Military service requirements

[HARDCORE]

This just came in by e-mail and thought you guys might like to read it. Mrs. Hardcore
--------------------------------------------
> Date: June 12, 2019 at 1:53:37 PM EDT
>
>
>
> MILITARY SERVICE REQUIREMENTS

> Trey Gowdy, a former South Carolina Congressman, responded to a question from a CNN reporter about the ban of transgenders from joining the U.S. armed forces. As Trey typically does so very well, he nailed it rather succinctly.
>
> Question: How can President Trump claim to represent all U.S citizens, regardless of sexual orientation, when he banned transgenders from joining the military? Isn't that discrimination?
>
> Trey Gowdy's Response: Nobody has a right to serve in the Military. Nobody! What makes you people think the Military is an equal opportunity employer? It is very far from it - and for good reasons - let me cite a few."
>
> The Military uses prejudice regularly and consistently to deny citizens from joining for being too old or too young, too fat or too skinny, too tall or too short. Citizens are denied for having flat feet, or for missing or additional fingers, he went on to explain: "By the way, poor eyesight will disqualify you, as well as bad teeth. Malnourished? Drug addiction? Bad back? Criminal history? Low IQ? Anxiety? Phobias? Hearing damage? Six arms? Hear voices in your head? Self-Identification as a Unicorn? Need a special access ramp for your wheelchair?"
>
> "Can't run the required course in the required time? Can't do the required number of push-ups? Not really a morning person and refuse to get out of bed before noon? All can be legitimate reasons for denial."
>
> "The Military has one job: Winning War. Anything else is a distraction and a liability. Did someone just scream that isn't Fair? War is VERY unfair, there are no exceptions made for being special or challenged or socially wonderful."
>
> "YOU must change yourself to meet Military standards and not the other way around."
>
> "I say again: You don't change the Military - you must change yourself. The Military is not about being fair, it is about taking advantage of others and about winning.
>
> The Military doesn't need to accommodate anyone with special issues. The Military needs to Win Wars and keep our Country safe - PERIOD!"
>
> "If any of your personal issues are a liability that detract from readiness or lethality... Thank you for applying and good luck in future endeavors."
>
> "..any other questions?"

[Boats]

80% of Military Recruitments Are Turned Down
RE: https://www.military.com/join-armed-...rned-down.html

Note: HC is dead on - here are some statistics.

The economy isn't strong and education is more expensive, so many turn to the military for a secure foundation. However, the U.S. military has been turning down applicants in droves, and it's not just because of the drawdown. Although the U.S. is not committing as many forces overseas as it was a few years ago, there are a few other reasons for the large numbers of applicants who aren't making the cut.

According to the Washington Times, the military currently only accepts roughly 20% of walk-in applicants. Army Sgt. 1st Class Terrence Hoard reportedly told the Kansas City Star that he used to need to sign on 16-20 soldiers every month, and now he can get away with 10-12. According to the Kansas City Star, four out of five adults are turned down by the military every year. To make matters more difficult for potential future applicants, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel intends to decrease the number of active duty service members from 520,000 to 490,000.

According to an article by NBC, another cause of the rise in rejections is that joining the military is simply becoming more competitive. Sgt. 1st Class Richard Teunis, a recruiter for the Army, claims that "instead of being able to talk to 90-percent of the population, you could only talk to 50 percent or maybe less than that." The caliber of each applicant has increased, and a GED is no longer enough to enter the military. If individuals do not have a high school diploma, they are encouraged to obtain about a semester's-worth of college credits before reapplying.

However, the overall most common cause for rejection is simple: obesity. According to a 2009 report from Mission: Readiness, "27 percent of young Americans are too overweight to join the military." Not all of them have attempted to join of course, but the pool from which the military may draw upon for recruits is nearly 30% smaller due to obesity. Air Force Brigadier General Jeff Lawson commented on the issue: "I know people who spent an extra six weeks in basic training while we ran them through a fat farm to lose the weight. Those don't exist anymore. You're either qualified to come in or you're not. We do not rehabilitate people anymore."

While the military of the past decade may have been a good place for young people to turn for a variety of reasons, the trends show that applicants should be much more judicious in planning out their application to enlist in the U.S. military.