There are some people who join the military because it's a job that allows a person to retire after 30 years. An 18 year old can retire at 48. That's pretty young to be free and still get a retirement check to live on.
When it's time to actually do what they were hired to do, they have a temper tantrum. It was suppose to be an easy ride. They really didn't want to defend the country. They wanted the pay check and the goodies.
This man knew what his job was. He wanted to dance without paying the piper.
30?
Try 20 - seriously.
Very few people, only the most senior officers and enlisted, are even allowed to make it to 30. The average retirement about 10 years ago was around 23-24 years. Lots of E-5/6s and O-4s are forced to retire at 20 unless they have changed to time in service caps.
It's 20 years. You can retire after 20. My husband will be eligible for retirement at 40, not that he will.
HOWEVER, in the Marine Corps at least (don't want to claim knowledge of other branches, I'm not sure what their policy is), they have an up or out policy. If you do not reach SSgt by 13 years, you will be getting out, I'm not sure what it is for Officers, I can't reach my husband to find out, but they have a rank/time specification as well.
This helps to weed out people (it isn't a perfect system, I know, but a guy this obvious in his idiocy would never make it) like this. You also only have so many times eligible to be passed over for promotion before you would be unable to re-enlist.
I know some guys who signed up for three hots and a cot.
But when their respective units got deployed to the Land of Bad Things, they went, and did their duty.