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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Army is establishing a suicide prevention board to examine the mental health of its recruiters around the country after the fourth suicide in three years by Houston, Texas-based recruiters, according to Army officials. The board will look at how to handle the high-stress climate facing recruiters who may be both under pressure from their job and victims of post-combat deployment stress, according to Douglas Smith, a spokesman from the U.S. Army Recruiting command. "The United States Army Recruiting Command is deeply concerned by the instances of suicide within the Houston Recruiting Battalion," said a statement...

For years, Veronica Diaz-Guerra had told her mother that she was going to join the military. But when Diaz, still a few weeks shy of her 18th birthday, finally asked her mom to sign the papers permitting her enlistment in the U.S. Marine Corps, Ofelia Guerra was hesitant. "I was hoping that she would change her mind," said Guerra, whose home in West Valley City is adorned with photographs of all of her children, including a large portrait of her stern-faced daughter in her Marine dress blues. "I wanted her to be an attorney."

WASHINGTON, June 16, 2008 – The Army National Guard has been so successful recruiting and retaining citizen-soldiers that officials purposely slowed May enlistments, National Guard Bureau officials reported. The Army and Air National Guard continued a brisk recruiting pace in May that has filled out the ranks of the Guard across the board. A decade-long decline in recruiting doctors, dentists and physician assistants was reversed in 2007, with a 20 percent increase. Recruiters anticipate a 60 percent increase in 2008 as they execute a four-year recovery program for the field. The Army National Guard was at 102 percent of its...

For the American Left, there are many reasons to withdraw from Iraq: we're caught in the middle of a sectarian civil war, the Iraqi government is a perfidious ally, Iraq is a diversion from the real war against al Qaeda in Afghanistan, and so on. Some of these arguments are strategically shortsighted, others are based on false premises (such as the fact that the sectarian civil war is over in Iraq and bin Laden is in Pakistan, not Afghanistan), but at least they are more or less logically coherent. What makes almost no sense is the proposal that we turn...

Hasn't the MSM learned anything from the unfortunate episodes of John "stuck in Iraq" Kerry and Stephen "if you don't read you've got the Army" King? Apparently not. Once again, the liberal media, this time in the form of the AFP, has perpetrated the canard that the our military is the last resort of the poor and uneducated. An AFP article of May 16 reported the story of Army sergeant Matthis Chiroux, who has refused deployment to Iraq, claiming he considers it "an illegal war." Chiroux has said that he was "from a poor, white family from the south, and...

The Department of Defense announced today its recruiting and retention statistics for the active and reserve components for the month of April. Active Duty Recruiting:April Monthly:All services met or exceeded recruiting goals for the month of April (below) and have surpassed goals for fiscal year 2008 to date.April 2008:Army Accessions:5,681 Goal:5,650 101%Navy Accessions:2,905 Goal:2,905 100%Marine Corps Accessions:2,233 Goal:1,577 142%Air Force Accessions:2,435 Goal:2,435 100%Active Duty Retention. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps met or exceeded their active duty retention objectives. Reserve Forces Recruiting: April Monthly. All six reserve components have met or exceeded accession goals through April 2008. April 2008: Army National...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps far surpassed its recruiting goal last month and could eventually be more than a year ahead of schedule in its plan to grow the force to 202,000 members. All military services met or exceeded their monthly recruiting goals in April, with the Marine Corps signing 142 percent of the number it was looking for, the Pentagon said. The Army signed 101 percent of its goal, recruiting 5,681 against a goal of 5,650. The Navy and Air Force met their goals — 2,905 sailors and 2,435 airmen. The Marine Corps enlisted 2,233 recruits against a...

(WASHINGTON) — Soldiers who need special waivers to get into the Army because of bad behavior go AWOL more often and face more courts-martial. But they also get promoted faster and re-enlist at a higher rate, according to an internal military study obtained by The Associated Press.

Gathering of Eagles has just announced Recruiter Appreciation Day, Saturday, May 17 or there abouts. Being a Saturday, some recruiter stations have shortened hours or are closed. Friday or Monday might be a better day. As in other Support the Troop Events, one organization steps forward to be the main coordinating organization. GoE has once again stepped up to the plate this year. Check out the GOE site for pertinent info. Hopefully no one doubles up on a Recruiter Station while one across town is neglected.

CLEARWATER — This month's death of Army Spc. Arturo Huerta-Cruz in Iraq cast a spotlight on troops serving in the U.S. military who are not American citizens. Huerta-Cruz, 23, was born in a small town in rural Mexico and moved to Clearwater with his family when he was 10. He was a legal permanent resident, or a "green card" soldier. That made him an exception. Noncitizens account for about 5 percent of the troops in all the branches of the U.S. military. Noncitizens now must have green cards to enlist. But as the nation fights wars on two fronts, some...

All military services met or exceeded their recruiting goals for March, Defense Department officials reported today. This makes the 10th straight month the services have hit their recruiting marks. All of the services have surpassed their recruiting goals for fiscal 2008 to date. The Army brought in 101 percent of its 6,000-recruit goal for March, and the Marines finished with a two-month streak of 137 percent of its 1,632-recruit goal. The two services recruited 6,066 and 2,234 new members, respectively. The Air Force and Navy both hit 100 percent of their respective goals of 2,093 and 2,909 recruits. In the...

LONDON (AFP) - Teachers will call Tuesday for a ban on all military recruitment in schools after accusing the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of 'sophisticated' tactics to attract youngsters into the armed forces. Delegates from the National Union of Teachers will debate a motion regarding the recruitment of pupils in England and Wales amidst claims that children are not made fully aware of what they are signing up to. However, the MoD, which is invited to around 1,000 schools a year, claims that they make the visits to raise awareness rather than to recruit. "They are too young to vote,...

Story Created: Mar 19, 2008 Story Updated: Mar 19, 2008 People driving by the Army Recruiting Station on Milwaukee's east side are finding it boarded up with a vandal's message on the 5th anniversary of the Iraq War. Vandals put graffiti saying "War Is Offensive" and broke windows at the facility on the 3100 block of North Oakland Avenue, near the UWM campus. Officials there later boarded up the windows. A man who works in the area said he saw anti-war slogans written on the windows also. This is not the first time the place has been vandalized. Last year,...

Please use this thread to link to other threads detailing today's attacks on US Military Recruiting Stations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — One year ago, as President Bush decided to send more troops to Iraq, the conventional wisdom in Washington among opponents of the war was that the U.S. Army was on the verge of breaking. In December 2006 former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell warned, "The active Army is about broken." Ret. Gen. Barry McCaffrey, in a much-cited memo to West Point colleagues, wrote: "My bottom line is that the Army is unraveling, and if we don’t expend significant national energy to reverse that trend, sometime in the next two...

Staff Sgt. Jason Eck has been flipped off, cussed at and told to get out of town for doing his job. The abuse hasn't deterred the two-time Iraq war veteran from donning his uniform, sliding behind the wheel of his government-issued Chevy Malibu and hitting the road almost daily in search of new soldiers. Still, as a recruiter, he faces a daunting task. Almost nowhere in the nation is it harder to find willing and able enlistees than in the Bay Area. The region's nine counties have the lowest enlistment rate of any large metropolitan area other than in and...

WASHINGTON, March 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The nation's largest pro-troop organization, Move America Forward (website: http://www.MoveAmericaForward.org ) will hold a news conference this Friday, March 14, 2008, calling attention to, and denouncing, the rising trend of violence against military recruiting centers. The news conference takes place in the Murrow Room at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on Friday, March 14th at 9:30 AM. Move America Forward will provide detailed accounts of these attacks, including photographs and documents, to members of the media in attendance. A new national television ad campaign calling attention to these attacks will also be unveiled....

Attacks against military recruiters and their offices are growing around the United States, spurred by anti-American anarchists who thrash the centers, assault and batter people, and intimidate those who want to serve their country. Attackers throw rocks, chain themselves to doors, punch and kick, spray paint graffiti, break windows, yell, and generally vandalize recruiting centers across the nation in repeated attacks. "Counter Recruitment" UNC Video-02/05/08Code Pink, an anti-war group that gave more than $600,000 to terrorists’ families in Iraq, is calling for anti-military agitators to escalate attacks on U.S. Government offices where the military work with potential recruits on their...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 28, 2008 – Following the growth of Iraqi Interior Ministry forces from about 350,000 members to 410,000 in 2007, the coalition’s focus is shifting from police recruitment to improving overall operational quality, a senior officer said from Baghdad yesterday. While the growth of the forces accounts for all functions under the ministry, success recruiting provincial-level Iraqi police last year makes up a significant portion of the increase, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Michael D. Jones, commander of Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq’s Civilian Police Assistance Training Team, told online journalists and “bloggers” in a teleconference. A major development that...

DC Chapter of Freerepublic it was Mission Accomplished in showing support for our Armed Forces Recruiters at 13 and L Streets! It was my pleasure and I am thankful for all the members and supporters who showed up on yesterday to support the rally. The Navy and Army Recruiters(Marines and Air Force were out on mission)were pleased to see us there as gifts and cards were given out. Several members went in and talked to the recruiters, thanking them for their service and for what they do in recruiting. I extended my personal apologizes as a DC Resident for the...

DC Chapter of Free-Republic and all lurkers in good standing are encouraged to join fellow members, veterans, lurkers and citizens this coming Monday February 25th from 3pm-6pm to show support for our Armed Forces Recruiters and to send a direct message to the cowards who attacked our Armed Forces Recruiting Station. Our rally seeks to send a clear message to the leftists terrorists that we will not permit their actions to go unanswered and that City Officials need to explain to the public why police officers did not take corrective actions to stop the senseless attack upon federal government property...

https://secure.donationreport.com/donation.html?key=0E6KU1WLTPV6 Video on the site of recent Berkley Marine Recruiting station protests and police response, finally.

Yesterday, February 15, about a dozen or so hard-core leftists gathered outside of the Armed Forces Recruiting Station at 8202 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring MD, from 4-6pm. There to counter them and support the troops was Free Republic. World Can't Wait staged a series of protests at 6 military recruitment centers across the US. Here's the background on this group from David Horowitz' Discover The Networks website Founded in June 2005 by Charles Clark Kissinger, a longtime leader of the Revolutionary Communist Party, World Can't Wait (WCW) is a direct action movement seeking to organize "people living in the...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14, 2008 – The Marine Corps’ mission and mystique continue to attract high-quality recruits who join up to fight America’s enemies, that service’s senior officer said here today. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James T. Conway (right) discusses military issues with National Journal Magazine correspondent and author James Kitfield (center) and Timothy B. Clark, editor-in-chief of Government Executive Magazine, during a Government Executive-sponsored event at the National Press Club, Feb. 14, 2008. Photo by Gerry J. Gilmore  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. All of the military services continue to meet their recruiting quotas. Yet, while some services...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2008 – All four services met or exceeded their active-duty recruiting goals for January, defense officials announced today. The January recruiting numbers represented the eighth consecutive month of across-the-board active-duty recruiting successes among the services, officials said. The Army recruited 8,693 active-duty soldiers, 101 percent of its goal, in January. This came as welcome news to Army officials, who had feared that the delayed passage of the fiscal 2008 National Defense Authorization Act could hurt positive recruiting momentum. The legislation, which passed into law Jan. 28, includes authorities for a variety of special and incentive pays, including...

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates offered Friday to help the U.S. Marines leave town by negotiating an end to the lease for their recruiting station, even as he backpedaled on a City Council resolution declaring the Corps "uninvited and unwelcome intruders" in the city. In the face of an onslaught of pro-military criticism from around the country, Bates, a retired Army captain, also issued a statement that said the City Council's resolution Tuesday night "did not adequately differentiate our respect and support for those serving in the armed forces and our opposition to the Iraq war policy." He said he would...

The U.S. Marine Corps said today it would hold its ground in Berkeley after the City Council asked it to abandon its recruiting office on Shattuck Avenue earlier this week, while the city's mayor retreated a bit. "We take an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States, and part of the Constitution is the right of free speech, and the fact that they are exercising their rights solidifies our resolve to continue what we are doing," Gunnery Sgt. Pauline Franklin said. Franklin added that the service "can't predict the future" about its presence in Berkeley. The council voted...

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., says the City of Berkeley, Calif., no longer deserves federal money. DeMint was angered after learning that the Berkeley City Council voted this week to tell the U.S. Marine Corps to remove its recruiting station from the city's downtown. "This is a slap in the face to all brave service men and women and their families," DeMint said in a prepared statement. "The First Amendment gives the City of Berkeley the right to be idiotic, but from now on they should do it with their own money." "If the city can’t show respect...

Berkeley council tells Marines to leave By Doug Oakley STAFF WRITER Article Launched: 01/30/2008 01:48:16 PM PST Related Links Photoblog: Share your Berkeley photos and videos Forum: Discuss Berkeley news More Berkeley coverage Hey-hey, ho-ho, the Marines in Berkeley have got to go. That's the message from the Berkeley City Council, which voted 6-3 Tuesday night to tell the U.S. Marines that its Shattuck Avenue recruiting station "is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders." In addition, the council voted to explore enforcing its law prohibiting discrimination on...

Emboldened by this week's show of support by the Berkeley City Council, anti-war protesters on Thursday cranked up their noisy effort to throw the U.S. Marine Corps recruiters out of town, but in the pounding rain it was hard to tell who won the figurative battle of wills. On one hand, the protesters mustered one of their biggest crowds yet - 40 people - to yell "Drive out the Bush regime" and other slogans outside the Marines' recruiting station on Shattuck Avenue. Hundreds of motorists honked in support as they passed. On the other hand, there was nobody working at...

Hey-hey, ho-ho, the Marines in Berkeley have got to go. That's the message from the Berkeley City Council, which voted 8-1 Tuesday night to tell the Marines that its Shattuck Avenue recruiting station "is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders." In addition, the council voted to explore enforcing its law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation against the Marines, and officially encouraged the women's peace group Code Pink to impede the work of the Marines in the city by protesting in front of the station....

In response to a Marine Corps recruiting office established in Berkeley last year, local activists are trying to make it more difficult for future recruiting centers to open in the city. If passed by a majority of Berkeley voters, a proposed initiative would require military recruiting offices and private military companies in Berkeley to first acquire a special use permit. To obtain this permit, a business must hold public hearings and a public comment period. If the initiative passes, recruitment offices could not be opened within 600 feet of residential districts, public parks, public health clinics, public libraries, schools or...

In response to a Marine Corps recruiting office established in Berkeley last year, local activists are trying to make it more difficult for future recruiting centers to open in the city. If passed by a majority of Berkeley voters, a proposed initiative would require military recruiting offices and private military companies in Berkeley to first acquire a special use permit. To obtain this permit, a business must hold public hearings and a public comment period. If the initiative passes, recruitment offices could not be opened within 600 feet of residential districts, public parks, public health clinics, public libraries, schools or...

Last year, the Washington Post let itself be so badly misled by a "study" on military recruiting from a far-left think tank that WaPo ombudsman Deborah Powell felt obliged to write a lengthy column about the matter, diplomatically taking her paper to task for failing to "tell the full story." So when the same think tank came out with another recruiting study this year, surely WaPo would take it with a large grain of salt, right? Think again.

Friday, January 18, 2008 WAUKESHA, Wis. -- Here in "Cheesehead" country, where Green Bay Packers fans go to Lambeau Field with snow shovels, military recruiting never has been much of a problem -- until now. "These are outdoors, patriotic people," a military recruiter told me as I prepared to speak at a Boy Scouts function here. "Young people up here are tough. They hunt, they ice fish, they go to football games in an open stadium in the middle of a blizzard. This used to be a great place to be a recruiter, but not anymore," he continued. "What's happened?"...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2008 – All four services met or surpassed their monthly active-duty recruiting goals for December, and five of the six reserve components showing similar success, Defense Department officials announced today. The Army recruited 789 active-duty soldiers last month, 105 percent of its December goal. On the reserve-component side, the Army National Guard recruited 4,985 members, 120 percent of its goal, and the Army Reserve, 3,280 soldiers, 107 percent of its goal. The Marine Corps recruited 1,992 active-duty Marines, 115 percent of its goal, and met its goal of recruiting 410 Marine Corps reservists. The Air Force...

Citizen Soldier by 3 Doors Down Beyond the boundries of your city's lights. Stand the heroes waiting for your cries. So many times you did not bring this on yourself. When the moment finally comes, I'll be there to help. On that day, when you need your brothers and sisters to care. I'll be right here. Citizen soldiers. Holding the life of the ones that we guide from the dark of despair. Standing on guard for the ones that we've sheltered. We'll always be ready because we will always be there. When there're people crying in the streets When they're...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2007 – All military components met their recruiting goals in November, Defense Department officials said here yesterday. It was the sixth month in a row that all services made their recruiting goals, officials said. The military is recruiting in a difficult environment, defense officials said. Only three out of every 10 Americans in the targeted age group qualifies for military service. A good American economy and feelings against the Iraq war degrade the propensity of young Americans to enlist, officials said. Still, the military is doing well. On the active-duty side, the Marine Corps made 108 percent...

The first month of fiscal 2008 was a success for all active and reserve military components. In a meeting with Pentagon reporters today, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said all components met or exceeded their recruiting and accession goals for October. On the active-duty side, the Army made 101 percent of its goal of 4,500, with 4,564 recruits. The Navy made 100 percent of its goal of 2,788 recruits. The Marine Corps made 102 percent of its goal of 2,720, with 2,788 enlisting. The Air Force made 100 percent of its goal of 2,656.

It's not up on the net yet, so I'll save you from having to waste 20 minutes on the MSM. The "Story:" 1. Army enlistment among Blacks in down 50% 2. Teachers and "Black leaders" are telling young men to not enlist. 3. I't the "White Man's" war for oil. 4. And of course, it's all Bush's fault. That's all there was in 20 minutes, albiet repeated about 20 times.

Gen. Abizaid: No draft please By Mike Wereschagin TRIBUNE-REVIEW Wednesday, October 31, 2007 The military is stretched thin and the tangle of problems in the Middle East will take generations to unravel, but the former top U.S. commander in that region said this morning he still thinks a draft is the wrong way to go. "Young people need to figure out how to serve the country," said retired four-star Gen. John P. Abizaid, who spoke to the Trib this morning before a speech at Carnegie Mellon University.

The proportion of black Marine Corps recruits jumped by 40 percent over the last 12 months, halting a seven-year slide that has worried service leaders. In fiscal 2007, which ended Sept. 30, blacks were 10.9 percent of Marine recruits, up from 7.8 percent in 2006, the smallest proportion of black recruits for the Corps since the all-volunteer force began 33 years ago. The increase is timely, given a Marine Corps plan to expand its active force by 27,000 over the next five years in response to protracted wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other worldwide commitments. All active services met...

Military hits recruit goals; 2008 looks tougher Wed Oct 10, 2007 12:49pm EDT By Kristin Roberts WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military met its major recruiting goals in 2007, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, but faces high hurdles for 2008 as the Army tries to grow faster without further lowering standards for new soldiers. All four active-duty units of the U.S. military met recruiting goals, but the National Guard missed its targets. The Army, the largest branch of the U.S. military, had to use bonuses and other incentives to lure recruits but beat by 407 its goal of 80,000 new...

Army, Marines say they made recruiting goals Thu Oct 4, 2007 6:03pm EDT By Andrew Gray WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Army and Marine Corps said on Thursday that they had met annual targets for recruiting and retaining troops despite the dangers of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. "To re-enlist in a time of war is a powerful commitment," Gen. Richard Cody, the Army's vice chief of staff said at a ceremony on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial to mark the occasion. "It says a great deal about our Army today as a whole." Army officials said they...

SAN FRANCISCO, Sep. 24, 2007 (KGO) - New York said "yes," but we said "no." Why were the U.S. Marines denied permission to film a recruiting commercial on the streets of San Francisco? San Francisco is, once again, the center of a controversy over how city leaders treat the U.S. military. This time, it involves an elite group of Marines who wanted to film a recruitment commercial in San Francisco on the anniversary of 9/11. snip He says Film Commission Executive Director Stefanie Coyote would only allow the Marine's production crew to film on California Street if there were no...

Yale Law to allow military recruiters By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN, Associated Press Writer 40 minutes ago Yale Law School will end its policy of not working with military recruiters following a court ruling this week that jeopardized about $300 million in federal funding, school officials said Wednesday. Yale and other universities had objected to the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy that allows gay men and women to serve in the military only if they keep their sexual orientation to themselves. Yale Law School had refused to assist military recruiters because the Pentagon wouldn't sign a nondiscrimination pledge. The 2nd U.S....

Two days after bringing thousands of protesters to the U.S. Capitol, Iraq war opponents will begin a "week of action" today that starts with sending activists to area high schools and military recruiting centers and marching through a congressional building. Dozens of war opponents, including some who were among the 192 arrested Saturday, spent yesterday training for this week, which will be "the most intense week" of planned actions since the Iraq conflict began, said Brian Becker, national coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition, which organized Saturday's rally and march and many of the other large antiwar events across the country....

"Reclaim Your Rights as a Liberal Educator." That's the title of a short essay in this month's Academe, organ of the American Association of University Professors. The phrase has all the imagination of a slogan unfurled at countless marches, but what it lacks in wit it makes up for in fortitude of the uniquely academic kind. Author Julie Kilmer, women's studies and religion professor at Olivet College, sounds the standard "they're-out-to-get-us" call and rallies her brethren to take back the classroom. We have, too, a vicious aggressor: conservative student groups that confront professors of perceived liberal bias, and they form...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10, 2007 – All four services reported strong recruiting success in August, with the Army marking its second consecutive month exceeding its monthly goal, Defense Department officials announced today. The Army topped its August goal by 6 percent, bringing 10,126 new soldiers into the force. The Army made 102 percent of its goal in July. Officials expressed confidence that the consecutive successes mark a turnaround from May and June, when the Army fell short in recruiting. Army Maj. Gen. Thomas P. Bostick, commander of U.S. Army Recruiting Command, attributes much of the rebound to the Army’s new...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4, 2007 – The Army’s new “quick-ship” bonus program is showing success in getting prospective recruits to enlist and is expected to help the Army make its end-of-year recruiting goal, the Army’s recruiting chief told Pentagon reporters today. Maj. Gen. Thomas P. Bostick, commander of U.S. Army Recruiting Command, credited the $20,000 quick-ship bonus with helping to motivate would-be soldiers who were “on the fence” into joining the ranks. The program was introduced in late July to provide a financial incentive for recruits willing to ship off quickly to basic training. In August alone, 200 recruits who were...