Were you ever in the Armed Forces

[evangilder]

You have plenty of time to figure out what you are good at. There is no need to rush. Your mind can and probably will change many times as to what you want to do over the years. I had many things that I thought about doing.

I did have some great times in the AF. But the good times, while they stick with you, don't mess up your mind. They are good memories that help to counter the other stuff. If I had served about 2.5-3 years, it would have been a great enlistment. It was the last 12-18 months that were tough.

There are many ways to serve. There are tons of jobs in the US military. I wanted something that would be good for me on the outside in case I decided not to make it a career. That was from probably the best piece of advice my recruiter gave me.

 

[marconi]

Relax guys, he is only 13 years old.I think most us in his age wanted to be soldiers (policemen, firemen, astronauts etc.).In a couple of years he will remember this conversation with a smile on his face.And I'm sure his attitude to army will change drastically whatever choise he'll made.

 

[trackend]

I have a cousin Eric who Joined the RAF and ended up as a dental technician he eventually left and now he is making as wad of money in cosmetic dentistry.

 

[evangilder]

That's a great success story. Pick the right job and you can really do well. Not a lot of call for a bomb loader in the civilian world. My first choice was aircraft electrical systems, which I didn't get. Wonder where I would be today if I had gotten that job. Who knows, I could have been working with FBJ.

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Who knows, I could have been working with FBJ.

Now that's a scary thought - both of us working together?!?

 

[trackend]

Bloody hell guys you would never get sod all done you'd be too busy discussing the merits of a ME109 against a P51

 

[FLYBOYJ]

While at the Pub drinking Beer and eating fish and chips!

 

[trackend]

 

[evangilder]

Yup. Ya never know!

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Wearing someone else's blood on your shirt after they got shot isn't something to tell your kids about.

Could not have said it better. I will admit it I cried, especially when I saw what the guys name was and found out he was only 19.

 

[evangilder]

It's definitely something that changes you forever. Maybe I jumped into this discussion and revealed a bit too much. But after seeing enough youth wasted, I felt the need to tell it like it is.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

You are right, it is not hollywood.

 

[P38 Pilot]

Marconi, i think you are very much wrong. Im going to 8th grade but when i get too 9th grade, im going to start being a Cadet in JROTC!

 

[marconi]

P38 Pilot,that gives you a whole year to change your mind And actually I didn't mean that you wont go to army I said that you wont speak about army in the way you are doing it now.

 

[Medvedya]

OTC is fine though - gives you an introduction to military life, you won't get sent to Iraq (Gawd help us if that was the case) and you can have fun, speak to people who've done it all, and then if that's what you really want to do, go into it with a reasonable idea of what to expect and what's expected.

 

[P38 Pilot]

I have. Some cadets at a memorial day celebration told me what it was like. I thought it was fun!

 

[lesofprimus]

Not to be blunt, but ur gung ho attitude reminds me of this 2nd Lt I knew breifly in Kuwait.... He was all like "Gonna get me some Iraqi ass" and always asking guys what they did for their decorations...

The first fire fight the kid got in was his last....

I know ur feelings are strong, what with ur family background, but just tone it down some... The JROTC is great... U get to march and drill and blah blah blah....

Wanna do urself a favor???? If ur really going to join up down the road, become a Boy Scout like I did.... The experience u can learn from the Scouts is inmeasurable....

I learned some things in the Boy Scouts that were never taught to me in the SEALs..... Boy Scout summer camps have rifle ranges and archery and alll sorts of crap that makes a young man stronger of heart and raises ur character.... You will learn the value of being a responsible citizen and truly gain the honor needed to protect ur country....

I was a Life Scout and never regret joining the Boy Scouts..... Something u really should look into -38...

And no, I was never molested by my Scoutleaders.....

 

[Nonskimmer]

I was a Scout too. It's great and, like les says, it teaches you skills and builds a sense of character within you. It promotes teamwork as well as teaches self-reliance. Very handy tools that can only help you in a military profession, if you in fact decide to join up. Even if you don't join the military, the things that the Boy Scouts can teach you will come in quite handy throughout your life. It was a great experience.

 

[P38 Pilot]

Uhh, thanks for the suggestion Lesofprimus but boy scouts has turned into a comercial little group and im not going to wear short short pants!

Im still going to join JROTC. And whats wrong with asking veterans or soldiers about the decorations they won? I would condsider that a high honor if i had someone to ask, "Excuse me sir, how did you get that silver star?"

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Uhh, thanks for the suggestion Lesofprimus but boy scouts has turned into a comercial little group and im not going to wear short short pants!

Im still going to join JROTC. And whats wrong with asking veterans or soldiers about the decorations they won? I would condsider that a high honor if i had someone to ask, "Excuse me sir, how did you get that silver star?"

Why don't you look at Civil Air Patrol?