Watch out army!

[PiNs_Da_Smoka 0]

Well, the topic pretty much says it all. I've decided to explore my options in the army. Mainly because they say they will pay for college and i can also take classes at night. Now, my reason for posting the topic is for a small discussion, not to tell everyone about this. I want to know, those who have been in the U.S. Army, just how much of this bullshit the recruitment officer fed me is really true? Does anyone have any "bad" stories as far as not getting what the recruitment officer told you? Because, my "anti-establishment" friends scold me constantly and told me they are feeding my lies. Now, i'm not saying i believe them in the least. But, sometimes those nuts have a little bit of truth. And lets face it, the american government is far from being a "truthfull" government. Any input?

P.S.

If this is to be locked, then so be it. DAMN THE MAN!

[madmedic 0]

That all depends,...a recruiter might tell you "Yeah, you can be a fighter pilot"...and you may find out later that the military will put you in whatever job they need you in.

They do, however make an attempt to let you follow the path you want, as long as it is operationally feasible.

What were you "promised"?

edited to add: If that is what you want to do, then Go For It pins...the military is an excellent, and honorable choice.

[cam0flage 0]

I spent 9 months in the Finnish Defence Forces, but I guess this is universal in every army - you might have to give up smoking a certain herbal product

[PiNs_Da_Smoka 0]

Well, its not really the career part i'm worried about. I'll take the asvab test and see what i "qualify" for. And honestly, if all of em are really far off from what i want, i won't join. What i'm really worried about is the college money part, or the MGIB. Just how garunteed is this? I mean, i see no reason for them to lie about such a thing. But i don't know anyone in the army personally, or anyone that was that actually had/used this. And he didn't promise me anything except "being proud for serving your country" and all that other stuff. He was pretty straight forward about everything.

[PiNs_Da_Smoka 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (cam0flage @ Jan. 08 2003,01:14)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">you might have to give up smoking a certain herbal product <span id='postcolor'>

Yes, i am well aware of this, and already stopped smoking. I have quit smoking the "greens" before, not permanantley. But for job interviews and whatnot. I'm seriously not addicted to the stuff, i just love it. And i have no problem stopping it. But what i'm most scared of is quiting cigarettes! These things are like crack! CRACK I TELL YA!

[madmedic 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (PiNs_Da_Smoka @ Jan. 08 2003,01:16)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well, its not really the career part i'm worried about. I'll take the asvab test and see what i "qualify" for. And honestly, if all of em are really far off from what i want, i won't join. What i'm really worried about is the college money part, or the MGIB. Just how garunteed is this? I mean, i see no reason for them to lie about such a thing. But i don't know anyone in the army personally, or anyone that was that actually had/used this. And he didn't promise me anything except "being proud for serving your country" and all that other stuff. He was pretty straight forward about everything.<span id='postcolor'>

Oh, the GI bill is absolutely a good thing (I am assuming you are in the U.S.)...yes, they help pay for college.

and you can even attend college classes while in the military.

ALSO (I dont know how old you are pins, so dont take this as a "preachy" statement)

When you are in the job market after your service, employers are generally enthusiastic about hiring ex military.

Some employers actually use "score cards", and military experience is always worth points on your "score".

Keep in mind though...If you are in the military, you are a soldier above all other things, and expected to heed the call to duty if it arises.

[Tovarish 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (cam0flage @ Jan. 08 2003,01:14)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">you might have to give up smoking a certain herbal product <span id='postcolor'>

lol this reminds me of a friend of mine who joined the Canadian Reserves a couple of years ago. He gave it up for about a month only to give in to temptation 2 weeks before the drug tests...and he still passed .

[madmedic 0]

Oh,...and I forgot to add, there are retirement plans out there that allow you to "buy out early" with military time

(in other words, if your company has a 25 year retirement plan, and you spent 5 years in the service...you can count the 5 years of military time as "on the job" time, and retire with full benefits at 20 years)

My company has such a plan.

[Othin 0]

Alright, I've served with the National Guard and I'm currently active duty Navy.

Make sure when you take your asvab YOU pick the career. I would also take your asvab scores and "shop" around the different branches to see what sort of jobs you can get in each branch.

I hated the job I had when I was in the National Guard, but when it came time to sign for the Navy I made sure I had the exact job that I wanted.

Depending on where you're stationed, it's pretty easy to work on college credits. Right now for active duty it's 100% of the tuition. I'm not exactly sure how the G.I. Bill works once you're out really... At least in the Navy, you also earn college credits for bootcamp and your service schools.

The main thing to keep in mind is be honest. Regardless of what your recruiter may tell you, be 100% honest at MEPS about your past drug and alcohol use. Also be upfront about them with your medical history. And the biggest thing is that you are under NO obligations till you raise your hand at MEPS and take the oath. If you feel pressured, uncomfortable, or in the dark, just tell your recruiter you changed your mind. He/she will be more then happy to take you back down the road. And when/if you do decide to sign, make sure you have what you want EXACTLY in writing. I walked out of MEPS once because they put a range of jobs down rather then the exact one that I wanted. When you're joining there is no such thing as "Where Uncle Sam wants you". It's where you want you

The other thing that I can't stress enough is to check with the other branches. I knew what job I wanted before I signed for the Navy, so I checked with the Air Force and Marines. Ultimately the Navy offered the best combination of sign on bonus, advancement opportunities, and lifestlye.

No matter what happens, I congratulate you on your choice of serving in the military and wish you fair winds and following seas...

[Wobble 1]

when i got on at my current job.. 2 of us were hired:

ME: 3 years experence, degree, several certifications.

Other Guy: 3 years in Navy.. as a cook.. he went to the navy because he flat out had nothing else he could do.. other than mcdonalds.. no college, bad grades in HS..

so we have a college grad with experence in the field, and a cook from a boat..

we both started at equal pay (its not the same anymore hehe) but just the fact that he got hired with NOTHING other than ex militray experence says something.

[NavyEEL 0]

good luck, pins. regardless of what branch or occupation you choose, the experiences you have in the military will last you the rest of your life, and will certainly help with any civilian job you have in the future. i salute you!

[ralphwiggum 6]

i say you better go for Marines....(VBS )

on serious note, if you don't have better things to do, join ROTC. you'll finish your college and after graduation, can serve as officer for 4 years.

[PiNs_Da_Smoka 0]

Thanks guys, your input has been a great help. And Ralph, joining the Marines just for VBS would be sweet.:) But as i said before. I'm not really going for the training. Don't get me wrong, i'm really looking forward to getting in shape and learning everything they throw at me. I can't deny that sounds really great. But the main reason is my education. I was kicked out of school my junior year, not just my school, but all schools in Illinois. I had to move to NW Indiana just to get my GED. So, education is very important to me at this point in my life. And the offer they are giving me is too good to turn down. But as i said, i'm still not 100% sure i'm going, but i'm really close.

And one more question to anyone that may know. I have a friend that signed up a while ago, but didn't get in simply because he didn't pass the drug test. Now all he needs to do to get back in is pass the test. And he has quit for some time now, but unfortunately also became a useless member of society. And i was talking to him and he said he was thinking about going in and trying again. Now, i remember something about a buddy program. He lives in Arizona now, would it be possible to get in the program with him even though he is 2000 miles away, could that be set up? I don't really expect anyone to have a definative answer, but if you have any ideas. Because this guy needs help in life, and i would love to help him get through it, because i don't think he would do it on his own. And info would be great.

[FSPilot 0]

http://forum.a-10.org

There's a lot of ex and current military guys there, they know a lot about the recruitment process, just ask them what you want to know.

And aim high, go air force. We've got air conditioned tents.

[PiNs_Da_Smoka 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (FSPilot @ Jan. 08 2003,04:44)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">We've got air conditioned tents.<span id='postcolor'>

LMAO! You know, its things like that, that people tell me NOT to join the Air Force

[FSPilot 0]

C'moooon, nobody's gonna station a C-141 crew where there isn't at LEAST a 3 star hotel. Marines? Tent and a wet trench, at best.

j/k, good luck man

[Jester983 0]

Good luck pins. heres a tip. If you're not sure what you want to do. Watch discovery or some military movies. Both will give you an idea of what you might want to do.

Me, personally Id like to be a working with a radio. Like galentine from BHD. Otherwise if i cant do that then just regular riflemen.

Best of luck!

[Guest]

Your situation is perhaps a bit different then mine, since I was drafted and therfor forced to join. My motivation was however that if I now was forced to do it, that I would make the most of it. I started doing serious physical training a couple of months before the drafting test (which decides what you are qualified for). After the test I could choose a wide variety of assignements. I Sweden military service is 9 months. You can do 15 months, but you have to volunteer - they can't force you.

The drafting officer played a somewhat dirty trick on me. The choices that he presented me with were mostly in Boden, in the absolute north of Sweden and said something like "Well, you know I can't force you, but I can get you stationed in Stockholm if you are willing to do 15 months and take NCO training. So I chose Kustjägarna (the costal rangers). A couple of months later I had to do another test to see if I would be accepted to Kustjägarna. After that my service time started.

After a couple of months we had selections within Kustjägarna for joining A-dyk (the combat divers). This test is the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. The physical test was bad, but nothing compared to the psychological stress we were put under (the interrogation tests were really a bad experience). I somehow passed the test and was selected for A-dyk. Of about 350 costal rangers that applied, 20 were accepted.

After serving with A-dyk for a couple of months, I was stupid enough to come with some suggestions on how exit hatches on one of our submarine models could be improved. They reassigned me to headquarters, to MUST (military intelligence). As you can guess I was not at all happy about this. I had passed all those hard tests and now they would put me behind a desk! I made several formal complaints, wanting to get back to my old unit, but no luck.

After a while I started enjoying working at the HQ. The tempo was lower, the officers were much nicer. No absurd PT. No being waked up and pushed into a helicopter that drops you off in the water in the middle of the night. The work was also fairly interesting. After a while I was quite happy being assigned there. In the end it was that assignement that allowed me later to go to Kosovo, which was one of the most valuable experiences of my life.

So what is the moral of this story? Well, first, don't do anything half-assed. If you are going to spend time in the military make the most of it. Second, things are not always as bad as they look. Many branches of the military have something valuable to offer.

[FSPilot 0]

And the air force has jelly donuts.

I saw a headline in today's newspaper about some NY lawmaker trying to get the draft reinstated. This got me thinking, if the U.S. military needed troops I should join. So I spent the rest of the day thinking of what I could do in the military as an enlisted man (decided on A-10 ground crew;)).

Then I came home and read the article. Seems he just wants to do it to get people to understand the reality of the war.

Don't get me wrong, people need to understand how real this war is, but don't draft people just to do that. I'm against drafting in the first place.

[Tex -USMC- 0]

Just practice America's Army alot, and they'll be begging to make a you a Ranger

[bn880 5]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (FSPilot @ Jan. 08 2003,19:46)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">And the air force has jelly donuts.

I saw a headline in today's newspaper about some NY lawmaker trying to get the draft reinstated. This got me thinking, if the U.S. military needed troops I should join. So I spent the rest of the day thinking of what I could do in the military as an enlisted man (decided on A-10 ground crew;)).

Then I came home and read the article. Seems he just wants to do it to get people to understand the reality of the war.

Don't get me wrong, people need to understand how real this war is, but don't draft people just to do that. I'm against drafting in the first place.<span id='postcolor'>

Yes, apparently the draft has little function in Americas Army.

The time it takes to recruit, train, mobilize the draftees = too long to help in todays conflicts. (or the conflicts America is preparing for)

[Jester983 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Tex [uSMC] @ Jan. 08 2003,06:53)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Just practice America's Army alot, and they'll be begging to make a you a Ranger      <span id='postcolor'>

Make sure you develope a CS attitude too.

And if you get shot just say it was because you were lagging..

[NavyEEL 0]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Jester983 @ Jan. 09 2003,04:57)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Tex [uSMC] @ Jan. 08 2003,06:53)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Just practice America's Army alot, and they'll be begging to make a you a Ranger      <span id='postcolor'>

Make sure you develope a CS attitude too.  

And if you get shot just say it was because you were lagging..     <span id='postcolor'>

don't forget your important OFP training either:

"Oh no! 2 is down!"

[Othin 0]

BE CAREFUL to remember that just because a Tank, Helo, or Airplane is empty, that does not mean you can just take it.

[Guest]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Jester983 @ Jan. 09 2003,04:57)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Tex [uSMC] @ Jan. 08 2003,06:53)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Just practice America's Army alot, and they'll be begging to make a you a Ranger      <span id='postcolor'>

Make sure you develope a CS attitude too.  

And if you get shot just say it was because you were lagging..     <span id='postcolor'>

They will soon have to redefine military lingo:

"Enemy BMP approaching at 12'o clock! Fire at will!"

= "EnEMy Bmp 4pPro@CHING @+ 12'0 Cl0ck! pH1Re 4T WILL!"  

"I am an elite ranger and I am good with my rifle. Fear my abilities!"

="1 @M 4N 31337 R@nger @ND I OwNZ0R Wi+H MY R1Fle. PH34R MY M4D 5kilLs, DoOdz  "

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The AGM-88 HARM (high-speed antiradiation missile) is a supersonic air-to-surface tactical missile designed to seek and destroy enemy radar-equipped air defense systems. The AGM-88 can detect, attack and destroy a target with minimum aircrew input. Guidance is provided through reception of signals emitted from a ground-based threat radar. It has the capability of discriminating a single target from a number of emitters in the environment. The proportional guidance system that homes in on enemy radar emissions has a fixed antenna and seeker head in the missile nose. A smokeless, solid-propellant, dual-thrust rocket motor propels the missile. The Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 and EA-6B have the capability to employ the AGM-88. With the retirement of the F-4, the F-16C is the only aircraft in the current Air Force inventory to use the AGM-88. The B version has an improved guidance section which incorporates an improved tactical software and electronically reprogrammable memory. <span id='postcolor'>

=

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<span id='postcolor'>

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