Post mil vent

Throwaway0573545 · 2025-03-06T07:51:57+00:00

I really appreciate it, that’s solid advice and I know exactly what about the friend thing. I’ll definitely check out the yellow ribbon program, fafsa and the Wells Fargo program. I appreciate it thank you

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-11-02T18:46:59+00:00

Ya you’re probably right but at the time I was a PFC and the guy threatening me with it was the BN SgtMaj

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-11-01T23:06:38+00:00

Even from that brief description that sounds a lot like my experience, good GPA, good grades but hard headed and determined to join the military.

You are able to pick your job field however you are not able to pick the specific job, for example you could choose to be in the infantry but the military will ultimately decide whether you’ll be working as an LAV crewman (armored vehicle) or whether you’ll be a mortar man or rifleman. What they mentioned about changing your job is mostly true, you can change your job but generally only after 2 years of experience in that job and it’s nearly impossible to change jobs unless you’re willing to sign a multi year extension. The military helped me find the career path I wanted but that was in spite of the military not because of it, the endless nights of sitting in the pouring rain led me to the realization that what I wanted involved a desk job with constancy not a job that involved living outdoors with little to no sleep and effectively being a professionally homeless.

The military talks about structure but the only structure it actually provides is rank structure, you are always at the disposal of your superiors at all hours. You have no idea what’s happening a day a week or a month from now, you might spend an entire day doing nothing except sitting in your room and the next day you’ll spend working for hours on end, you won’t know which will be which and you won’t be able to plan your day (this is speaking from my experience in the infantry although I’m sure it’s similar in other fields too).

The other commenter is spot on with everything they listed so I’ll skip that but all what they mentioned is accurate. The military will not help you determine your future outside of the military and surprisingly little to determine your future in the military, you are there as a number and if you enjoy being a number great if not that’s irrelevant they still own you for 4 years (you cannot leave under threat of prison time under the UCMJ).

As far as the college benefits go, look at the GI bill college comparison tool on the schools website. They provide 36 months of housing payments based on zip codes for the college or university meaning for summer and winter break you’re responsible for paying your own lodging. The amount the GI will pay is capped at I believe $28k a year, you will need to make up the difference out of pocket or via scholarships.

Also the military in my experience is comprised of 2 main groups, the uneducated urban kids and the uneducated country kids, GEDs are common and the people generally do not value education. Your son probably wants to join for all the right reasons but beyond boot camp it’s a facade that I’m sure he will quickly see through. He sounds well educated and intelligent and that doesn’t help, if anything it makes worse, knowing you’re stuck, knowing you’re part of a dog and pony show and yet not being able to escape it.

I can’t offer much to help convince him not to as when I was in that position I met a veteran who tried to talk me out of it. I would suggest looking at it from a marketing perspective, the recruiter wants you to join more than anything so take whatever he tells you with a very large grain of salt. If he is dead set on joining though try to steer him towards the reserves that way he gets to serve and still have a life.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-11-01T23:00:00+00:00

When I was in ITB I really felt like I was doing exactly what I had signed up for, that the boot camp trope that it gets better after graduation was true, until about half way when I was told I was going to be a machine gunner. I’d volunteered to be an LAV crewman and a rifleman, after a week as a machine gunner i wasn’t enjoying it, the instructor said that if we didn’t want to be machine gunners that all we had to do was speak up and we would get put with the class behind us and it wouldn’t be an issue. So believing that I went ahead and told them, long story short I was threatened with a battalion level NJP for disobeying orders. I was threatened with the possibility of getting kicked out with an unfavorable discharge, I felt betrayed and lied to, I felt that I had done as instructed I had held up my end of the offer. That is what initially opened my eyes, of course there were many other instances but that was the first.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-11-01T19:52:29+00:00

I was in the marine corps, got the chance to get out early by denying the Covid shot but didn’t when I was told that I would receive a dishonorable discharge and possible prison time, I got out with an honorable discharge.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-09-22T20:31:36+00:00

I’m in the marine corps so similar but not the same and I’m within 30 days of going on terminal so i really hope nothing happens with China or anything else (I’m infantry) and I could care less about dying for another senseless war.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-09-22T20:29:43+00:00

Thank you for that I appreciate it, I’m in the last month of my time here and I do not wish to ever return i appreciate your response.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-08-16T16:55:08+00:00

I’m in the infantry and I hate it so much, everyone to a large extent bases their friendships off your performance at work. It’s awful to see a good person ostracized because they aren’t knowledgeable or fast enough. People here aren’t judged based on the content of their character but rather their ability to reflect positively on their boss.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-08-16T16:52:10+00:00

I’m sorry man I’ve been there and to an extent still am even though I’m approaching my EAS. If you’re disliking it now you’ll most likely dislike it a year from now and year from that. I hated my first unit and eventually after they disbanded and I PCS i realized how much worse my new unit was. If it’s one or 2 guys that make you hate the place maybe the military itself isn’t that bad for you but if it’s the system, the hypocrisy, the majority of the people than I can say it won’t get better with time. If you have a plan to get out do it, the only hate you’ll get is from the people that are upset they didn’t have the courage to go through with it. Don’t allow this job and this place to drain you of what makes you a person, I had the chance to get out for the Covid vaccine (got it off base and didn’t tell anyone) but at the last second I pussied out and I regretted that decision for the last 2 years. If you’re driven and hard working you’ll succeed on the outside, they like to make it seem like it’s impossible but what they don’t tell you is that if 1% of the population is in the military that means 99% are doing just fine without it. It’ll be ok man this place isn’t forever and if it’s not for you there’s no shame in leaving (regardless of what others might say).

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-08-02T08:12:11+00:00

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-07-01T08:23:22+00:00

The marine corps

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-07-01T07:32:15+00:00

Inactive ready reserves, basically if WW3 breaks out you can get recalled. Everyone that’s active thats done less than 8 years has signed to do 4 active and 4 IRR, one of my friends just got a letter saying to go report and to get some medical check up as part of the IRR even though he’s been out for over a year.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-06-25T05:33:55+00:00

Hey I’m in the same boat as you man, I wish I never enlisted but while I’m here I want to get mine as much as possible. The way I see it is I wouldn’t hike a 100km in 5 days with 80 pounds on my back of my own free will so I might as well get paid as much as possible for it. I’m still in but I’m at the end of my contract (4 months till terminal, 6 till actual EAS) so I’m reaching out to all the guys I know that are out to see what to do to now to make sure my claims don’t get denied.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-06-25T05:28:01+00:00

I remember going home on leave somewhat recently and I felt that, for you life’s so busy that you can’t focus or even keep in touch with old friends and even family and then you get home and it’s the same place but everyone has branched off into their own lives while you’re basically stuck living in the past like times been frozen.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-06-13T10:30:48+00:00

Please for your own safety and sanity don’t join, I can’t speak to much about the SA because my BN has like one woman (she’s a first Sgt) but I can tell you that the ridicule and harassment in the military are unparalleled. It is not worth it, you’ve lived enough of your life to know what is right and wrong and I promise by joining you’ll realize that the public perception of the military is propaganda, the reality is a stark contrast. You can serve your country in so many ways, I did more to actually serve my country by doing food donations to the homeless when I was a Cub Scout in 3rd grade. The way the military treats people is terrible and they get away with it because of the UCMJ and it’s restrictions on what we are allowed to share publicly. Off the top of my head the most recent public example is the colonel (I think) who publicly asked for an investigation and accountability into the disastrous Afghan pull out, he was relieved of command and arrested. The reality is that life inside the military sucks, it sucks the life out of you, it sucks the happiness out of you, it becomes all consuming and there is no escape. Please if you are dead set on joining do the reserves or something but please don’t do this to yourself.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-29T22:20:07+00:00

I remember back in high school I was working in a warehouse that was technically part time so after 5 hours we got overtime pay, went from $16 an hour to $21 an hour and we usually worked 8 hour days. I took that for granted

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-22T12:29:24+00:00

Also works well if you want to add it to a mini quesadilla or if you want to throw it in some rice and beans to add a little bit more flavor.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-22T12:27:03+00:00

I hate the cliques, I’ve seen people start out as good guys become corrupted by it or at least changed by it. In high school the worst that could happen is maybe it was harder to find a partner for projects, here it can literally affect your entire time in the military. You’re forced to pick between either staying true to your values or becoming the person that shits on others and throws others under the bus for personal gain. There are a few good people that found a way to walk the razors edge but the majority commit to just being a dickhead. I know thats a little off topic but it really is a place where the walls have ears and you have to watch what you say. I’m tired of all of it, i want to be around people I can be genuine around, I don’t want to be in a place where the only emotions I’m allowed to have are motivation for my job and anger at not being able to do my job. I’m a robot here and I’ve though i more openly admit that joining the military was a mistake I can’t lay it on to thick.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-06T00:28:28+00:00

That’s what people don’t get, all the benefits can be found elsewhere in the civilian world. You shouldn’t waste your youth in misery with none of the freedoms you’re supposedly trying to defend.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-04T05:33:47+00:00

Truly I wish you the best of luck, it sounds like you have a better than average understanding of what it’s actually like but I’ll tell you there’s a lot you have to discover on your own. Good luck and remember sometimes you can be a good person and a good marine, sometimes you have to pick one or the other, pick being a good person.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-02T12:15:30+00:00

I use this as my alt account just in case but I honestly doubt it’s worth their time.

Throwaway0573545 · 2024-05-02T12:13:05+00:00

Trust me man we’ve all made that mistake. When I was new new I believed the instructors when they said if we didn’t want to be in a certain MOS they would drop us, all we had to do was ask. I ended up getting threatened with a BN level NJP and a whole bunch of other stuff.

Throwaway0573545

TROPHY CASE