Before You Enlist...

- The Very Latest in News About Military Life -

Top military recruitment facts

1. Recruiters lie. According the New York Times, nearly one of five United States Army recruiters was under investigation in 2004 for offenses varying from "threats and coercion to false promises that applicants would not be sent to Iraq." One veteran recruiter told a reporter for the Albany Times Union, "I've been recruiting for years, and I don't know one recruiter who wasn't dishonest about it. I did it myself."

2. The military contract guarantees nothing. The Department of Defense's own enlistment/re-enlistment document states, "Laws and regulations that govern military personnel may change without notice to me. Such changes may affect my status, pay allowances, benefits and responsibilities as a member of the Armed Forces REGARDLESS of the provisions of this enlistment/re-enlistment document" (DD Form4/1, 1998, Sec.9.5b).

3. Advertised signing bonuses are bogus. Bonuses are often thought of as gifts, but they're not. They're like loans: If an enlistee leaves the military before his or her agreed term of service, he or she will be forced to repay the bonus. Besides, Army data shows that the top bonus of $20,000 was given to only 6 percent of the 47,7272 enlistees who signed up for active duty.

4. The military won't make you financially secure. Military members are no strangers to financial strain: 48 percent report having financial difficulty, approximately 33 percent of homeless men in the United States are veterans, and nearly 200,000 veterans are homeless on any given night.

5. Money for college ($71,424 in the bank?). If you expect the military to pay for college, better read the fine print. Among recruits who sign up for the Montgomery GI Bill, 65 percent receive no money for college, and only 15 percent ever receive a college degree. The maximum Montgomery GI Bill benefit is $37,224, and even this 37K is hard to get: To join, you must first put in a nonrefundable $1,200 deposit that has to be paid to the military during the first year of service. To receive the $37K, you must also be an active-duty member who has completed at least a three-year service agreement and is attending a four-year college full time. Benefits are significantly lower if you are going to school part-time or attending a two-year college. If you receive a less than honorable discharge (as one in four do), leave the military early (as one in three do), or later decide not to go to college, the military will keep your deposit and give you nothing. Note: The $71,424 advertised by the Army and $86,000 by the Navy includes benefits from the Amy or Navy College Fund, respectively. Fewer than 10 percent of all recruits earn money from the Army College Fund, which is specifically designed to lure recruits into hard-to-fill positions.

6. Job training. Vice President Dick Cheney once said, "The military is not a social welfare agency; it's not a jobs program." If you enlist, the military does not have to place you in your chosen career field or give you the specific training requested. Even if enlistees do receive training, it is often to develop skills that will not transfer to the civilian job market. (There aren't many jobs for M240 machine-gunners stateside.)

7. War, combat, and your contract. First off, if it's your first time enlisting, you're signing up for eight years. On top of that, the military can, without your consent, extend active-duty obligations during times of conflict, "national emergency," or when directed by the president. This means that even if an enlistee has two weeks left on his/ her contract (yes, even Guard/Reserve) or has already served in combat, she/he can still be sent to war. More than a dozen U.S. soldiers have challenged "stop-loss" measures like these in court so far, but people continue to be shipped off involuntarily. The military has called thousands up from Inactive Ready Reserve -- soldiers who have served, some for as long as a decade, and been discharged. The numbers: twice as many troops are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan per year as during the Vietnam War. One-third of the troops who have gone to Iraq have gone more than once. The highest rate of first- time deployments belongs to the Marine Corps Reserve: almost 90 percent have fought.

The following was excerpted from Army of None: Strategies to Counter Military Recruitment, End War and Build a Better World, published by Seven Stories Press, August 2007. (Source: Alternet, September 20, 2007).


National Guard “Poster Boy”: “The President Misused Our Trust.”

Davis Fleetwood interviews Stewart Zamudio, the poster boy for the Army National Guard, on his way to DC for the September 15th anti-war demonstration in Washington D.C. Zamudio is a former National Guard soldier who served in the military for six years, and was activated after 9/11 to work in and around Ground Zero. In an effort to exploit the events of 9/11, Zambudio was chosen to be featured in two recruitment commercials. He got out of the military in 2006. Now Zambudio tells Americans NOT to enlist. (source: nocureforthat)

Before You Enlist! The Real Deal on Joining the Military

Now available via the Internet: Before You Enlist! provides a rational voice to counter the seductive and often deceptive recruiting practices of the U.S. military. The message is not "don't enlist" but rather to provide young people and their families a more complete picture of the life-altering consequences of joining the military - especially in wartime. Length: 14:30. Produced by Telequest, Inc. with support from the American Friends Service Committee and Veterans For Peace. (see it here: BeforeYouEnlist.org)

 

- Be Informed BEFORE You Enlist -

Ten Things To Consider Before Signing A Military Enlistment Contract
A veteran of the United States Air Force reviews the American Friends Service Committee's "10 Things You Should Consider Before Signing A Military Enlistment Contract" and expands upon their points with personal stories and advice. (Reach & Teach)

Do You Know Enough To Enlist?
"Military recruiters and ads promise: Job training, money for college, adventure, leadership skills and more. Before you join, take a good look at what you're getting into." (American Friends Service Committee)

"10 Excellent Reason Not to Join the Military"
"I was shocked to discover the realities of being a female minority in uniform." (quote by Aimee Allison who as a high school graduate joined the Army Reserves). The link above provides an excerpt from a new book edited by Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg and tells just one of many disturbing stories about military recruitement. (AlterNet.org)

Meet Sgt. Abe, the Honest Recruiter.
"Sgt. Abe guides you through the enlistment agreement of the U.S. Armed Forces – pointing out many snares along the way, which most recruiters don't talk about." A very useful guide done as a comix illustration. (Quaker House)

What You Should Know Before Joining the Military
"You've probably heard the ads and the recruiter's sales pitch. Sounds pretty good, doesn't it? All advertising does. But if military life doesn't live up to the advertising, you can't bring your enlistment agreement back to the recruiter for a refund, and you are obligated to the military for a total of eight years, including possible reserve duty.
You wouldn't buy a car without looking under the hood. Don't enlist before you check out the reality of military life that lies behind the glamorous television ads and slick brochures. Check it out carefully!" (South Bay Mobilization)

The War Within
"The photo of the 'Marlboro Man' in Fallujah became a symbol of the Iraq conflict when it ran in newspapers across America in 2004. Now the soldier has returned home to Kentucky, where he battles the demons of post-traumatic stress." (SFGate.com)

Military Recruiting FAQ/Consumer's Guide from Quaker House
"Military enlistments are potentially unlimited in length; Benefits promised to veterans have been repeatedly cut, with more reductions on the way. ...more" (Quaker House)

The Myths of Military Opportunity
"The reason to have a military is to be prepared to fight and win wars... it's not a jobs program." --Former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney" (Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors)

Youth and the Military. A youth-oriented section of the Not in Our Name website that has articles, videos and links to other reosurces for young people considering enlisting in the military.

Who's Next?
"The US Army Recruiting Command has a motto: "First to contact, first to contract." In the school recruiting handbook the Army gives to the 7,500 recruiters it has trawling the nation these days, the motto crops up so often it serves as a stuttering paean to aggressive new tactics--tactics that target increasingly younger students." From The Nation

War Veterans Denied GI Bill Benefits
"Monday 10 July 2006 Summerville, Georgia - Andy Rowe thought he had life after the Army pretty well figured out before he came home from eight months in Afghanistan in November 2003. An Army reservist since high school, Rowe, 27, planned to serve out the remaining four months of his military obligation in the inactive Reserve, get his honorable discharge and then use his GI Bill education benefits to go to college, just as his father did more than 30 years ago. But Rowe soon realized that, despite his time in a combat zone, he didn't qualify for those education benefits unless he remained in the Reserves or Guard." From truthout.org, 7/10/06.

When the call to service is distorted by recruiters
"The tawdry recruitment of Southeast Portlander Jared Guinther shouldn't require a very lengthy "investigation" by the Army. It's obvious that Guinther, who is autistic and considered disabled, isn't an appropriate candidate to serve as a cavalry scout. Serving in such a role would endanger himself and his fellow soldiers.
      As The Oregonian's Michelle Roberts reported in a disturbing story Sunday, Army recruiters signed Guinther, an 18-year-old high school senior, to a four-year Army contract and steered him toward a military career as a scout." From The Oregonian, 5/9/06

Returning troops may not be getting help they need
"WASHINGTON — Nearly four in five military personnel returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who were found to be at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder were never referred by government clinicians for further help, according to a government report.
      The report says Defense Department officials were unable to explain why some service members were referred for further help but most were not. Many veterans groups have accused the government of downplaying the risk of posttraumatic stress disorder because of concerns over skyrocketing costs." From Washington Post, 5/11/06