BEWARE of charming young girls on the phone

[pnwmom]

Just answered the phone, perky girl asks for my son by name. Of course, I handed it to him without trying to inquisition her.

Maybe I should have. She was a military recruiter.

[EFerrari]

1. That's so underhanded! They must be desperate.

:mad:

[ProdigalJunkMail]

3. perhaps the recruiter was a woman? n/t

[EFerrari]

5. Unless I'm mistaken (always possible) this woman is being used

as bait.

That's different than a woman doing a job, no?

[La Lioness Priyanka]

8. actually no. she is doing her job. all recruiters regardless of field are supposed to sound happy

and chipper.

[EFerrari]

13. Sure! But one can be happy and chipper and HONEST

which this person wasn't, was she? It sounds as though she tried to pass as a friend. When I got calls from girls for my sons, I went into respect mode and simply called the guys to the phone.

This is a bait and switch to get around parents, imho.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

16. When the military recruiters called my home

it was simply "May I speak with David"...granted it was a male calling, but the script would remain the same.

sP

[PA Democrat]

39. Yep. The only way I knew our calls were from a recruiter was the caller ID

that said "US GOVT". I figured that the only people from the US Govt that would be interested in talking to my son were the people desperately seeking fresh cannon fodder for George Bush.

[pnwmom]

35. You're exactly right. I went into "respect mode" for my son.

She did try to pass herself off as a friend, even with him. It took him a few moments to figure out, as she was greeting him by his first name and asking him how he was, that she wasn't a girl that he knew! (When she asked him whether he'd ever considered the military, he said "no thanks" and hung up.")

[La Lioness Priyanka]

36. are you saying if a male had called for your son you would screen the call more?

[EFerrari]

44. I remember trying to be respectful of my kids nascent relationships

with women. And, funny thing, I tended to know their male friends better. They spent time in my house and in general, were more relaxed about the whole thing. :shrug:

But if a girl called, I tried to be cordial and not nosy and hand the guys the call asap. It wasn't a matter of screening calls, it was more trying to respect them and not insert myself in an inappropriate way when they were trying to figure out their relationship to women.

I also once got in trouble for touching my son on the shoulder at a record store. lol :)

[pnwmom]

50. You know just what I'm talking about. Our sons don't care if we know

when their male friend calls.

But it's a sensitive issue when girls/young women are involved.

[EFerrari]

54. Of course. They're trying to figure it all out and also trying

to establish their independence. Any reasonably good parent gets that and tries to give them space.

And THAT LOVING SPACE is what these mofos are trying to exploit. :shrug:

[pnwmom]

47. Yes. He doesn't care if I know if a male friend of his calls -- he's happy

for me to screen the strange male voices.

There's a whole different privacy layer involved, though, when a mother appears to be too interested in the girls that are calling her son.

[EFerrari]

46. What a creepy scam. Good for you for figuring it out.

:hug:

[Crabby Appleton]

51. They are happy, happy they're not in a combat zone nt

[ProdigalJunkMail]

9. the poster said the recruiter was a woman

so I assume that means that she just happened to sound like a charming young woman...

sP

[EFerrari]

14. Yes -- a charming young woman that would lower the defenses

most moms have when trying to protect their kids from predatory recruiters.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

20. nope...

charming young lady who took recruiting position in a military organization just trying to do her job. If you are so damned worried that your son or daughter cannot deal with a recruiter the way you would like them to then ASK who it is...

sP

[EFerrari]

24. So, you simply do not understand the dynamics of that call. n/t

[ProdigalJunkMail]

28. no, i get it all too well

you simply think it has to be a ploy because it was a woman on the other end of the line...you see it the way you want with the exact same information I have...so which one of us doesn't understand the call dynamic? how can you prove it?

sP

[EFerrari]

33. Why are they having young women calling young men?

:)

[ProdigalJunkMail]

43. because she has a list

and I would bet dollars to doughnuts that there are young men AND women on that list...

sP

[pnwmom]

55. That's probably true. I'm just warning the parents here of a recruiter

that might more easily get past our defenses.

Because mothers of young men don't tend to question young women when they seem to know our sons.

[MADem]

120. I used to run a recruiting command.

I had many, many female recruiters.

The recruiters are assigned to a recruiting STATION. The station is affiliated with an area--a city, in population-dense areas, a county/region in rural areas. The recruiters canvass within their own area--they aren't supposed to "poach" from neighboring stations.

The recruiters obtain lists from high schools, colleges (the drop-out lists are useful for enlisted accessions) and other sources (Recruiter Assistance Programs, for example, where people pass on names of people who are interested in joining) and they call people up. They also inherit lists from recruiters who had the station before they did.

The practice of cold calling is frequently termed "Smilin' and dialin'."

Recruiters are judged by their ability to "put butts on the bus." You don't get any 'credit' for being 'honest.' If you don't produce, your career could end. They like to put servicepeople who are halfway to retirement, or more, in those jobs because they have the most to lose. People supporting a family also feel the pressure more heavily than single people to access personnel.

During the Reagan buildup, recruiters were goaled in some markets at three personnel a month--a brutal workload. Nowadays, they're goaled at one in many places and they're having a hard time delivering that.

You might not care for the work, and that's fine, but your suggestion that it's "a ploy" or "a trap" and that they're "using" females in some fashion is sexist in the extreme.

Recruiting is a military job specialty that is not a gender-restricted assignment.

[pnwmom]

131. I think things are different nowadays, MADem.

Did you see Mainer's post #81? What do you think about this?

Mainer's post:

New York Times, C-11. "Was he too young to die?" by Jim Dwyer

It's about an 18-year-old named Ron A. Wilson who died in Iraq and at the end it talks about the recruiting center where he signed up:

-----------------------

"Two girls cantered streetward, down a flight of stairs, out into the sunshine. They paused beneath a sign for the center, where they are working through August.

''We go leafleting, we call people up about recruitment,'' said one of the girls. ''A lot of people say 'no' right away because they think they have to go straight to Iraq, but that's not true, there's other things they could do.''

She was 14. Her companion was 15. All told, they said, nine teenagers, paid $7.15 an hour by the city's summer job program, are working at the Jamaica recruiting center.
Military recruiting, of course, is the work of professional soldiers, not teenagers in a summer program to learn how to hold a job.

Still, it is not surprising that they would be drawn into the search for new soldiers. Just as youth must be served, so, too, must the needs of a country at war."

[MADem]

133. That recruiter, if ever he is discovered, is in a shitload of hot water

Believe it or not, there are DOD regulations, as well as service-specific regs, regarding recruiting.

If those children ARE calling people up, they aren't doing it with the permission and knowledge of DOD, I can assure you of that. If some desperate recruiter, told that HIS ass is going to Iraq if he doesn't produce, takes a shortcut, well, that's on the recruiter. When kids are hired for summer programs (and that's not uncommon--it's a community building exercise in many regions) they're supposed to do things like FILE, and ANSWER the phone--not make cold calls.

I notice in the article, for which I've found a cite, doesn't name the girls, and sure as hell doesn't name the recruiter for whom they say they work. It's entirely possible that the writer doesn't want to lose the recruiter as a source, and if he tipped the name of the station or the recruiter, that guy would be gone.


http://screwsubwalls.blogspot.com/2007/07/imperative-of-war-life-recruited-at-17.html
Even the article acknowledges:

Military recruiting, of course, is the work of professional soldiers, not teenagers in a summer program to learn how to hold a job.



There's no way that qualifications can be determined by a fourteen year old. The recruiter is being lazy; he's been tasked to make "X" number of calls because he hasn't made goal probably in several months, and instead of doing them himself, he's having these children do them FOR his lazy ass.

I would not be surprised if there's a DOD message out real quick RE-clarifying what summer hires can and cannot do, and prescribing penalties for sinning recruiters.

[jmt22287]

132. wow...sanity, scary stuff

I thank you sir for actually posting something that wasn't levied with conspiracy theories & half-baked (bordering on psychosis) comments...it was an honest, accurate and uncharacteristic (for this site anyway) reply to the original post.

I think I'm going to bail on DU...there are some real gems in here

People with the original poster's mentality toward our nation's military have not forgotten what bought their freedom...they simply never knew it.

[LeftyMom]

139. Maybe that's a good idea.

You obviously don't belong here.

"Bought their freedom" my pasty ass. The whole fucking point of this country is that our rights are inherent and we don't owe anybody for granting them to us, because they were never anybody else's to threaten.

[pnwmom]

41. I think it's a ploy because the girl opened the conversation with him

as if they knew each other, after asking for him by his first name only.

"Hi Mike, this is Katie. How are you?" etc.

And he's trying to figure out which Katie she is and how he knows her, until she finally asks him whether he's considered joining the military.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

45. as did the recruiters when they called my home

and it was no big deal...they asked for me by first name and started the conversation not much differently though, as i said, it was a male that called me. When he asked about my future plans the conversation got short...

sP

[EFerrari]

48. The thing is, there are roles they play to manipulate young people

This was just one of them, and add the dishonesty of pretending to be a friend.

My family is full of salespeople, very successful ones at that. None of them would even consider scamming someone in this creepy way.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

52. and I have a female cousin who is a navy recruiter

they have a list and a script...real nefarious...

sP

[EFerrari]

56. I'm sorry to hear that. n/t

[ProdigalJunkMail]

97. you shouldn't be...

she is proud of the work she does as am I. There are many people for whom the military offers a great way of life. Yes, there are inherent risks...but some people are willing to accept those risks to do jobs that need to be done.

It is a shame that you feel that way...I guess you are consistent with your feeling regardless of who is in office.

sP

[pnwmom]

107. I'm sure many recruiters feel guilty about some of the tactics

they are forced to employ -- falsely assuring prospective recruits that they won't have to go to Iraq, falsely assurancing them about the training or benefits they will receive, etc. If your niece hasn't been one of the ones who has been told to lie, then she's lucky.

[pnwmom]

57. She's doing her job. And I'm doing mine, as a parent.

And I'm warning other parents.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

96. warn parents? heck just teach your kids to do what they believe in

and let them make the decision...if they are of age...

sP

[pnwmom]

100. Too many young people have been coerced into joining the military

through deceptive tactics. I don't want our children among them.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

101. no offense...but at 17 or 18 years old

they should know enough to make their own decisions...

sP

[pnwmom]

106. No offense, but when they live in their own apartments and pay for their

own phones, I won't be heading off any military recruiters at the pass.

Until then, those people will have to get past me.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

113. why do you draw the line the way you do?

I am not trying to criticize, but there is a disconnect here. You say you 'go into respect mode' for your son when calls come from his female friends. And I think that is pretty cool...but if you want to really respect him, let him handle these sorts of things, rather, why wouldn't you allow him to handle this? It sounds like he did a fine job of dealing with her once he realized what the call was. He simply said no thanks and goodbye...he obviously has no interest in joining.

Why is it ok to screen some calls but not screen others out of 'respect'?

sP

[pnwmom]

116. Because I don't invite military recruiters on the premises.

And the phones are part of the premises.

And my sons are completely fine about it.

Either of them could initiate any phone call they wished, and the one who drives could drive to a recruitment office. But they would be the ones making this decision, and not because some recruiter lured them into it.

[PA Democrat]

119. Military recruiters don't "respect" your child's rights, or your parental rights.

They continue to call after you've said no and even after your child has said no. They lie to get the kid to join. They'll stalk a kid that they think they have the slightest chance to convince to join.

I can forbid telemarketers to call my home, I can tell colleges not to contact my kid if he's not interested. Why should the military have special rights? I'm sick of their repeated phone calls despite the fact that I've sent opt out letters to both our school district and to the Pentagon, despite the fact that they've been told he's not interested. It's harassment.

[SayWhatYo]

124. hah... no, I don't think so.

at 17 or 18 and even older people still sometimes need guidance from those who may be wiser.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

125. funny that...

part of the way in which we delay our youth coming into adulthood...each generation gets older and older before we consider them adults capable of adult responsibilities and adult decisions...sad.

sP

[MADem]

121. They go to school for it, too!!!

They learn "decision dynamics" and all sorts of sales techniques.

I find the suggestion that a FEMALE doing RECRUITING is somehow "DECEPTIVE" more than a little ... SEXIST!!!!

If people have difficulty with the job because of the war or what-have-you, well, that's one thing. But the idea that a female wouldn't, couldn't, shouldn't or doesn't do the work, or is "Mata Hari-ing" the prospects is rather "unprogressive" really.

[SayWhatYo]

122. I tell you 100% that's nothing unusual.

In the past I've had the exact sort of conversation.

[MADem]

136. The gents will do that too. There's a basic script that they all use.

There are variations to it, and each service has their own twists, but it's a very tightly scripted effort. It has a lot of "Just supposing--and then how would you feel" lines in it designed to break down objections. Example:

Target: But the problem is, I don't WANT to join the military!!!

Recruiter: Just supposing you DID want to join the military; then how would you feel about making (fill in E-3 salary + allowances)/travelling overseas/learning how to (fill in desired specialty field).

There are some things that still aren't waiverable (enlistment disqualifiers), but more things are now than used to be, back in the old days.

[MADem]

118. You're mistaken. Female recruiters are not all that unusual.

And given the stress on the combat arms contingent of the uniformed services, I'd wager they're becoming even more common.

Females make up (more than, nowadays) fifteen percent of the Armed Forces. These figures are six years old--the percentage increases every year. Even years ago, they made up more than fifteen percent of most recruiting commands.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0004600.html

[pnwmom]

10. A young woman, perfectly designed to take a cautious mother

of a young man unawares.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

11. it is simply impossible to think that this is the MOS that SHE

chose for her military career? This is probably nothing more sinister than any other recruiter call...

s(o)P

[pnwmom]

17. But that's the point. Every recruiter call is sinister

but this one took me unawares. I think I would have been more suspicious if it had been a strange man calling him.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

25. but this one is no more sinister

I would like them to announce who they are though, but barring that, just ask who every caller is...I do when people call to speak to my wife (but just to let her know who is on the phone).

sP

[pnwmom]

59. Young men are sensitive about their mothers prying into their affairs.

So I'm not always going to ask who every caller is.

I didn't say this call was "more" sinister -- just more unexpected.

[EFerrari]

18. Do you have draft age kids? n/t

[ProdigalJunkMail]

23. no, but at one time I was one and one day I will

and my parents allowed me to make my decisions trusting that they had taught me what I needed to know. If you are so concerned, ask who is calling...

sP

[EFerrari]

27. This has nothing to do with me, thanks. It's about a tactic

that is being used to get to kids.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

female recruiters are a tactic?

you are kidding right? they couldn't possibly want to be recruiters when they get into the military? or does the military go out and hire the winsome ones just for this purpose?

sP

[EFerrari]

38. No, I'm not kidding at all. And, fwiw, as a girl, I had plenty of bosses

who tried to deploy me in a similar way. Geezus.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

49. she has a list...just like her male counterparts

males and females are on the list...but believe what you want...

sP

[EFerrari]

60. It's not a matter of belief. Is your cousin being used as bait?

You may want to look into that, if you care about her.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

98. how is she being used as bait?

she calls males and females (or maybe you think her list only includes the lesbians that she can 'entice'). she has been doing it for years and the opening script has not changed in quite some time (which might actually surprise you).

Your view of the military is clear.

sP

[seabeyond]

99. this is tiffany with the army,... may i speak to....

whatever happened to a professional manner on the phone. a couple decades ago when i had to call businesses and homes it was a given i would identify myself and the business first before asking for someone. pisses me off royally some high pitched female voice asking for my husband without her telling me she is with a certain business. and it is a poor way of conducting business. the recruiter should have given her name, her work and asked for the person she wanted to talk to

[Gelliebeans]

108. Exactly

unless someone is deliberately trying to be obtuse then there is no reason for them not to identify themselves first and the nature of their business.

[mainegreen]

2. I think the first thing I always say on the phone is 'Who may I say is calling?'...

if it's not for me.
A polite way to screen the crap.

[pnwmom]

12. The problem with that is

my son is a young adult and I don't want him to feel like I'm being nosy.

But it's a thought.

[mainegreen]

40. Hell, I do it if someone is calling for my wife or me.

If I don't know the voice, the odds are they have no business with us. If I don't know them but my wife does, the caller always cheerily answers who they are.
It's not really nosy if you are the one picking up the phone. Heck, imagine the phone is the front door: wouldn't you ask who the person was if you didn't recognize them before you let them in?
:shrug:

[MissB]

42. Oh, I don't see that as prying.

I see that as being able to say, "Son, 'X' is on the phone for you".

[TomInTib]

4. Well, that's a new one. How did he react?

Goodness, that pretty much pisses me off.

[pnwmom]

21. He's my son, thank goodness.

He said "no thanks" and hung up.

It was a blessedly quick call.

[Donnachaidh]

6. of course if you questioned her you'd be labeled an *hysterical parent*

by some on this board. :sarcasm:

[La Lioness Priyanka]

7. umm so the military should NOT hire women recruiters?

i mean i think what the military is doing in terms of recruiting in other areas is wrong, but i dont see why someone with a perky voice shouldnt hold a job as a recruiter.

[EFerrari]

22. It's not that. It's the using young women as bait that is wrong. n/t

[pnwmom]

26. No, I'm saying that those of us who care should be forewarned.

This is a tactic that we can mention to our sons.

[EFerrari]

29. I get it!

lol

:hi:

[pnwmom]

63. Thanks

for understanding.

:hi:

[mainer]

15. they're using teenage girls regularly now

NYT had an article about a soldier's funeral, and it mentioned that the local recruiting office was sending out 15-year-old girls with recruiting flyers. That's a pretty smart thing for the military to do. Most 18-year-old men would just LOVE to be chatted up by a 15-year-old girl.

[EFerrari]

62. That's horrendous and not surprising.

:(

Do you have a link or a date so I can search?

Mofos.

[mainer]

81. NYT July 18: girl recruiters mentioned in article

New York Times, C-11. "Was he too young to die?" by Jim Dwyer

It's about an 18-year-old named Ron A. Wilson who died in Iraq and at the end it talks about the recruiting center where he signed up:

-----------------------

"Two girls cantered streetward, down a flight of stairs, out into the sunshine. They paused beneath a sign for the center, where they are working through August.

''We go leafleting, we call people up about recruitment,'' said one of the girls. ''A lot of people say 'no' right away because they think they have to go straight to Iraq, but that's not true, there's other things they could do.''

She was 14. Her companion was 15. All told, they said, nine teenagers, paid $7.15 an hour by the city's summer job program, are working at the Jamaica recruiting center.
Military recruiting, of course, is the work of professional soldiers, not teenagers in a summer program to learn how to hold a job.

Still, it is not surprising that they would be drawn into the search for new soldiers. Just as youth must be served, so, too, must the needs of a country at war."

[mainer]

83. posted above: NYT mentions teenage girls recruiting

(edit: oops -- meant to post this on main thread.)

7/18/07 article in the Times, page C-11 by Jim Dwyer.
Article is about an 18-year-old soldier named Ron A. Wilson who died in Iraq.

Article mentions 15-year-old girl who's paid $7.15 an hour by the city's summer job program (!) working at the recruiting center.

"We go leafleting, we call people up about recruitment," said one of the girls.

[EFerrari]

87. Thank you, mainer!

:hi:

[PA Democrat]

88. Using 14 and 15 year old girls.

I'm sorry that's just pathetic to use children to lure other children into the military.

[pnwmom]

90. That's a very important article. Thanks Mainer!

[MADem]

134. I found a cite for that article upthread. That recruiter is breaking regulations if he is letting

summer hires do that sort of thing. It's a prime bozo no-no across the Services.

[MADem]

135. The leafletting is completely legal, the cold call phoning is absolutely NOT. nt

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

19. Please forward all charming young girls to my phone number.

I'll take care of the menace.

[Locrian]

30. I would have loved it in my day..

Ooohh. Impressionable young women? Calling for ME?
I would have SO loved that when I was young.

Surrender to the dark side of hippee free love!!!

[EFerrari]

31. Lol

[pepperbear]

32. OMG, Hi there. I'm, like Britney. Is, like, Jacob there and stuff?

Hi Jacob, I wanted to, like, tell you about this awesome new opportunity for young studs like you. It involves travelling to exotic far off sandy beaches, and when you return, there will be money for college and EVERYTHING. Did you know that girls love a man in uniform? How old are you? Do you like Marilyn Manson? OMG, I love Marilyn manson. We play MM all day long here in the green zone.

This is JUST like the myspace cam girl spam scams.

[Atman]

34. This isn't about "using women recruiters." It's the way they use them.

When my son was in high school we got a couple of these calls. The female caller sounded very young and knew what to say to appeal to the male ego. She engaged me in conversation first, as if we'd met at one of my son's school functions or something. Then she asked for him by his nickname. They do their homework. She said that she and my son were going to meet for coffee, and she wanted to talk to him.

The trouble is, I know my son. He was in a very steady relationship at the time, and it made no sense that he'd be making a date with another girl. So I asked for the caller's name and said my son was in the bathroom or something, and would call right back.

That's when I guess she was obligated to come clean: she was Sgt. Murphy (whatever), and wanted to talk to my son over coffee to discuss the great opportunities available to him in the Marines.

*CLICK*

The point isn't that it's a female recruiter. They're lying right off the bat. The whole call was based on lies. How the hell does that build trust in the prospective recruits?

.

[EFerrari]

58. Bingo! n/t

[pnwmom]

65. That's even worse -- telling YOU they were going out for coffee.

But that would have sent some warning bells for me -- my son doesn't like coffee.

Although maybe if he was trying to impress a girl . . .

:wink:

[Atman]

85. That was actually the first hint...COFFEE?

Our son had never sipped a cup of coffee in all the years since I blacked out as he was yanked from the womb! I knew something wasn't right. He wasn't even into those frothy ice cream drinks. It was definitely an alarm.

.

[pnwmom]

89. Now if she had said they were going to Dairy Queen. . . n/t

[originalpckelly]

102. They don't say they're military recruiters at first.

They ask all these questions, and you see "US Government" on the caller ID instead of the branch of the military calling. It's very deceptive, at first you think maybe it's a grant for college or something, until you hear "Have you ever considered the ______."

[mainer]

37. Some of these girls are NOT EVEN MILITARY

they're just paid to lure men into the recruiting office! That's what the article I read said.

[Rosemary2205]

53. IMHO THIS NEEDS MORE RECOMMENDS

[EFerrari]

61. Good call! Can we get some recs here?

:hi:

[KansDem]

64. Wait until Bush reenacts the draft--their voices won't sound so charming or perky (nt)

[EFerrari]

66. pnwmom, if you want to, we can develop this into an article

/warning and get it posted at OpEdNews -- send it out.

Can't hurt to alert parents how their sons are being manipulated by these predators.

If you want to write up a couple of paragraphs, I'd be happy to work it up with you.

God, this makes me so mad. Momma Lion rampant here. :mad:

[PA Democrat]

67. Just curious if you have caller ID. So far all the calls I've intercepted have come up US GOVT.

We've just encountered another sleazy tactic being used by a local recruiter. A friend of my son's has signed up to join the Army when he graduates from high school. His recruiter has gotten into the habit of "hanging out" with this friend in the hopes of meeting some of his friends. My son was supposed to do something with this friend today, but when he found out the recruiter was planning to stop by for "a visit" he told the friend to forget it.

[EFerrari]

68. Maybe we need a thread on all these dirty tricks, PA Democrat.

Because there sure seem to be a LOT of them. I don't have kids in that age group and my nieces and nephews are too young, but this just pisses me off SO MUCH for all you parents that are dealing with this predation. :mad:

[PA Democrat]

71. I got my Senator involved due to repeated calls

even though I'd sent the "opt out" letters to the school district every year as well as to the Joint Advertising and Marketing Research & Studies Office which manages the Pentagon's database.

I can prevent telemarketers from calling to sell me replacement windows, but somehow it seems I can't keep the merchants of death away from my kids. My son told me what the Army has "promised" his friend. My son keeps telling his friend not to believe them, that they'll send him to Iraq, but to no avail. It is really sad.

[EFerrari]

72. I don't pick up the phone unless I know who is calling any more.

Did you have any luck with your Senator? This is so wrong.

[PA Democrat]

78. I spoke with a staffer from Senator Casey's office.

I sent her all of the information on my son, and copies of the opt out letters I'd sent. She will be contacting the military on our behalf and is trying to track down how my son's name got in their database in the first place. One of the recruiters told me he got the info from our school district. I would like to verify that before I write a letter to the school board.

[EFerrari]

79. I'm glad you're getting some back up. I posted this thread about

dirty recruitment tricks -- to try to draw attention to them and to try to aggregate information, fyi:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1380288

[pnwmom]

91. I was talking to my mother and got a call waiting signal.

And I happened to be on a land line that wasn't attached to my caller ID in the kitchen.

Can you imagine? I hung up on my mother in order to pass a girl's call along for my son -- and it was a recruiter!

[EFerrari]

69. Thanks for the recs, DUers!

:loveya:

[NewJeffCT]

70. That might have worked on me when I was 17 or 18

I was so shy at that age that if a girl had even said "hello" to me, I'd have been wrapped around her finger.

[EFerrari]

73. It's insidious. I really hate these people. n/t

[NewJeffCT]

80. It's not just the military that does it

When star athletes get recruited by colleges (especially basketball and football stars), do you think they get shown around the campus by their future professors?

[EFerrari]

86. I was one of those profs. No, that doesn't happen.

Multiple times I had athletes dropped into my lap. They were nowhere near ready for the coursework they had to do to stay on the team.

Once (you may enjoy this), I assigned the ice hockey team at Berkeley the task of writing a love scene between characters that didn't get one in "Pride and Prejudice". I gave them a choice of writing an essay or writing and performing a scene.

They all showed up in drag and performed the most hilarious courting rituals I've ever seen.

These people are just as exploited as our service people. And teachers who actually try to attend to them are on their own.

[pnwmom]

92. I'm afraid that's also true

of my son.

Fortunately, he kept his head.

[JVS]

74. LOL!

[Forkboy]

75. I thought this was going to be another "To Catch A Predator" thread.

:)

[EFerrari]

76. pnwmom, I started a "dirty tricks" identification thread here, fyi:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1380288

[pnwmom]

93. Great idea! Thank you!

[Blaze Diem]

77. "like...hello??"

"like...you wanna be..like...in the army or something...? Or like...maybe we could just..like kinda...hang out or something...OK? well..like..um..call me.. ya wanna ..like..be my BF..or something?

[midnight]

82. How many times have I been caught unawares. I should write

the book. You can never be to aware. I think you are right on as a mother to keep that antenna up. Unfortunately for the wellbeing of your household you can just be so polite and just say may I ask who is calling please. Sounds like you don't have caller I.D. Now that I read your story, I wonder if a female recruiter got my nephew to sign up. He was building Harley's and just decided to join the Marine Corps. It was very quick and very unexpected, but then he is in Texas. I think those young men are so ripe for the picking. I love being in Texas. Everyone is so polite. Yes Mame for everything.

[pnwmom]

95. Yes, I like that friendliness when I go there.

Too bad some of them don't have the brains to match. (I don't mean your relatives. I'm talking about the Rethugs there.)

[mainer]

84. NYT article mentions teenage girls recruiting

7/18/07 article in the Times, page C-11 by Jim Dwyer.
Article is about an 18-year-old soldier named Ron A. Wilson who died in Iraq.

Article mentions 15-year-old girl who's paid $7.15 an hour by the city's summer job program (!) working at the recruiting center.

"We go leafleting, we call people up about recruitment," said one of the girls.

[conspirator]

94. Pretty soon they will be offering whores to anyone who enlists n/t

[msedano]

103. sweetness & light or garbage mouth

as the situation calls for. i had lunch recently with a friend who's suffering as a recruiter in the bay area. he recounts one woman he works with's reply when they're walking across a high school campus and some kid gives them crap, "you're probably to f*cking stupid to join the army". my friend says this ploy works as an icebreaker. she's the top recruiter in his office.

the army trains them to use the insinuating technique to get the kid to the phone. the recruiter has only that one goal: make a sales presentation.

think of the recruiter's predicament. my friend has been in iraq two times. now his commanders are telling him he needs to produce some numbers or he can return to his old mos--artillery spotter. shiver.

ate,
mvs

http://labloga.blogspot.com
http://readraza.com/hawk/index.htm

[EFerrari]

109. I hope I don't meet your friend at the wrong end of a protest.

We really need to end this effen war.

[msedano]

114. what's the wrong end of a protest?

this is a kid i hired to work at my company years ago. he put in some time but just couldn't see himself in the workaday world. so the boy enlisted. i'm happy he stays in touch with me--i am damn glad he came home alive!

i tell him to find only the kids for whom the military is the correct choice, to leave all the other kids alone!

[EFerrari]

128. I'm glad he's home, too! I'm afraid to ask people any more

how their uniformed family members are doing. :(

[MindPilot]

104. So if an 18 year old male tries to get sex from an 15 year old girl

that's child molestation, but if a 15 year old girl tries to get a an 18 year old male to go to his death in war, that's recruiting.

Got it.

[file83]

110. Salient point.

You cut right to the bone of the hypocrisy.

[Maddy McCall]

105. The Order of the White Feather of Cowardice. (WWI)

If they'd go after College Republicans, I'd have no problem with it.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

111. I have no respect fpr recruiters

NONE! Especially high school ones!

[MiniMe]

112. I have respect for them, they are just doing their job. Its the tactics that

they use that I have no respect for. They smell like just what they are, desperation.

[Allenberg]

115. My recruiter definitely had a tough job recruiting me.

Midway through my senior year of high school, I walked into the recruiter's office and said. "Sign me up. I want to leave for basic a few weeks after I graduate." :P

[pnwmom]

117. When was that? Would you do that again?

[Allenberg]

123. I enlisted January of '99

Went to basic August of '99 and I got out in May of '05. Air Force intel analyst, and yes, I'd definitely do it again. Despite my rather thin resume, my military experience has been a tremendous advantage in the job market.

[pnwmom]

129. Good for you, I'm glad it worked out.

Are you at risk of being called up for duty in Iraq?

[Yavin4]

126. I Have Their Newest Recruiting Commercial

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eLx4-Ka4JJ0

Awwww yeah!

[mainer]

127. That's a riot! Thanks! n/t

[undercutter2006]

130. military recruiting

is the most hated job in the army right now. Soldiers are pressured to go into recruiting in order to further their careers, they get treated like shit if they don't make their numbers, and it is impossible to fail recruiting school anymore, you can fail every single test in that school as badly as you can manage, and they still will pass you. it's a fucking zoo out there

[Tulum_Moon]

137. Who's calling please?

What is wrong with that, then he would know who it was.

[pnwmom]

138. And if she says "Susie Smith,"

he'd probably think she was someone he met at a friend's house or a party somewhere.