If there was a “pre” basic training that got young Americans to a healthy baseline i bet the number would be much higher. In my imagination it would start off with long walks and controlled meals to help get the fat bodies to place where they were fit enough to start basic. Hygiene and medical care of course as well. Basic structure for the basement dwellers that would include a routine. I bet something like that would end up making a lot more of the young people “eligible”.
I took the Oath when I was 17, and that said the only "Pre" bootcamp was a weekly meeting with our recruiters to PT / Hip-Pocket Teaching and such.
Helped a lot, though this was 2003. Different world back then.
Same kinda deal for me in 2012. After swearing in and becoming a Poolee, Tues/Thurs PT sessions at the office. They’d teach basic knowledge also a small bit of drill. Think once a month on a Saturday we attended a state wide Poolee function.
It works. You could tell the people that wanted to do it, and those that didn't. The recruiters never "weeded" out the shit-bags because a quota is a quota, but you could tell.
Those who were blatantly wasting the recruiters' time would be socially excluded by those who wanted to be there. They got the picture and would never return.
At the time, I wanted to do a full-blown 20.
>be socially excluded
I don't know what's funnier, the idea that you'd carebear stare them away, or that some random poolees should be making those determinations idk could be a mean girls remake.
When I took the oath, my recruiters did PT every Thursday- it instilled discipline to show up on time and not waste time- everyone with the blue shirt wanted to be there and recruiters made it fun, of course I and several other Poolees got shipped out and got dropped but still, to this day i occasionally show up for a PT session because it’s nice to get a little workout in
I think the RSS I was going to was running 2 PT days a week and I was going in for an extra 3rd day because I couldn't do pullups to save my life. The RSS wouldn't send anyone to bootcamp unless they could do at least 5 pull-ups/chin-ups and run a sub 11:30 on the 1.5 mile. This was in 2009/2010 though when there was like an 8-month waitlist to go to bootcamp unless you were dumb/desperate enough to go open contract.
I know a lot of people will harp on "recruiters lie to you!" and I don't doubt for a second that many do. But it seemed like the RSS I joined out of really cared about the poolees and what kind of kids they were putting into the Corps. They were really big on if you want to join and need to get up to standards, we will help you, but we can't hold your hand 24/7 to get you there.
It’s a people business on both ends. Most of the subs been around long enough to recognize that there are in fact shitty people that happen to be Marines.
I think a lot of young people could be physically prepped for boot camp, but we all know it’s the mental game that breaks most guys. The guys I saw snap were not in bad shape.
Nah, I think it was an excuse to call us every name in the book. Seeing a group of Dark Green, D.Is call other Dark Green Poolees the hard R and telling them they will rape them and shit. Seeing their parents' reactions, genuine. I was high-key melting inside, and my sides were in orbit.
Boot-Camp was a physical and mental roast, but I survived.
The Army is running pre-boot-camp courses to help people with poor fitness or scholastic performance shape up. It's called the Future Soldier Preparatory Course.
In my case, back in '05, the corps did offer me this exact program. It was called PCP.
Got sent to the island with me and the recruiter fully knowing I was going to get cut during the initial PFT to ol' pork chop.
Spent my weeks there gettin in shape and when I passed the required exit PFT, got cycled, commenced my 12 additional weeks and graduated.
Granted, I had no other health problems other than being a fat cant run for shit nerd during the build up time when they were takin people like me. I would guess the current peace time corps aint all that hurting to allow that shit much anymore, coupled with the medicate-happy culture that now orbits adolescence isnt helpin with matters as such.
That's actually not a bad pipeline if you're overweight a reasonable amount. Gets you acclimated and in shape and you can weed out anyone prior to wasting many training resources on them.
Peacetime is a tricky bitch. Right now the Corps is making their numbers, but when those numbers start slipping you can bet they will start granting waivers again.
What waivers do you think MCRC is not granting right now? The only reason the Marine Cirps has made their accession mission the last two fiscal years is because of the waiver approval rate being so high.
Brother I think this should be a thing in general. Theres no reason PE classes shouldn’t have students running/walking/swimming/biking/hiking on a regular basis
If you haven’t seen it, check out the super PE programs JFK put together back in the day. It was great to have all the kids in shape but it was really convenient to the military to have like 90% of every graduating class able to pass a pft.
I mean theoretically if they all started a serious fitness program, most of those without the disqualifying medical or legal issues could probably make it through.
As we all know, you don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to make it in boot camp, just gotta be in good shape and able to push yourself.
Boot camp PT was the easiest PT of my time in! Flip side, the MCT rucks were the hardest part of any PT (for me).
I think just about any kid can make it. We had a girl shaped like a meatball get into shape within the first 3 weeks. Our DIs put the fat bodies on cooler duty to burn more calories.
In 2013, I had a winter platoon that was massive, like 110 kids each. Every single kid made it except one who just could not get the pull ups down. Many tried to quit and the DIs would just not let anyone quit. So my guess is that everyone who puts slightly above average effort into it would make it.
That was right as the run-up was ending, though, so boot had been watered down to allow more people through for some time. It's gone back to being relatively more selective now from what I've seen. I got back from my last deployment in 13 and the boots we got were the most disrespectful lazy pieces of shit we'd ever seen... so we hazed the fuck out of them to make up for lost time but I'd like to think that improved on both ends...
Daily pot smoker until right before I graduated high school and shipped.
Was diagnosed with bipolar, adhd, and anxiety disorder at 17. (I was stubborn af and refused all meds but adhd meds)
I had a near perfect asvab score and ran cross-country in high school.
Recruiter asked how bad do I want to be a Marine and I said I will be a Marine.
When filling out the paperwork he didn’t put ANYTHING down.
In 2012 my recruiter told me what to lie about at MEPS lol. "you have never had a drink, you've never done a drug, you've never tried anything, you've never gotten a ticket". Made the process easier I guess.
Yea my recruiter helped me remember the last time I smoked pot as well as how many times I smoked pot. It was astounding gents, Uncle Sam really is watching. Jk his guess was way off but he was very confident he was right so we went with that. He kept telling me the dates on the drive, so helpful. 5 stars
I might be in the minority on this, but it's not just the physical fitness that's the problem. That is just a symptom of a bigger problem.
The majority of that 77% don't have any drive, self confidence, or mental toughness. Otherwise they wouldn't be doing poorly in school, be overweight, or getting in trouble all the time.
Idk buddy a BBall player/football player is better off going to play ball than get ear damage and an aged body because of antiquated fitness believes.
I myself outperformed marines in both the mental and physical realms
Let’s not forget that “self confidence” and “drive”
It’s show lack of “self confidence” and “drive to have to rely on another man shouting in your face and telling you what to do exactl, because you’re too afraid to pave you own way in life imo
And why would I?!? As a guy with academic/trades/sports opportunities and other opportunities that are crude to mention, but I digress.
Why would I settle to being nothing more than a punching bag/robot?!?
If I were to join a branch it would be the Air Force, obviously, but even then I would have to sacrifice some of my freedoms…
People who have to sacrifice their freedom is because they are, how do I say it, force to be it by their life circumstances or their lack of natural talent
Keep in mind that most of the disqualifications aren't Height/Weight but something medical:
[https://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/disqualifiers-medical-conditions.html](https://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/disqualifiers-medical-conditions.html)
In addition to that, the requirement for High School Equivalency and minimum ASVAB scores.
Using that 23% baseline, it's very unlikely that we would double that by removing many disqualifiers. Even in WW2 (Draft conditions), almost half of people were 4F (Unfit for military service).
Imma be honest, they say it’s only 23%, but I’m betting less than 15% would fail out if we drafted everyone. With the fat body platoon and recycling dudes.
I’ve seen a few studies on how growing income inequality in America, corporate lobbying promoting poor food quality (lunchables for example ) , reduced funding for public schools, the constant attacks teachers are under, much higher cost of living so both parents need to work, explosion of health care costs ; all contribute to declining youth health and pose a military security risk.
Hell, 25% of the Armed forces have dealt with food insecurity.
https://www.csis.org/analysis/solving-food-insecurity-among-us-veterans-and-military-families
https://www.rand.org/pubs/articles/2023/why-are-us-military-families-experiencing-food-insecurity.html
https://amarkfoundation.org/reports/is-obesity-a-threat-to-national-security/
Infographicc
https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/downloads/unfit-to-serve-062322-508.pdf
Food insecurity as usually defined isn't a great measure. You can have food insecurity while never going hungry, never even missing a meal.
I don't doubt that some people during or after military service have trouble making ends meet, but if we want to take this seriously, we should be looking at hunger or maybe malnutrition.
Keep in mind, asthma and other dumb shit immediately gets you denied eligibility. Our country is pretty strict.
I had surgery on my Achilles tendons as a kid, I told the truth and got a waiver. It took me nearly a year to get in. Lots of appointments, X-rays, I even had to write an essay. If I lost motivation at any point during that year, I could’ve just changed direction and never enlisted. My friend had an apricot allergy and got delayed 7 months lmao
I don’t know the number of folks that don’t share their shit, but I’m willing to bet a decent portion of active duty would’ve been denied or delayed had they been truthful over medical history.
A lot of kids also get ridiculous diagnoses for showing “abnormal” behavior (as literal kids being forced to sit in a classroom for 8 hours at a time) that never should have been diagnosed. Most kids at some point get anxiety, but having a doctor formally label it can get you DQ’d. A bit silly
The waiver wait times were no joke. It ended up working out, but I thought I fucked up big time by disclosing I took Ritalin growing up.
Did your friend with the apricot allergy happen to end up an 1833? Just curious.
90%+ would be my guess. Bootcamp was easy AF.
Of that 90... One third would probably be gone in the first year due to drugs, DUIs, and general shitbaggery.
It's funny that the boomers complain about mellinials so much, but they were the ones who raised and shaped us. My parents were older Gen X, but my wife's parents are in their 70s.
I wonder how the Gen Z raised by Gen X are going to do, or the Millenial's kids. Usually generational trends are cyclic, so who knows.
I told my son before he went to mcrd last month that if it was something that he really wanted to do he had nothing to worry about. Boot camp is more to weed out the ones that mentally and emotionally can’t cut it. I’ve seen several out of shape guys earn the title. You’ll get in shape it’s just you have to want it bad enough to not quit. There are exceptions like getting injured but to answer your question if they got it in their heads and really wanted it a high number would make it but everyone knows it’s hard and not very many want to push themselves like we did
We don't need everyone to join the military but we definitely need to push a standard in high school. A set physical fitness standard and basic martial arts. If shit hits the fan and our military falls, at least our citizens can take on whatever comes, instead running out of breath in 2 seconds.
Nothing extreme, just a basic fitness standard, basic MA, basic land nav and survival skills. I would add basic firearm skills but that would be hard to implement on a large enough scale to matter. Never mind all the karens scared of guns. But also schools not wanting to be responsible for guns registered in the schools name. Then pay for firearm instructors. I believe the others I mentioned majority of parents and teachers could get on board with
I agree with you, one thing that blows my mind is seeing obese children. Does not compute in my brain. I know their parents are probably fat too but to be a fat person and know the struggles of it why would you want your children to be fat too and not do something about it. I've never been more judgemental than I have nowadays because of this bullshit.
I firmly believe that with the proper motivation or incentive - just about anybody could make it through boot camp, and at least a 2 year enlistment.
These boomers sounding the alarm are as likely to cite obesity and nutrition as they are to cite rock and roll music, video games, and the perils of college education as reasons for low recruitment.
Marines are not that naturally gift on average.
Disciplined, sure. Mailable, definitely.
The test are easy, and the marines when being compared to people who train are pale in comparison
3% in peacetime, that number varies during wartime because of a relax in strict standards which is depending on how bad the attrition rate is. WW2, Korea, Vietnam (during the draft years) a pulse was basically all that was required. More extensive training and focus on discipline during peacetime ensures the Corps is ready to fight.
There is a lot of mental stuff you just can't get past today. Even if it was true back in 2003 like one of the top posts, it's not true today. Too many iPads, not enough heart. I heard about a recruit platoon that lost half it's members to quiting and what not. That's insane! My whole company didn't have one drop for quiting. Trust me, we would have known.
The vast majority of the jobs that are performed by the military could be done by just about anybody with some training. I think it's time that we stop discriminating against a majority of our population and seriously relax the health/fitness requirements that are expected of our service members.
If there was a “pre” basic training that got young Americans to a healthy baseline i bet the number would be much higher. In my imagination it would start off with long walks and controlled meals to help get the fat bodies to place where they were fit enough to start basic. Hygiene and medical care of course as well. Basic structure for the basement dwellers that would include a routine. I bet something like that would end up making a lot more of the young people “eligible”.
I took the Oath when I was 17, and that said the only "Pre" bootcamp was a weekly meeting with our recruiters to PT / Hip-Pocket Teaching and such. Helped a lot, though this was 2003. Different world back then.
Same kinda deal for me in 2012. After swearing in and becoming a Poolee, Tues/Thurs PT sessions at the office. They’d teach basic knowledge also a small bit of drill. Think once a month on a Saturday we attended a state wide Poolee function.
It works. You could tell the people that wanted to do it, and those that didn't. The recruiters never "weeded" out the shit-bags because a quota is a quota, but you could tell. Those who were blatantly wasting the recruiters' time would be socially excluded by those who wanted to be there. They got the picture and would never return. At the time, I wanted to do a full-blown 20.
You ain’t lying! I saw enough kids bow out from those little PT sessions and never come back around lol
>be socially excluded I don't know what's funnier, the idea that you'd carebear stare them away, or that some random poolees should be making those determinations idk could be a mean girls remake.
When I took the oath, my recruiters did PT every Thursday- it instilled discipline to show up on time and not waste time- everyone with the blue shirt wanted to be there and recruiters made it fun, of course I and several other Poolees got shipped out and got dropped but still, to this day i occasionally show up for a PT session because it’s nice to get a little workout in
I think the RSS I was going to was running 2 PT days a week and I was going in for an extra 3rd day because I couldn't do pullups to save my life. The RSS wouldn't send anyone to bootcamp unless they could do at least 5 pull-ups/chin-ups and run a sub 11:30 on the 1.5 mile. This was in 2009/2010 though when there was like an 8-month waitlist to go to bootcamp unless you were dumb/desperate enough to go open contract. I know a lot of people will harp on "recruiters lie to you!" and I don't doubt for a second that many do. But it seemed like the RSS I joined out of really cared about the poolees and what kind of kids they were putting into the Corps. They were really big on if you want to join and need to get up to standards, we will help you, but we can't hold your hand 24/7 to get you there.
My recruiter def exaggerated some, his SNCOIC at the station def lied. But they really tried to keep the quality up and make us work to be there.
It’s a people business on both ends. Most of the subs been around long enough to recognize that there are in fact shitty people that happen to be Marines.
I think a lot of young people could be physically prepped for boot camp, but we all know it’s the mental game that breaks most guys. The guys I saw snap were not in bad shape.
They had the "D.I. Experience Days" back in 03, I was scared shitless. Mind you, I looked like 'Powder', standing there at 6'6" and 120lbs wet.
Just did a spit take! The DI must have loved you. Also people don’t make enough Powder references.
Did they act like DI’s then or was it nice and friendly?
Nah, I think it was an excuse to call us every name in the book. Seeing a group of Dark Green, D.Is call other Dark Green Poolees the hard R and telling them they will rape them and shit. Seeing their parents' reactions, genuine. I was high-key melting inside, and my sides were in orbit. Boot-Camp was a physical and mental roast, but I survived.
The Army is running pre-boot-camp courses to help people with poor fitness or scholastic performance shape up. It's called the Future Soldier Preparatory Course.
I believe that’s kind of what PE in school was partially for.
You had actual PE? Fancy!
Even better, we had both a ball AND a stick!
Now you’re just bragging 😂
No bragging would be saying we didn’t have to dodge gunfire on the way to PE.
But did you still have to walk uphill, in the snow, both ways?
In my case, back in '05, the corps did offer me this exact program. It was called PCP. Got sent to the island with me and the recruiter fully knowing I was going to get cut during the initial PFT to ol' pork chop. Spent my weeks there gettin in shape and when I passed the required exit PFT, got cycled, commenced my 12 additional weeks and graduated. Granted, I had no other health problems other than being a fat cant run for shit nerd during the build up time when they were takin people like me. I would guess the current peace time corps aint all that hurting to allow that shit much anymore, coupled with the medicate-happy culture that now orbits adolescence isnt helpin with matters as such.
That's actually not a bad pipeline if you're overweight a reasonable amount. Gets you acclimated and in shape and you can weed out anyone prior to wasting many training resources on them.
Peacetime is a tricky bitch. Right now the Corps is making their numbers, but when those numbers start slipping you can bet they will start granting waivers again.
What waivers do you think MCRC is not granting right now? The only reason the Marine Cirps has made their accession mission the last two fiscal years is because of the waiver approval rate being so high.
Brother I think this should be a thing in general. Theres no reason PE classes shouldn’t have students running/walking/swimming/biking/hiking on a regular basis
If you haven’t seen it, check out the super PE programs JFK put together back in the day. It was great to have all the kids in shape but it was really convenient to the military to have like 90% of every graduating class able to pass a pft.
That would be so beneficial if that was just rolled out
The Army does this now.
I mean theoretically if they all started a serious fitness program, most of those without the disqualifying medical or legal issues could probably make it through. As we all know, you don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to make it in boot camp, just gotta be in good shape and able to push yourself.
Or in ok-ish shape and just really really stubborn lol
And scream the damn ditties, can’t survive boot without that 😂
Boot camp PT was the easiest PT of my time in! Flip side, the MCT rucks were the hardest part of any PT (for me). I think just about any kid can make it. We had a girl shaped like a meatball get into shape within the first 3 weeks. Our DIs put the fat bodies on cooler duty to burn more calories.
In 2013, I had a winter platoon that was massive, like 110 kids each. Every single kid made it except one who just could not get the pull ups down. Many tried to quit and the DIs would just not let anyone quit. So my guess is that everyone who puts slightly above average effort into it would make it.
We started with 60ish and ended with like 41 but only 30 of the originals.
That was right as the run-up was ending, though, so boot had been watered down to allow more people through for some time. It's gone back to being relatively more selective now from what I've seen. I got back from my last deployment in 13 and the boots we got were the most disrespectful lazy pieces of shit we'd ever seen... so we hazed the fuck out of them to make up for lost time but I'd like to think that improved on both ends...
Y’all are discounting how many of us lied about something to the recruiter and how much harder that is now
Yeah, every single person I know in the USMC concealed something medical to get in. The fact that USMC is still making mission astounds me
Daily pot smoker until right before I graduated high school and shipped. Was diagnosed with bipolar, adhd, and anxiety disorder at 17. (I was stubborn af and refused all meds but adhd meds) I had a near perfect asvab score and ran cross-country in high school. Recruiter asked how bad do I want to be a Marine and I said I will be a Marine. When filling out the paperwork he didn’t put ANYTHING down.
In 2012 my recruiter told me what to lie about at MEPS lol. "you have never had a drink, you've never done a drug, you've never tried anything, you've never gotten a ticket". Made the process easier I guess.
Yea my recruiter helped me remember the last time I smoked pot as well as how many times I smoked pot. It was astounding gents, Uncle Sam really is watching. Jk his guess was way off but he was very confident he was right so we went with that. He kept telling me the dates on the drive, so helpful. 5 stars
I might be in the minority on this, but it's not just the physical fitness that's the problem. That is just a symptom of a bigger problem. The majority of that 77% don't have any drive, self confidence, or mental toughness. Otherwise they wouldn't be doing poorly in school, be overweight, or getting in trouble all the time.
Idk buddy a BBall player/football player is better off going to play ball than get ear damage and an aged body because of antiquated fitness believes. I myself outperformed marines in both the mental and physical realms Let’s not forget that “self confidence” and “drive” It’s show lack of “self confidence” and “drive to have to rely on another man shouting in your face and telling you what to do exactl, because you’re too afraid to pave you own way in life imo
Spoken like someone who has never served in the Marine Corps...
And why would I?!? As a guy with academic/trades/sports opportunities and other opportunities that are crude to mention, but I digress. Why would I settle to being nothing more than a punching bag/robot?!? If I were to join a branch it would be the Air Force, obviously, but even then I would have to sacrifice some of my freedoms… People who have to sacrifice their freedom is because they are, how do I say it, force to be it by their life circumstances or their lack of natural talent
Spoken like a troll...
If the truth hurt you then I suppose Cant open the eyes of someone who wants to be blind
Keep in mind that most of the disqualifications aren't Height/Weight but something medical: [https://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/disqualifiers-medical-conditions.html](https://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/disqualifiers-medical-conditions.html) In addition to that, the requirement for High School Equivalency and minimum ASVAB scores. Using that 23% baseline, it's very unlikely that we would double that by removing many disqualifiers. Even in WW2 (Draft conditions), almost half of people were 4F (Unfit for military service).
Imma be honest, they say it’s only 23%, but I’m betting less than 15% would fail out if we drafted everyone. With the fat body platoon and recycling dudes.
I’ve seen a few studies on how growing income inequality in America, corporate lobbying promoting poor food quality (lunchables for example ) , reduced funding for public schools, the constant attacks teachers are under, much higher cost of living so both parents need to work, explosion of health care costs ; all contribute to declining youth health and pose a military security risk. Hell, 25% of the Armed forces have dealt with food insecurity. https://www.csis.org/analysis/solving-food-insecurity-among-us-veterans-and-military-families https://www.rand.org/pubs/articles/2023/why-are-us-military-families-experiencing-food-insecurity.html https://amarkfoundation.org/reports/is-obesity-a-threat-to-national-security/ Infographicc https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/downloads/unfit-to-serve-062322-508.pdf
Food insecurity as usually defined isn't a great measure. You can have food insecurity while never going hungry, never even missing a meal. I don't doubt that some people during or after military service have trouble making ends meet, but if we want to take this seriously, we should be looking at hunger or maybe malnutrition.
There would be a serious crayon shortage. Particularly red.
Red crayons, those are the extra spicy ones, right? 🤪
Keep in mind, asthma and other dumb shit immediately gets you denied eligibility. Our country is pretty strict. I had surgery on my Achilles tendons as a kid, I told the truth and got a waiver. It took me nearly a year to get in. Lots of appointments, X-rays, I even had to write an essay. If I lost motivation at any point during that year, I could’ve just changed direction and never enlisted. My friend had an apricot allergy and got delayed 7 months lmao I don’t know the number of folks that don’t share their shit, but I’m willing to bet a decent portion of active duty would’ve been denied or delayed had they been truthful over medical history. A lot of kids also get ridiculous diagnoses for showing “abnormal” behavior (as literal kids being forced to sit in a classroom for 8 hours at a time) that never should have been diagnosed. Most kids at some point get anxiety, but having a doctor formally label it can get you DQ’d. A bit silly
The waiver wait times were no joke. It ended up working out, but I thought I fucked up big time by disclosing I took Ritalin growing up. Did your friend with the apricot allergy happen to end up an 1833? Just curious.
She worked with radios.. or ATC I believe. Pretty sure she’s still in and is likely a sgt or ssgt
thats why the army exists
90%+ would be my guess. Bootcamp was easy AF. Of that 90... One third would probably be gone in the first year due to drugs, DUIs, and general shitbaggery.
This is an amazing comment. I agree
if everyone wanted to be a marine and it became the biggest branch, i feel like it would take the pride away
https://preview.redd.it/jabayyn4fn4d1.jpeg?width=948&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=076a919199d324dd7791efe7328ce124517a6b8f
Wonder where the parents are that all these young Americans are so jacked up
At work, trying to make enough to cover the bills.
Losing bene’s, not getting raises.. you know, the usual
It's funny that the boomers complain about mellinials so much, but they were the ones who raised and shaped us. My parents were older Gen X, but my wife's parents are in their 70s. I wonder how the Gen Z raised by Gen X are going to do, or the Millenial's kids. Usually generational trends are cyclic, so who knows.
I am also a millenial but my parents were immigrants not American boomers so they werent bout to raise no bitch boy
Marine boot camp is mostly mental, a little physical.
I told my son before he went to mcrd last month that if it was something that he really wanted to do he had nothing to worry about. Boot camp is more to weed out the ones that mentally and emotionally can’t cut it. I’ve seen several out of shape guys earn the title. You’ll get in shape it’s just you have to want it bad enough to not quit. There are exceptions like getting injured but to answer your question if they got it in their heads and really wanted it a high number would make it but everyone knows it’s hard and not very many want to push themselves like we did
Most of the country is obese. Fat lazy fucks are so rampant it's actually a national security issue. I saw general give a speech about it.
We don't need everyone to join the military but we definitely need to push a standard in high school. A set physical fitness standard and basic martial arts. If shit hits the fan and our military falls, at least our citizens can take on whatever comes, instead running out of breath in 2 seconds. Nothing extreme, just a basic fitness standard, basic MA, basic land nav and survival skills. I would add basic firearm skills but that would be hard to implement on a large enough scale to matter. Never mind all the karens scared of guns. But also schools not wanting to be responsible for guns registered in the schools name. Then pay for firearm instructors. I believe the others I mentioned majority of parents and teachers could get on board with
I agree with you, one thing that blows my mind is seeing obese children. Does not compute in my brain. I know their parents are probably fat too but to be a fat person and know the struggles of it why would you want your children to be fat too and not do something about it. I've never been more judgemental than I have nowadays because of this bullshit.
I firmly believe that with the proper motivation or incentive - just about anybody could make it through boot camp, and at least a 2 year enlistment. These boomers sounding the alarm are as likely to cite obesity and nutrition as they are to cite rock and roll music, video games, and the perils of college education as reasons for low recruitment.
.3%
I was 19, weighed 130lbs and had never done anything physical in my life and I made it through boot camp. How fucked up are these people?
Marines are not that naturally gift on average. Disciplined, sure. Mailable, definitely. The test are easy, and the marines when being compared to people who train are pale in comparison
3% in peacetime, that number varies during wartime because of a relax in strict standards which is depending on how bad the attrition rate is. WW2, Korea, Vietnam (during the draft years) a pulse was basically all that was required. More extensive training and focus on discipline during peacetime ensures the Corps is ready to fight.
There is a lot of mental stuff you just can't get past today. Even if it was true back in 2003 like one of the top posts, it's not true today. Too many iPads, not enough heart. I heard about a recruit platoon that lost half it's members to quiting and what not. That's insane! My whole company didn't have one drop for quiting. Trust me, we would have known.
The vast majority of the jobs that are performed by the military could be done by just about anybody with some training. I think it's time that we stop discriminating against a majority of our population and seriously relax the health/fitness requirements that are expected of our service members.
Didn’t the DOD recently step up their background checks and whatnot for enlistment?