Cool 'Horn Luke
Come on. Love me, hate me, kill me, anything.
And that's why DoD just keeps lowering the standards. Sad. While I don't hold much hope for the future, I think a lot of us "old" folks might be surprised by the younger generations, if we just maintained a high standard, what they could attain. But, sadly, we just keep lowering our (society in general) expectations. The Chinese better hurry up and "get it on" while I can still see and shoot straight, 'cuz I'm too damned old to learn Mandarin.To swing this discussion back to my original post General Burger wrote in part;
"And while specialized skills are important, I wholeheartedly believe that the personal characteristics and qualities developed during military service — leadership, self-discipline, perseverance — are even more relevant to a young person’s future success as a college student, employee or career military professional."
That alone is the most important result to me of successful military service be it one tour or a career. The qualities developed in service to our country carry on well after one gets their DD214.
BTW: did you know according to..."U.S. Dept. of Defense show that less than a quarter of Americans of prime recruiting age are eligible to serve in the military. The most recent data indicates that only 23-percent of Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 would meet the necessary qualifications to enlist.
Not a whole lot of potential warriors to stand on the ramparts to protect our country.