it is hard to go in the army because you know that your life is on the line

*Nods.* My best hopes to any and all who serve.

I know that must be rough for those with friends and family deployed in Iraq and Afganistan...

I too have a friend there... I met him online not too long ago... but I feel like we're friends... and I want him to come back to his family and friends safely

It's not that I don't support the troops, I'd like for them to come home...it's the war itself I hate. And the fucked up politicians that plotted this whol scenario out. They're oo much of cowards to send their own kids but want everyone else to send theirs...the American government is full of nothing but sellouts, ESPECIALLY Republicans and Bush.

McCain is no different, but people are too stupid to see that even his running mate was a poor choice. She CAN'T keep up with her own home (pregnate UNDERAGED daughter) so what makes her qualified to help run the country...oh wait, she's just running to be VICE president, I'm sorry. In that case, ANYONE can do that, it's the do-nothing job down there. What has Cheny really done besides shoot that lawyer by 'accident?'

And Obama! Everyone talks about him almost like he's our saviour! Oh Obama! Save us! ...right, with only 4 years to work with, I highly doubt he'd be able to do some real good besides pull out the troops.

er, a 17 year old isn't underaged. Age of consent in Alaska, and most of the US, is sixteen.

16? Man, the US really lowered standards. :P

none of the services will let you go through boot camp at 16 least is 18 and army is the only one that will accept somone wiht just a GED or no high school diploma, wiht marines navy and airforce you need a highschool diploma or a ged with 12 college credits and to score a minimumof 32 on teh asvab to get into the marine corp

National Guard minimum is 17 or a high school junior with parental consent.

It's a lot easier to create a mess than it is to fix one. ANd once a mess is created, it's a lot easier to make it worse than to fix it.

I share your feelings that Senator Obama has little chance of successfully mopping up the entire issue of the current Gulf War, though at this point, Senator McCain's hot temper and his policy outlines that fail to differ significantly in any area from those of Mr. Bush, would be more than likely to land us in Iran, at which point, only more people will die.
In the early '70's, the phrase going around was, how do you ask a man to be the last man to die in Vietnam? There's a certain level of bravado that America has had an inability to dispense with, when entering any armed conflict. We just can't bear the thought of "losing" because we venerate ourselves as the universal Good Guys. On a federal level, it's hard to look at the conflict and try to decide how to save face, both on the level of the non-military population and on the level of the troops themselves.

TO be entirely honest, I watched both campaign speeches as a planned independent, because in the past I've always found that it's impossible to always do the right thing by voting strictly party-line. However, many share my fear that even a moderate-conservative is too conservative to pull America out of the geopolitical mess we're in.

That being said, there isn't a word of your first paragraph that I don't agree with in full. The whole of politics today is nothing but a farce. Everything is directed by popular opiniion, everything from policy to aesthetic appearance on-stage. THe war is senseless. Even if it was the RIght THing to do, why haven't we intervened in Sudan?

Or China?

Because there's no money to be made in Sudan, and CHina already supports us economically.

It's really sad to see this country so low...

I'm not surprised...this country was built on lies and blood of the innocent as well. Natives that were killed off in GENOCIDE, blacks forced to be as slaves, and white man (generally speaking) won't ever look at them as equals because of it, while they let illegals work for them at dirt cheap prices and now, arabics are taking over! All our educations and stuff then take it back to THEIR country to support themselves and make it better while America is still in a shit hole because of BS racial policies like 'legacy preference' for universities. Afterall, that's how Geroge W. got into Yale and is now our president! :P

The Iraq war IS another Vietnam, although it looks more like WWI when Ferdinand was assassinated compared to 9/11. But basically, Bush went to Iraq to get Sadam for guess what? That's right, his daddy! apparently, Sadam had pissed Bush Sr. now Bush Jr. is finishing it by making the guy a wanted criminal...if anything, he COULD'VE been an ally against al Qaida since he and bin Laden don't get along...speaking of which, where is bin Laden?

If Obama wins the election, and that's a BIG if. Then this country can last just a few years longer...but should McCain win...which is possible since Americans in general are stupid, especially since they care more about gay football players than someone that can really do good for the economy and is smart. And the way McCain picked his running mate...targeting the married white female middle class? Amazing, don't you agree femenists? God, I just fucking LOVE this country!

The United States has lasted about as long as any other past global empire...

Why would anything be different now? They all fall down when they start to try to take over the world.
Regrettably, you and I are both kind'a stuck in the middle of it...

If you don't mind, I'd like to continue this discussion via PM out of respect for its intended audience and subject.

I don't have any problem with that.

SEMPER FI and thank you i ship out the 22nd to parris island for my boot camp

God bless you, man. That's where my father took Basic at during Vietnam.

heh ever since the base was tured into a boot camp after WW2 marines have been trainning there and for those who don't know the main physical requirements for getting into the corp are

44 situps
mile and a half in 13:30
and 2 pullups <--- only thing i am hurting on atm and i almost have them when i first joined i couldn't do half a pullup but now i am almost there

I was told airforce had to do:

60 push-ups in a minute
mile and half in 11:00 :/

I can manage the situps and the pullups easily... THe mile and a half, though...

>v>

Gdspeed, man.

hrm yea..i might be cookin in the military after this culinary school is over with who knows..

a good friend of mine is actually a cook for hte marine corp he is at his MOS school atm

MOS school?

marine occupation service

I'd rather be in navy or airforce cooking mainly because they treat others better >,.,> but atm I'm taking culinary to become aprofessional chef >,.,.

what do you mean by treat others better?

half of my family wne into there plus marines and army fgo first into mil all I wat to do is cook my leg says it otherwise

That would be me. Heading to Iraq Jan 2nd 2009 wish me luck.

good luck man you marine army or navy?

National Guard Military Police Hooooah!

heh i thought about that but decided to do UAV pilot air traffic control

Very good point. I've got a really good friend in the service right now currently stationed in Iraq. I do not agree with the war in the least but i do support the brave men and woman who are in this war. Here's hoping for Obama! >.> wow i suddenly sound like some wierd ad or something

When I was in AFJROTC, we used the army "Hua". An AF friend of mine defined that as "Head Up Ass." The navy doesn't seem to have anything. I asked that question once.

FYI The ARMY uses "HOOAH" not "Hua" also Im EX-ARMY

you tell 'im, brother...I hate it when people disgrace the Army that I so willingly served!

Like I said, the person who told me that was AIR FORCE.

this hits me hard...I was in Afghanistan and know what its like to be far from those you love, where any day you could die and never see them again...my six "blood-brothers" learned this the hard way...