Posted on 11/05/2016 8:26:51 AM PDT by darkwing104
Defense Secretary Ash Carter launched a sweeping review of the military's recruiting standards that may involve relaxed rules on everything from single-parent enlistees to drug use and obesity. He believes the current standards for screening new recruits are “overly restrictive” and preventing America's most talented young people from joining the ranks
Carter’s proposal is the latest of his “Force of the Future” personnel reforms. Secretary Carter is concerned that Obama’s military is ill-equipped to recruit and retain the top talent needed for future missions. Of course, Carter ignores the elephant in the room; that being Obama’s social programs are not only effecting combat readiness, but never ending deployments are discouraging talented service members from considering making the military a career.
The secretary announced a $140 million advertising campaign to improve the military’s brand among young people throughout all regions of the United States and to improve ROTC programs that provide 40 percent of incoming military officers. Currently America’s military recruiting pool is shrinking as future recruits are joining from fewer states.
The review was driven by several active-duty military recruiters, worried that today’s force is turning away people with critical skills because they fail to meet specific individual requirements. In other words, the recruiters are unable to meet their quotas. Nevertheless, the military will have a difficult time accepting a 300-pound recruit that may be a potential health risk. And Basic Training is hardly a good environment for drug rehab!
Why is Carter trying to reform enlistment requirements?
His legacy of course. Secretary Carter will stepdown in January when Mr. Obama leaves the White House and he wants personnel reforms to be the centerpiece of his two years in the Pentagon’s top office.
(Excerpt) Read more at thecoachsteam.com ...
They had to lower the standards because many of our youth fail to meet the current ones. The plan is to sign them up and then whip them into shape.
Preventing the “most talented...”
PC is WONDERFUL. You can slight, slur or dismiss anyone you want and be considered Holy and Good by the deed.
Yo mama not gonna be whipped into,no shape by some cracker DI
Baby got back - and multiple babies
Daycare or deployments?
Wait for it
Must be getting ready for the final push to put women in charge of the infantry....
Aka, Nintendo warriors.
Very soon all wars will be fought entirely from a computer keyboard that is hundreds, if not thousands of miles from the battlefield. You don’t need to be in excellent physical shape to punch numbers into a keyboard or refuel a battle drone.
Rather than lower the physical bar, I’d prefer to see the military raise the age bar, particularly for re-enlistments, and widen the scope of positions available to such re-enlistees.
Modern healthcare standards and fitness trends mean that there are plenty of guys out there today in their late 30s and 40s who can still bang out a 20-mile march and be ready to fight at the end. Many of these are people with solid educations and a wealth of skills and experience that can be leveraged by the military, and those who have already done a tour also have the necessary discipline foundation. Rather than rely on the self-esteem generation (whose physical fitness is becoming more questionable by the day), let the guys who haven’t lost sight of what’s important have a go?
Lowered standards are what originated the word fragging. Many regects got separated early by the use of unnatural selection during complicated missions.
The military has become a jobs program with great pay, benefits and 30 days vacation each year. It wasn't fair to exclude the fatties, single moms, perpetually pregnant, drug-addled, felonious, transgendered, face-tattooed and dim-witted from such great opportunities!
It's not like these people are going to be fighting wars. They'll be earning a nice paycheck sitting at a desk "Temporary Assigned Duty" for 8 hours a day.
This ain't grandpa's military.
“...preventing America’s most talented young people from joining the ranks....”
That’s got to be one of the most repulsive, stupid statements ever made.
Of course, to liberals, our most talented are druggies with lots of tats, folks to whom the solution of even the most simple equation is a complete mystery, dolts unable to locate their own state in a U.S. map, etc.
Carter, you are an ass. Hmmm, seems folks have associated a name like that with another ass.
That has always been the case for many people in hard times. It was for me in 1980. Oregon had an official unemployment rate over 20% and I needed a job, so I turned to the USAF.
I found a home, and kept at it for 30 years, between active duty and contractor. The last ten years kept me feeling young by working with the young people in uniform.
Can’t hold ground with drones.
Exactly. On a sad note; America has lost the political willpower put boots on the ground and fight.
That’s directly proportional to how long & how many “reporters” are covering the situation. The more they bleat out the “news” particularly with their “spin” the faster political willpower either collapse or mutates into something against our “interests”. Case in point Somalia at the end of Bush I’s term.
What current conflict is worth putting boots on the ground to fight (and die) for?
Active Duty ping.
You probably gave something back.
I'm an LPO. My greatest challenge is scheduling training around the various childcare commitments that the multitude of single parents in my work center have prioritized along with the endless medical appointments of the perpetually sick.
And if I make a fuss about it, I'll have a grievance against me so fast it'll make my head spin.
They've learned how to game the system and they're doing just that. Meanwhile, I've got about half my work center who don't have a bunch of outside commitments who I have to lean on to carry the load and they're getting burned out.
This is an indication on how future wars will be fought, including those that may directly threaten our existence.
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