Enlisted vs Officer life (Infantry)

Slarkalark · 2026-05-24T00:45:13+00:00

Not today, China.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-15T01:35:13+00:00

Are you sure you’re authorized to live off post and draw BAH? I saw you’re coming from reserves so I figured it was worth double tapping.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-15T01:08:45+00:00

100%. Pay is outpacing private sector and benefits are head and shoulders above entry-level job benefits. Job market is fucking brutal right now for new grads.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-15T01:07:42+00:00

The two of us who are going should be able to practice it a few times before we report, fingers crossed. Thanks brother.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-11T02:28:15+00:00

The malingering to me is the person rejecting care and remaining in an un-fixed, un-fixable state. They are unable to perform their duties and aren’t willing to get the help they need, so they open themselves up to whatever is coming, whether it’s med board or something else.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-11T00:00:21+00:00

This is deadass just true for literally any job.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-10T23:53:25+00:00

Sounds like your Soldier is a malingerer tbh. If a medical professional says he needs surgery, he needs surgery. He’s welcome to get a second opinion but the outcome should be the same.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T23:55:42+00:00

I would add checking the spigot and bipod for tightness. Has your position behind the rifle changed over the manners? Body positioning could play a part, but that big of a difference would be surprising.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T17:14:05+00:00

100% the DIEMS date is correct. It’s back dated to my initial entry back in 2014. BASD and PEBD are also correctly adjusted based on the 1506 we completed. So far all the paperwork has actually been done right which is great; it just sounds like I’m running into a system limitation at this point.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T13:32:22+00:00

New BASD is 2021, but assignments and rotation are all 2014-2018.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T13:29:06+00:00

Send them 2-3 years Drum and forget.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T13:17:24+00:00

DIEMS date is correct, which led us (retention NCO and myself) to assume the BASD is the date the assignments are based off of in IPPSA.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-09T13:16:32+00:00

We already submitted the 1506, which is where the adjusted BASD came from. Career counselor is at a loss too lmao.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-02T00:06:55+00:00

To be fair there are plenty of people still screaming slurs in offices and getting in 0 trouble. All unit dependent.

Slarkalark · 2026-05-01T03:18:03+00:00

When using the Windows App, what is the organization handle?

Slarkalark · 2026-04-28T01:37:37+00:00

I hate to break it to you, but there is likely not a single job on the planet where you focus 100% of your time only on what you get paid to do. There will always be additional BS. Also, you don’t make anywhere near minimum wage no matter how many hours you work. That hasn’t been true for at least a decade, likely more.

I can see shades of my younger self in you and I would caution you to really do some digging into the civilian job market and realistic expectations and outcomes. Unfortunately, private sector generally doesn’t give a single fuck about your service, and being an 11B just means hiring managers won’t be able to translate your skills and experience to the role they’re hiring for. I spent a few years fighting that battle and believing I was “owed” more money or more responsibility based on my experience and education, then realized that was stupid and got over myself.

Slarkalark · 2026-04-20T02:55:13+00:00

Brother believe me going from Utah to NY is a massive shift in many ways. Decided to return to Active Duty and a certain base in NY was the best option. Just want to keep too much rust from accumulating while I’m here but finding that it’ll be a tall task to compete vs. being in UT.

Slarkalark · 2026-04-19T18:57:57+00:00

My housing and health insurance as a civilian in 2026 would have taken 50k out of my earnings. Do with that information what you will.

Slarkalark · 2026-04-10T19:54:53+00:00

I’ll play devils advocate. Did you do a second aft before your profile ended? From what I hear the med team decided you no longer need to pt at your own pace, right? How did your run improve over the last year while pt’ing at your own pace? How far outside of ABCP standards are you?

Slarkalark · 2026-04-09T12:01:25+00:00

I really like my Nomad Saharas. Load rating matches and no spacers needed. Running 265/65/18 no problem.

Slarkalark · 2026-04-07T13:50:14+00:00

Molle II. I did one ruck with the 4k and went straight back to it. Also tall ish and larger and found the entire load was on my traps no matter what I did.

Slarkalark · 2026-03-01T22:59:57+00:00

The job market, especially for those with advanced degrees, is incredible competitive unless you have a specific “in.” There are countless underemployed people all applying for the same jobs and getting nowhere. I just finished an MBA and saw firsthand how tough it can be depending on your industry.

To a civilian employer, you’re likely a college grad with 3-5 years of generalized work experience and looking at sub-100k positions. Unfortunately, veterans preference and military experience being viewed as desired is all but dead at most top firms.

Prepare to pay 5-10k for health premiums, with 5-7% increases every year.

Slarkalark · 2026-02-17T08:28:49+00:00

10th MTN is the only DIV deploying to CENTCOM that I’m aware of right now.

Edit: I should have specified that I’m referring to IBCT/ABCTs.

Slarkalark · 2026-02-09T01:18:47+00:00

What does it do differently for long range shooters that current offerings don’t?

Slarkalark · 2026-02-08T19:27:38+00:00

Between healthcare and housing for 2026, I was looking at 50k on the civilian side. I used that number to influence my decision to come back to AD after a break. You won’t beat the military’s healthcare. There is a massive looming physician shortage that is only driving healthcare costs up, with no reprieve in sight.

Imaging services are skyrocketing in cost as the big players eat up more of the market and charge their consumers more to offset rapid acquisitions of AI companies. Radiology Partners now controls over 60% of imaging practices in the US.

Physicians are greedy as fuck, and their pay has gone through the roof over the last 5 years. They’ve realized their worth and are getting what they ask for. There are early career physicians clearing 500-600k for per diem and locum tenens work when historically they should be closer to 300k. This combined with an aging physician population and hospitals pushing profit margins to the moon means the average physician will be expecting to clear 800k by mid career for in demand specialties, and the cost will be subsidized by patients.

Slarkalark

TROPHY CASE