting tool produced by the U.S. Army, specifically to entice young people to enlist. It's a highly realistic FPS, and I not only used to play it - I know people that have enlisted after playing it.
That's not a bad thing, btw. The game is also played by serving members of the military, and it's a way of understanding some of the basic concepts of military life, including actually taking online courses on things like first aid, and even "learning" how to parachute. It's certainly not "reality" , but it's an interesting promotional tool. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 8:47:34 PM | | Movies have been used as promotional tools for years. Top Gun had huge support from the military because they knew what a boost it would be to recruitment, and they were right. Numbers shot up afterwards. Video games can aslo be used to recruit. Commercials, books, TV, all of it can bring in recruits. | |
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RJB888
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Joined: 11/23/2005
Msg: 59 | |
| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/20/2006 11:09:50 PM | Bucsgirl:
My heart goes out to you with you helping your son with this difficult decision. I can tell you from my own famliy experience. My uncle died in Nam. Tore my family apart. My grandfather was never the same, none of us were. My brother is retired from the Navy he was a SEAL, he would not allow my nephews to join the military. My youngest son in 2002 wanted to join the marines I was terrified. I called my brother and had my son talk to his uncle. My son decided against it. Several of my sons friends joined the military after high school, one was lucky enough to get into westpoint, the few others not so lucky. Last year we went to the funeral of his friend killed in Iraq. 21 years old, his family torn apart with grief.
I have strong views on this war which I won't share. But I support our troops. Give your son every piece of info, watch Saving private Ryan, or we were soldiers with Mel Gibson. I read several of your posts on other threads, you are a smart lady with great love for your family. Try the best you can to talk him out of it. But if he decides it's what he wants to do, you and your son will be in my prayers.
God bless | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/21/2006 12:19:06 AM | Ok, first off, "joining the Military" is not necesarily synonomous with "going to Iraq". Also, all in the AF don't fly. Only officers fly, and if he's talking to the recruter he's not going to officer training school.
My best advice? Have him figure out what he wants to do AFTER the Military, then get a guranteed job in that field. If he goes in "open general" like I did, the needs of the Military come first. If they need cooks, he's a cook. They need tank mechanics, that's what he'll do.
Also, Do Not believe all the recruiter says. His job is to get your kid in the door. He'll tell just about any story to make it happen.
I went in Open General. While in the recruiters office the guy showed me a list of jobs for which I qualified. 7 pages of them. (98 on the AFVAB) 4th week of basic the list came down of jobs that were open... There were 6. Cook... Mechanic... Bilge Pump Operator (or something haeneous..)
My only "out" was trying out for the Tactical Air Control Party. Pretty much every time an "airstrike" happens there's some poor guy on the ground with a targeting laser & a radio... He says "Cleared Hot" and the airstrike happens. If not, nothing falls from the sky. Yes, it was combat.. And yes, the survival rate wasn't all that high. But it sounded a hell of alot better than washing dishes in the chow-hall for 4 years. So I went for it. (yes, I made it thru "selection" and (obviously) survived my 4 years)
Moral of the story? Guranteed Job. If it's not in writing, he probably won't get it.
Go in with eyes wide open, whichever branch you pick. Don't fall for the "I can get you that job if you sign right now" or any of the other pressure... Trust me they want him alot more than they let on & will wait to get him into that prime slot.
Let the next guy be the cannon-fodder. Have him decide what sort of life-long training he wants & hold out for that job. If the recruiter won't deal, walk. | |
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| Looking for advice. Youngest son is considering joining the military.
Posted: 11/24/2006 11:36:44 AM | Hi bucsgirl,
My only son joined cadets here in Canada two years ago. For a tree hugging lefty pacifist it was hard to take. So is the incredibly ever present disorganisation of the military.
He chose army because the fly guys are 'snobby' and 'don't get to do anything fun for years'. After two years of sailing lessons I have no idea why he didn't choose navy.
He loves it. I still don't. He's joined the marksmanship team and is excellent at it. Also something that scares me in so many ways.
I always told him he could join the reserves when he became of age because it was purely volunteer. That was before Afghanistan. Now I'm telling him no. This will make no difference because when he is old enough I won't be able to tell him anything. (Mind you, since he's a teen, I feel that way now.)
The story the kids are being told here is that if the military is going to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on your education, they certainly aren't going to stick you at the front of the line to see it all go up in smoke. Though this may have some merit to it...suppose the taxi from the airport hits a landmine?
In the end I think all you can do is support whatever decision he makes and hope he is well.
I've told my son how much he means to me, how I feel about war and fighting. How I feel about Afghanistan (which is that I still believe we are helping but we're teetering on the edge of interference). I've told him his body is a temple and he needs to watch what he puts into it, where he puts it and that he needs to treat other temples with respect. Shooting an air rifle at a paper target isn't the same as firing a loaded gun at another human being. Besides disrespecting the other temple, how would that make him feel?
If I were you I would see if there was training before going overseas. If he's not academic what about being a military reporter or photographer? Some skill investment that the higher ups would want to protect? | |
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