Well the military is not complaining about the latest bad news on the economy, they are seeing an increase in recruitment numbers lately. With jobs being hard to find and college tuition is as high as ever, it is no wonder young people are turning to the military for opportunity. This from the Washington Post:
Some of the largest investment firms on Wall Street are gone. The country's auto industry is on the verge of collapse. Banks are shedding jobs. But in these doom-and-gloom times, there is someone who's hiring: your local military recruiter.
The economic downturn and rising unemployment rate are making the military a more attractive option, Pentagon officials say. In some cases, the peace of mind that comes with good benefits and a regular paycheck is overcoming concerns about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which any new enlistee is likely to join.
"There's no way to sugarcoat it: We're a nation at war," said Lt. Col. Michael Bennett, who commands the Maryland Army National Guard's recruiting battalion. "But we offer a stability of income that a lot of employers can't guarantee right now."
The active-duty Army, which like other branches has increased benefits and added recruiters, said last month that it had recruited more than 80,000 soldiers during the past fiscal year, the third year in a row it has met its recruiting goals. Good news for the Army has coincided with terrible news elsewhere. The unemployment rate has jumped from 4.8 to 6.5 percent in the past 12 months, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. During that time, the ranks of the unemployed grew by 2.8 million, to 10.1 million.
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Meanwhile, recruiting has become even more vital as the military plans to expand so it can relieve the strain on troops and their families. The active Army is to grow by 65,000 soldiers, to 547,000, by 2010. And the Marine Corps is to add 27,000, for a total of 202,000, by 2011.
When are Americans going to say, ENOUGH! You know it sounds good, giving young kids an opportunity to go to college and a steady paycheck but it's bullshit, the young folks they are recruiting are going to be used as cannon fodder for the government's wars of aggression. We wouldn't need so many recruits if we didn't get in tangled in so many unnecessary wars and we didn't try to maintain this US military empire around the world.
The military is preying on poor and under privileged young people. I believe the government should provide opportunities to young people to learn job skills and to go to college through various national service programs but not just the military and all young people from all classes should be required to serve the country in some capacity.
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