ROTC

[unhappycamper]

Everything you ever wanted to know about ROTC can be found at: http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/

http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/your_commitment.jsp

YOUR COMMITMENT TO THE ARMY

Army ROTC students who receive an Army ROTC scholarship or enter the Army ROTC Advanced Course must agree to complete a period of service with the Army.

* You can serve full-time in the Army for three years (four years for scholarship winners)
* Selected Cadets may choose to serve part-time in the U.S. Army Reserve or Army National Guard while pursuing a civilian career

It's an experience that you can't get anywhere else, and your leadership skills will be challenged every day. Contact your campus Military Science department for more specific details on your Army ROTC service commitment.

Enrolling in the Army ROTC Basic Course does NOT involve a commitment of service to the Army unless you have received an Army ROTC scholarship.


uhc comment: ROTC is nothing more than a tuneup for the big leagues, aka the US Army. Enter at your peril.

[hedgehog]

1. It's a sad situation when people who'd like to serve their country in the military

don't dare sign up for fear of being caught up in an unjust war!

[NYVet]

2. ROTC is a good thing for many.

ROTC provides an opportunity for many people to gain self confidence, respect for themselves and others, and leadership skills.

[unhappycamper]

3. It also provides them the opportunity to get killed, maimed, PTSDed, and generally fucked up.

Of course none of that may happen; you might get lucky and be one of 67% who are not homeless.

[rakeeb]

4. ROTC is nothing more

than a commissioning source.
Is your chief complaint about ROTC the fact that a war is going on right now, or do you think its a bad idea in general as a commissioning source?
IMHEO, ROTC provides about 5 officers from real colleges with a broad base of backgrounds and experience for every one officer who just spent 24 hours a day for four years in a military environment resembling almost nothing of a normal college experience.

[unhappycamper]

5. As I said in my OP,

uhc comment: ROTC is nothing more than a tuneup for the big leagues, aka the US Army. Enter at your peril.

I'll stand by my comment.

[rakeeb]

6. so then, as a conduit for entering the Army

recruitment would be even worse, since enlistment puts 25 times more people into the Army every year than ROTC.
I guess what I am really curious about is if you would feel the same if there was no war in Iraq?

[unhappycamper]

7. That's a good question.

Over the last thirty years or so, my views on war in general have changed. I was in Tet of 68 & the invasion of Cambodia in 1970, so I have been in a war zone.



The occupation of Iraq really pisses me off.

We were lied into this adventure.

We are breaking (if it's not already broken) the all volunteer force. We are spending roughly $5,000 per second keeping the occupation going. The equipment is wearing out in a sand environment and needs to be replaced much more quickly. Halliburton, Blackwater, KBR etc. seem to take a significant portion of the profits now that many jobs have been outsourced.

The Iraqis are caught in the middle with little to no electricity, water and sewage. The recent cholera outbreak is a good example.

Somewhere arround 4,000,000 Iraqis have left their homes due to sectarian strife. (out of a starting point of 27,000,000)

Around 1,000,000 Iraqis have been killed since March 19, 2003.

We know it's difficult to win an occupation. I'm trying to recall the last time someone won one.

We know that we (the people of the good old US of A) torture.

We know that we (the people of the good old US of A) kidnap people and ship them to black sites around the world.

We know that we (the people of the good old US of A) spies on our citizens under the pretext of looking for terrorists.


I've seen the 1970 equivalent, and I see the stuff that's happening to our men and women now. It was wrong in 1970 and it's wrong now.


Meanwhile, the infrastructure in this country is falling apart and we don't have any money to fix it. Supposedly, we are only spending 4.3% of the GDP. But that is still over $640,000,000,000. The occupation is being run on a credit card.







I respect the men and women in harms way, and wish them nothing but the best. I would like to bring them home tomorrow, but it ain't gonna happen until we stop giving dubya a blank check for Iraq.


I am firmly against wars of choice; and I'm really against wars that we have been lied into.