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 Greetings! You are reading an article from The Mudville Gazette. To reach the front page, with all the latest news and views, click the logo above or "main" below. Thanks for stopping by! March 11, 2009 Soul SearchingBy Greyhawk"My youngest son, who is 19, recently told me that he was thinking about leaving college and joining the military." Says Courtland Milloy in an essay in the Washington Post. My research has turned up a number that would give any parent pause: 72,900. No, it's not a war casualty count. It's the amount on a huge check posted in the window of an Army recruiting office I visited in Oxon Hill.From my experience, anyone joining the military only "to get an education" will be disappointed - even though most do leave smarter than when they came in. But best of luck to Milloy the younger, and others making similar decisions. I'd hand them a copy of Roosevelt's Sorbonne speech, and tell them that if it was easy, everyone would do it. Posted by Greyhawk / March 11, 2009 7:07 PM | Permalink 6 Comments |
March 19, 2010Dawn Patrol 03/19/2003 [Greyhawk]
"Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various sources around the world." Mudville was founded in March, 2003. Our efforts to bring the thoughts, words, and deeds of milbloggers to a wider world evolved to become The Dawn Patrol in March, 2005. With today's entry we're going to reset the clock - but not re-write the history - and recreate the world as it was - on a day the world changed...
Updating... more to follow.... MILBOGSAndrew Olmsted, 19 Mar 2003, Stateside: It would appear that the liberation of Iraq has begun. Greyhawk, 18 Mar 2003, Germany: A united world could have, just maybe, brought down Saddam without firing a shot. We will never know. 19 Mar: We'll never know what a united world could have achieved... the UN could not agree on anything, the situation degenerated, and here we are. Status quo was not working. The French were too desperate for oil and trade at any cost. Well-intentioned Americans were led into the streets by Communists (and others) with an agenda. The media distorted the split. Many in America and abroad thought they could manipulate the situation to their personal gain. They miscalculated. The fire is lit. Pontifx ex Machina, 18 Mar, undisclosed location: Rolling out the gate, the guard gets a quick "hook-em, horns" sign as we weave through the barricades. Then we're off, cruising through the desert in a battered-up SUV. On the eve of war, only one thing passes through our minds: is there going to be any appropriate music on the radio? Lt Smash, 19 Mar, undisclosed location: Read the President's speech today. The clock is ticking. Chief Wiggles, 22 Mar, Kuwait: The war started Wednesday morning for us right after the president gave a speech to the American people that lasted about 4 minutes. We were all very anxious for this whole thing to be either over or get it on its way. Will, 22 Mar, en route: I am going to Baghdad to personally shoot that paper hanging son of a bitch! Lt Smash 20 Mar, undisclosed location: Sgt Stryker, 20 Mar, Stateside: Iraq to File U.N. Complaint About Attack Primary Main Objective, 30 Mar, undisclosed location I Dare Kofi to Come Get Me.
BruceR, Flit, 19 Mar, Canada: AND SO IT BEGINS. Godspeed, Yanks. Come home safe and soon. Andrew Olmsted, 20 Mar 2003, Stateside: The most important thing to remember over the next few days is this: the first reports are almost always inaccurate. First reports are generally submitted in the heat of battle before any real analysis can take place. Therefore, they're highly subjective, based on limited information, and rarely hit the mark. So as the first reports of 'surgical strikes' on Iraqi forces come in, it's best to take those reports with a grain of salt... Iraqi BlogsSalam Pax, Baghdad: The bombing aould come and go in waves, nothing too heavy and not yet comparable to what was going on in 91. all radio and TV stations are still on and while the air raid began the Iraqi TV was showing patriotic songs and didn't even bother to inform viewers that we are under attack. at the moment they are re-airing yesterday's interview with the minister of interior affairs. THe sounds of the anti-aircarft artillery is still louder than the booms and bangs which means that they are still far from where we live, but the images we saw on Al Arabia news channel showed a building burning near one of my aunts house... American BlogsGlenn Reynolds has a ton of links. Newpapers
Updating... more to follow.... |
The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
 
 
 I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email. Original content copyright © 2003 - 2009 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed. Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com  |
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Oh, he'll get an education alright. Probably a lot like the education I got from Drill Sergeant Moreno, Drill Sergeant Alicea, and Drill Sergeant Rosen at Fort Benning.
20 years later and I still remember their names.
With respect to the safety issue....
I have no idea how to do it objectively, but I think there must be a way to establish a safety factor for a place.
In a college classroom you don't expect to be shot-at. So your preparedness, watchfulness, and the security features in that environment are all low.
In a war zone, you expec to get shot-at. Your preparedness, watchfulness and the security features in that environment are all high.
Now, we need a way to compare risk of being 1 of the people harmed per 1000 people there times that Safety Factor in the war zone to the risk of being one of [how ever many people are at VT] times the other safety factor.
To me the big risk is in not doing something, and then spening the rest of your life wondering what if?
Heh.
Maybe somebody else has done the work for me.
http://nooilforpacifists.blogspot.com/2009/03/under-publicized-fact-of-day.html
Actually the article doesn't quote the son saying anything about wanting to go into the Army because it will pay for his education. That's the columnist's spin on it, his rationale for why it might (emphasize might) be okay if his son enlists, providing a financial motive. Maybe the kid's not even interested in college.
Good points. And you're right Sadie - the author never mentions what his son's motives might be. The thoughts he chooses to share are of himself.
Speaking from a parents point of view. My son enlisted because he believed in honoring his country. I Knew and he did that death could be a factor. He did look for getting a college education at a later date , as he told his wife. But that isn't what motivated him. I said before he died that (actually from day 1) it was more dangerous to live in the usa that to stand in the war zone. If you check the stats on any give day you will see more young people are killed from may things in their own home state. So money was not a factor but it looked good too.