The Army

[hapoo]

Recently I've been considering joining the army. (No I’m not kidding!) I need to get my ass some discipline, something my parents unfortunately couldn't give me. I wish i could only invest one year of my life with no strings attached. I don’t want to go to war or anything, but it would also be nice to learn how to kick some ass . And as far as school goes, it would be cool if I could still go but I don't mind if i have to stop for a while. Do any of you have any experience with this? Do you think they could help me out? Any thoughts at all?

[Jenny]

I think you still have to go to boot camp, etc, but then it is only every so often you have to go. I can't remember. My bro-in-law was in them for quite awhile and then quit to become a brew master and is now back in them.

[hapoo]

Whats the reserves? I really have no clue what my options are.

[Chinpoko_Mon]

you could always join the navy...

as the Village People sing..
"
In the Navy, yes, you can sail the seven seas.
In the Navy, yes, you can put your mind at ease.
In the Navy, come on now people, make a stand.
In the Navy, can't you see we need a hand.
In the Navy, come on, protect the motherland.
In the Navy, come on and join your fellow man.
In the Navy, come on, people, and make a stand.
In the Navy, in the Navy.
"

[zenbooty]

Not the army, anyway. The Army is for brain-dead gophers who like to wake up at the crack of dawn, do what their told, and be treated like dirt. The Army is where all the grunts, hicks, and boneheads wind up. They are the infantry. They are the cannon fodder.

If you really want to join the military, I'd suggest the Navy or Air Force. The Air Force is the cushiest of the services, and has the more stringent mental requirements to join. Its pretty political though, and if you want to do well there you have to know how to kiss ass. The Navy is the most down-to-earth of the services. Do your work, pay your dues, and you'll advance. Leadership is generally a lot more level-headed, and there's less potential for really shitty assignments (at worst, you'll be in a ship armed to the teeth somewhere in the ocean, unlike the Army where you may find your ass in Somalia or Croatia to "keep the peace").

But if you want an alternative to joining the forces for the discipline, might I suggest the martial arts or boxing?

Hope I could help.

[hapoo]

Originally posted by zenbooty
Not the army, anyway. The Army is for brain-dead gophers who like to wake up at the crack of dawn, do what their told, and be treated like dirt.

As far as i see it, thats the only way i can get discipline. If i could do it myself i'd take martial arts or something, and i have tried, but i've never stuck with it which is exactly the problem i'm trying to solve. And the navy... well lets just say i like to stand on something solid... although chicks do dig those sailor uniforms

[speedracer120]

In the reserves of any branch of the military you are usually obligated to one weekend a month, and two whole weeks a year. I don't know exactly how many years you have to serve but I think it's a minimum of two years. Basic training takes about 9 weeks. My brother got through so I'm guessing anyone can, hell even his friends got through.

[eSDee]

Hey Hapoo don't listen to Zen he doesn't know what he is talking about. The Army isn't a bunch of grunts; that's the Marines. The Army does have an infantry but it is such a small part of the branch. I was a satellite communications technician for 4 years when I was in the Army and it was a great experience. 4 years seems like a long time when I signed up but after the first year it really goes by fast, especially if you get to travel to new duty stations.
Being that you are already into computers you could probably get a job working with them. The technical fields get better bonuses and more college money. I am going to be graduating from UC San Diego in a couple of months, all paid for by Uncle Sam!
Are there any questions in particular that you have?

[hapoo]

what exactly did you do there? what training did you get? was there any physical work involved?
The only thing i'm really hesitent about is getting shipped off to war or some shit. I just want to go through training and all that with no obligation.

[Edited by hapoo on 03-22-2001 at 02:45 PM]

[helius]

I seem to recall that you're right about college-age... You could try those ROTC things they have with colleges. They pay your tuition in order to get you to enlist for X number of years. If I remember correctly... If you get out before the X numbers are up, you'll just have to pay them a pro-rated sum of what they gave you. (Hey, low-interest loan! )

I don't have first hand experience with this though.

[zenbooty]

Originally posted by hapoo
what exactly did you do there? what training did you get? was there any physical work involved?
The only thing i'm really hesitent about is getting shipped off to war or some shit. I just want to go through training and all that with no obligation.

If you join the forces, you've made a commitment and are legally obligated to it. Sure, they'll try to work with you as best they can to find a good fit for you in their system (they don't want unhappy soldiers, after all), but in the end they own your ass. You will go where they decide to put you. And I stand by my statements regarding the Army. No one I have ever met from the military gave much respect to Army folks or Army ways. Marines are ultra-grunts. They're the people who take pride in their ability to receive physical and emotional punishment. Ya gotta be a little bit "on the edge" or unbalanced to make it as a marine. Army grunts are just the types who didn't know well enough to choose one of the other forces. Or to put it in even harsher terms, there is a basic mental skills exam one must take when applying for ROTC. Depending on the results, they choose which arm best suits you, or sometimes allow you to choose between multiple forces for which you qualify. Top scores go to the Air Force, then the Marines, then the Navy, then the Army.

You'll get all the discipline you can handle and more during boot camp, which you have to go through no matter what arm of the services you choose.

[eSDee]

Originally posted by hapoo
what exactly did you do there? what training did you get? was there any physical work involved?
The only thing i'm really hesitent about is getting shipped off to war or some shit. I just want to go through training and all that with no obligation.

Well basically the first part of your enlistment is dedicated to your training. 8 weeks basic training, and then you go to your school that you signed up for. Depending on how what your job is determines how long your schooling is. This ranges from anywhere to like 3 weeks(cook) up to a year (tech job). The more technical your job, the longer you are in school. My schooling was 10 months long, and so by the time I had finished it, I only had 3 years left.

If you are just trying to get some training and a little bit of college money, then you might consider the Reserves. You still go to basic training and then school, but then instead of going to a duty station, you go home. Usually before you enter you will be assigned to some unit close by your home. Being in the Reserves means that you are obligated to train one weekend a month, and 2 weeks during the summer. You don't get a lot of college money but if you get a good job then you can still get like 15 grand or so.

Just to clarify about the branches and which ones you can enter, it depends on how you score on your ASVAB test. I'm not sure what ASVAB stands for but I took it in high school. Depending on how well you do determines which branch you can get into. The score ranking goes like this: Air Force, Navy, Army, and then Marines. The Air Force has the highest standards, so if you score like a 85 out of 99 then they probably won't be inviting you to join. However, if you score very high, or max it like I did(99), then you have you choice of which branch to join. If you have every branch asking you to join, then you get to basically figure out which one is best for you.

I chose the Army over all over branches for a few reasons. I turned down the Air Force because they offered me a pretty good job and 30 grand college fund, however the minimum I could enlist for was 6 years. I was only 18 at the time so this seemed like way too long. I was only a year out of high school and I didn't know what the hell I was going to do with my life, so I decided to join the military. But 6 years seemed too long. The Navy offered me 30 grand for a 5 year enlistment, but they were trying to convince me to be a "nuclear sub" technician. I don't know about you but the last two places I want to be at the same time is underwater, and next to a nuclear reactor!
The marines were an immediate no go because my grandma used to live in a Marine town, and so I used to see them around alot when I was a kid. They were always getting in fights and acting the fool so that turned me away from that branch.

The Army offered me 30 grand and a cool job. The enlistment for this job was 5 years, which still seemed like a long time(I had initially considered only doing 2 years). I told the recruiter that I was going to go check talk to the Air Force recruiter, and he cut a year off the enlistment! As I mentioned earlier my schooling was 10 months and so I only had to do 3 years after I had finished. So I chose the Army.

I can break down the branches for you better if you like, but basically you need to figure out which branch is best for you. The challenges are different in each branch, but none less than the other. Just be ready for it before you go in and you'll be alright.

One more thing. Physical training is not the same in each branch either. In order from toughest to least tough, it goes Marines, Army, Navy, and Air Force. Basic training is different for each branch as well. Marines is like 10 weeks, Army and Navy I think are both 8 weeks, and I'm not sure about the Air Force but it used to be 6 weeks. The physical training tests are harder in the Marines, then Army, etc.

Let me know if you have any more questions. I don't mind answering as you can probably tell

[zenbooty]

Hey Loco,
My brother's in the Navy, and his basic training was 10 weeks.

I'm surprised to hear you claim that the lowest scoring test-takers were assigned to the marines. At my school, the marine candidates were all pretty intelligent. A little crazy, like I said, and maybe not too wise, but as a group they were certainly better students and more thoughtful than most of the Army and Navy recruits I met. Go figure.

[eSDee]

Originally posted by zenbooty
Hey Loco,
My brother's in the Navy, and his basic training was 10 weeks.

Actually Army and Navy basic is 9 weeks. 1 week is dedicated to assigning to inprocessing and assigning to units, and the next 8 weeks is all training.

I'm surprised to hear you claim that the lowest scoring test-takers were assigned to the marines. At my school, the marine candidates were all pretty intelligent.

I'm not claiming anything Zen I'm just telling him how it is. Now each one of these branches has the ability to raise or lower the bar, it really just depends on the recruiter. Besides, you aren't you talking about ROTC? If you are then the group you are referring to is a rare group of individuals, those who enter the military after they go to college. These are called officers.
I don't know Hapoo's situation but it seems like he is wanting to enter soon. ROTC takes atleast 2 years I believe.

Stop trying to pick a fight Zen. I'm answering Hapoo's questions as honestly as I can. It's better he hears it from me than a recruiter just trying to meet his quota. A lot of people you meet who hated the military will start their stories with "well first my recruiter f'ed me".