For some, the military is an alternative to welfare. Less now that they're going in harm's way, but back in the 90s...
Any work is an alternative to welfare.
That's a great reason to join.
I used to encounter that attitude back in the 90s, and to a man it was from senior NCOs. I'll never forget (as a newly minted buck sergeant) going toe to toe with an old E7 who was a negligent and incompetent slug. I pulled him aside after one particularly egrigious incident, for an NCO to NCO talk. The usual 'you need to set a better example for the troops, and start pulling your weight' chat. He brazenly laughed me off and boasted that the Army was nothing more than a welfare check to him.
I was shocked, but it dawned on me that he was entirely right. There wasn't a damn thing I could do about it, and so long as he kept showing up to work on time, there wasn't a damn thing the Army was going to do to him. He'd never make E8, but he couldn't have cared less.
I haven't heard anyone take that line for a long time, though. It's kind of like the 'I just joined for the college money' types. You used to hear that quite a bit, years back. They've pretty much cleared out by now.