Posted on 09/22/2004 2:04:26 AM PDT by Former Military Chick
Easy... Women should not be part of active duty in combat areas. Unfortunately, The law does not agree with my opinions which results in stories like this.
You know, if you'd done your four and gotten out, settled into civilian life and put your military experience behind you, you'd be a little shocked if you received the telegram she had.
have you seen her contract? inactive reserve...you can still be called up. she should have known that.
Was that an editorial, or is that what passes for a straight news story to day? Pretty sad.
"She had enlisted during her senior year at Pinellas Park High School. A recruiter approached her several times. She didn't really want to go, but she didn't know what else to do.
She told the recruiter "no." Why did he keep coming back? Let's take no for an answer and sign up people who are enthusiastic not reluctant. Wasn't the best time to "get her the hell out of the service" before she even got in? If it takes a hard sell, that's not exactly an ideal recruit and potentially more trouble than useful as it turned out to be here."
As a Brit, I wasn't aware that military recruiters target high school children in the US & I have to say that I'm a little surprised.
What age are these kids approached by recruiters and if they sign up, how long are they obliged to serve and how long are they on the reserve list afterwards?
Reading this first thing gives me morning sickness and I'm a male. Yuck. Maybe she can file for a purple heart and run for president in 35 years or so. Odds are I'll be gone by then. Yuck. Folks, enlisting is not about Prvt. Benjamin or some other feel good feminist movie . Part of the job description is getting shot at. If you can't do that don't sign up. Also my taxes are paying for these games.
You make a good point. Out of approximately 100 men I went through basic training with there were a handful, approximately 5, who couldn't physically cut it. I wonder how many women out of a random 100 would not make it under the same training conditions. I venture to say it would be closer to half. What's more, when I got to Vietnam the conditions were much worse than in basic, with rucksacks and ammo routinely weighing 50 pounds or more, horrendous sanitary conditions, skin problems of every sort, and living conditions which were hardship for even the most rugged individual. While there is no doubt there are some women who can handle all these conditions, they are in a minority and if we had to institute a draft it would skew the number of combat ready forces dramatically. These issues don't even begin to address the psychological and cultural issues which make a tight band of men a good fighting force, and one that would be crippled with the introduction of a woman.
Military recruiters are very active in the high schools of the USA. They even have extra-curricular clubs called JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps). The standard enlistment contract is 4 years of active duty followed by 4 years of non-drilling Ready Reserves for a total of eight years. There are other contracts that may require as much as 6 years of active duty (followed by only 2 years of IRR) and there is also a 3 year active, 3 year drilling reserve, and 2 year IRR contract. It all depends on what schools/programs you receive from the government but all of the contracts have an initial obligation of 8 years.
However, she's not the only one who's complaining about the involuntary re-ups. A lot of officers (who are subject to recall indefinitely) have also begun complaining when they've received the dreaded telegram. Not only is this going to affect morale (see above), but it's going to affect recruiting. Kids understand the four-year commitment; I wasn't even told about the eight-year part till I went to boot camp. I didn't read my contract closely, and I'm sure most others didn't then and don't now. However, now this is hitting the news, fewer people are going to want to take the chances of doing an entire eight years.
bump
Somehow I get the feeling if they were the type of folks who would have considered "America" They just wouldn't be so addled with angst right now
This gives all women in the military a bad name. I served for 5 1/2 years and not once did I ask for special treatment. Even when I became pregnant I still performed my job and actually did more than I had to because I didn't want anyone to say I got off easy. Most women in the military do their jobs and want to be treated the same as the men. There are plenty of people (men and women) who join the military and don't understand the hardships and sacrifices you have to make. It takes a special person to put on a uniform and live up to the obligations.
Maybe because it "isn't" fair. Female soldiers should be REQUIRED to be "vaccinated" against pregnancy with Norplant implants as a condition of service.
As to the twit in the article---it is difficult to work up sympathy for someone who signs a contract and then tries to wiggle out of it. She sounds like a typical liberal.
So sixteen year olds are allowed to sign contracts which legally commit them to the military for up to 8 years?
Isn't this odd considering that (as I understand it) sixteen year olds aren't allowed to vote, drink alcohol or marry without parental consent?
It should be mandatory for women on active military duty to use an IUD or Norplant (or be sterilized, if they prefer). Exceptions should be made on a case by case basis, based on the woman's function in the military and the military's needs for the foreseeable future. We don't have a draft, so nobody would be forcing women to use contraception or be sterilized. But if you sign up for a job like this, you have to be prepared to ensure you'll be fit to perform it.
People like this think the military is only about government handouts --- a nice fat welfare program and free scholarship money for college if they ever feel like going.
17, with parental consent, which, in this case, appears to have been given ...
"Her mother thought it was a good idea. Cristie was shy and quiet, with an innocence that Sendio thought needed to be tempered with confidence. A dose of the Army might do her good."
Recruiters have to spend too much time meeting their recruitment targets to keep going back and talking to people who have told them "No" in the first place. From the way it sounds, this little petunia kept stringing it along, maybe hoping that something better would come along .. like a husband or an out-of-the-blue college scholarship or maybe winning the lottery .. until it became time to sh*t or get off the pot. I always avoided recruiting duty because of the stress and long workdays involved .. and because I'm not really a people person .. but I have worked for and supervised ex-recruiters.
A firm "No" usually ends any recruitment contacts; a less-firm "No" can mean maybe one more approach. "Maybe's" and "possiblies" will continue the process but most contacts after two or three would be done by mail or telephone .. maybe email now. Anything more than that is a contact usually initiated by the potential recruit toward the recruiter.
She should have read her enlistment contract.
If she really wants to avoid duty in Iraq, she doesn’t have to get pregnant again. All she has to do is disobey the order – of course, there may be a penalty for doing that, but she won’t be required to be a soldier.
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