Who remembers when this story came out? It has stuck in my memory for the last two years, irritating me like a pebble in my shoe.
Realities of recruitment Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted: June 23, 2004
This story included a number of statements from kids who were in High School at the time. I certainly would not want to be held to everything I said in High school, so I will refrain from arguing with anything specific the students said in the article. But the general point of the article is summarized in this section:
"Some Shorewood students say their reasons vary for avoiding the military. But they say it mostly has to do with having well-educated parents who can more easily afford to send them to college. They also say that having well-educated parents enables them to do better academically, and thus gives them more academic opportunities."I got home from Iraq in April of 2004, only two months before this article was written, and roughly two years after completing my Masters Degree at UW-Madison. My academic program actually asked my permission to exclude my Army salary from their annual post graduation salary figures, given that it was only about 1/4 of the class average. As such, I can tell you with confidence that people join the military for many other reasons beyond a lack of educational opportunity. I reject the notion that academic achievement excuses a person from answering the call to serve.
We have an all-volunteer force for a reason. If one does not wish to serve, one may simply state "I do not wish to serve." Making up reasons such as having too many other opportunities belittles the service of those who, to serve their country, temporarily lay aside the other opportunities they have.
