Military loses its luster among high school grads, parents

[norml]

Military loses its luster among high school grads, parents

By Steve Earley, Freeman staff07/31/2005


Wallkill High School graduate Lokelani Rivera, shown here with her father, Navy retiree Nelson Rivera, has enlisted in the Navy. Purchase a copy of this photo.

THE WARS in Iraq and Afghanistan have some parents thinking twice before sending their sons or daughters into the armed forces.

While a sampling of local high schools does not suggest significant declines in the number of graduates bound for the military, there has been a noticeable shift in attitude about military careers, according to school district representatives and armed forces recruiters.

"I DO KNOW there's been a few parents saying, 'Wait a second,'" said Jermaine Collins, a guidance counselor at Wallkill High School. "There's a war. These students who join the military may be exposed to the front line at some point in their career."

Dena Roy, a guidance counselor at Kingston High School, said she began to notice a shift in parent attitudes shortly after U.S. troops headed to Afghanistan in the fall of 2001.


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http://www.dailyfreeman.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1769&dept_id=74969&newsid=14953163&PAG=461&rfi=9

[FloridaPat]

1. Exactly how much luster did the military have? Seems it was a place

for people who like a disiplined life or people wanting to get money or a career they couldn't afford, or gullible people who believe recruiters. Lots of people were in the reserve for the extra money and for time away from family to "be with the boys". The repubs have basically ruined the military.

[wli]

3. it seemed like a desperation career move for poor people to me

At least when I was at the career-decision phase and watching the haves and have-nots part ways between college, burger-flipping, and homelessness after HS.

[Skittles]

8. um.................Florida?

that is a just plain nasty assessment of the military - there are many, many more reasons why people join the military beyond they are "gullible". I do agree with you that republicans ruined our military by making it fodder for oil companies and Halliburton.

[Erika]

2. Why would a parent urge their child to fight Bushs' wars?

It is beyond me. Why should they choose to risk their lives for Bush's globalists friends?

[cliss]

7. I'm not.

I've got 3 tall, handsome, healthy, athletic teenagers that the recruiters would drool over.....in fact, they already are.

I could see this coming, so I got a foreign citizenship for all 3 of them, just in case worse comes to worse.....like in a D-R-A-F-T.

They're not going. End of story. Not to fight in Dick Cheney's Halliburton Wars. If it was for national security, that would be one thing.

But not for Quarterly Earnings statements.

[bluestateguy]

4. Soon it will get to a point where the military is not asking anymore

if you know what I mean.

[SeattleVet]

6. "Replacements Needed" - Just on Q13 (Fox) news in Seattle tonight

they showed some of a series of posters that have been appearing for a while in Seattle showing (usually graphic) war images with the latest body count and a "Join the Military - Replacements Needed" message. Did a quick search and found the artist's site:

<http://replacementsneeded.tripod.com/>

He started his series of posters at 713 deaths, and has produced a weekly poster since then. The poster images on the site are linked to larger .jpg versions. I intend to print some up and give them to any "Yellow Elephants" I run into <g>. Maybe if some of them join we can actually avoid having to implement a draft.

[The_Casual_Observer]

5. Send freeper kids to get IEDs first. They asked for this shit badly.

They still think the whole idea is great, so long as they get to stay in college in the USA.