Oh dear, I just read about this..

[Mrs Mungo]

http://tinyurl.com/3ulqze

 

At an event held at the Library of Congress, Stephen King said:

 

I don't want to sound like an ad, a public service ad on TV, but the fact is if you can read, you can walk into a job later on. If you don't, then you've got, the Army, Iraq, I don't know, something like that. It's, it's not as bright. So, that's my little commercial for that.

 

In responding to one blogger who wrote about it he went on to say:

 

A message from Stephen

That a right-wing-blog would impugn my patriotism because I said children should learn to read, and could get better jobs by doing so, is beneath contempt. Noel Sheppard says, “Nice sentiment when the nation is at war, Stephen.†I guess he feels ignorance and illiteracy are OK when the country needs cannon-fodder. I guess he also feels that the war in Iraq has nationwide approval. Well, it doesn’t have mine. It is a waste of national resources. . . and that includes the youth and blood of the 4,000 American troops who have lost their lives there and for the tens of thousands who have been wounded. I live in a national guard town, and I support our troops, but I don’t support either the war or educational policies that limit the options of young men and women to any one career—military or otherwise. If you agree, find Sheppard on the internet, and send him an email:

 

“Hi, Noel—Stephen King says to shut up and I agree.â€

 

Steve

 

Agree with the war or disagree as you will. Saying that soldiers are too stupid to do anything else is another matter entirely. I just cannot believe someone can be that willfully ignorant about the military, its culture and those who choose to serve.

[Mama Lynx]

Um ... wow. Golly. I guess I should go inform my went-in-as-enlisted, career military, master's-degree-holding father that he's an idiot.

 

I think maybe I'll email Stephen King, instead.

[nancypants]

Sorry... I just don't find it at all shocking that he'd say something that dumb.

 

(ducking)

[Colleen]

Saying that soldiers are too stupid to do anything else is another matter entirely.

 

Yabbut...he didn't say that. That's your interpretation. I can understand how is comments would cause offense, but I'm not reading into what you're hearing.

[Michelle My Bell]

1

[Mrs Mungo]

 

Yabbut...he didn't say that. That's your interpretation. I can understand how is comments would cause offense, but I'm not reading into what you're hearing.

 

He said "if you're not literate you'll have to join the Army." I assure you that the Army doesn't want or accept illiterates. He's implying that the only people who would join the Army are those with no choices in life. That simply isn't true. One of our friends? His dad is one of the founders of AOL. He recently left the military after the birth of his first baby and his new job is running his dad's multi-million dollar charitable organization. That's just one example.

[Fourmother]

My father never went beyond jr. high school and had very few options as a young man. He saw the military as a way out, the only way to gain skills and build a future for himself. So he volunteered at age 17 to fight in the Korean War. If he had been able to obtain a better education and other options for himself, he would have chosen differently. He felt that he had been "cannon fodder," but at the time it was better than living in poverty at home. My father wanted more for his own children. When reading Steven King's hyperbolic comments, I can't help but interpret them through my father's experience.

 

Military service is certainly meaningful work. I would never say the armed services are filled with uneducated, unintelligent people. That would be an insult to my own mother, father, FIL, grandfathers, uncles and cousins who have served. However, there are people, like my father, who choose the service for want of other choices. I'm not saying this as a judgment, merely a statement of fact. I would guess the military-as-career-of-last-resort phenomenon was probably more common when my father was a young man, but I don't believe it has been completely eliminated because many of the class/race factors that fed into it still exist. I have no idea how what percentage of today's soldiers joined for lack of other opportunites. I wonder if there are stats on this issue.

[Colleen]

I understand why his comments don't sit well with you ~ and you don't have to convince me of the educational level or intelligence of some members of the military. I believe my father and brother and nephew are capable learners and thinkers.:) But again, you're imbuing his comments with your own interpretation and the result is what I consider somewhat inaccurate. You initially quoted him as saying that soldiers are "too stupid to do anything else", but those weren't his words ~ and I didn't read him that way. Now you've told me that he's implying the only people who would join the Army are those with no choices in life. Again, I don't consider that an accurate representation of his comments.

 

For what it's worth, I believe he's saying that more education provides more opportunity. He's saying the choices for those with less education are fewer. Among those choices is the Army. That's reality. It's not to say those folks have zero other choices ~ but the choices are limited. Not is it saying people with more education may not choose a career in the Army.

[Colleen]

My father never went beyond jr. high school and had very few options as a young man. He saw the military as a way out, the only way to gain skills and build a future for himself. So he volunteered at age 17 to fight in the Korean War. If he had been able to obtain a better education and other options for himself, he would have chosen differently. He felt that he had been "cannon fodder," but at the time it was better than living in poverty at home. My father wanted more for his own children. When reading Steven King's hyperbolic comments, I can't help but interpret them through my father's experience.

 

And the same is true for me ~ right down to my father volunteering at 17 to fight in Korea. Later he did two tours in Vietnam, btw.

 

Military service is certainly meaningful work. I would never say the armed services are filled with uneducated, unintelligent people. That would be an insult to my own mother, father, FIL, grandfathers, uncles and cousins who have served. However, there are people, like my father, who choose the service for want of other choices. I'm not saying this as a judgment, merely a statement of fact. I would guess the military-as-career-of-last-resort phenomenon was probably more common when my father was a young man, but I don't believe it has been completely eliminated because many of the class/race factors that fed into it still exist. I have no idea how what percentage of today's soldiers joined for lack of other opportunites. I wonder if there are stats on this issue.

 

Yes, this is the lens through which I'm reading King's comments. And I typed a whole bunch more but erased it so I'll leave it that.

[Kanga]

I have never met anyone who is in the military because they felt they had no other options for their life. Most join because they feel in some way called to serve their country (even if they do not always agree with it's leaders). And even if it is a last choice for some individuals, they still have to be intellectually, physically, and mentally capable of performing the job. So they must at the very least be literate!

[Colleen]

I have never met anyone who is in the military because they felt they had no other options for their life.

 

Fair enough. As I said, I've known many, including my own father.

 

Most join because they feel in some way called to serve their country (even if they do not always agree with it's leaders).

 

That's not true of my nephews. One joined because he wasn't sure what else to do, thought it would be pretty cool (and he's enjoying it), and was attracted to the signing bonus. For the other, it was a means of paying for college and flying Blackhawks. They'll be the first to admit they weren't responding to a sense of duty or service. But ultimately, I don't think we can say why "most" people join.

[battlemaiden]

Okay, I'll throw this out.

 

I have the opportunity to watch what my un/poorly educated neighbors have chosen to do- they mow lawns, surf, put up some fences, surf some more, and generally scour the island and neighboring islands for hourly work. They may not be illiterate, I really don't know. They are nice, generally hard working people- but their options are limited.

 

At any given time they could walk down to a recruiters office, get steady work and benefits, but they don't. And they struggle in many ways.

 

My point is, I consider it a mark of intelligence and drive that those who have limited options because of their schooling choose to enter the military. They are ambitious enough to do something to better themselves.

 

My dh is adding that he works with many young men who did join the military to get on track, get an education, and better themselves.

 

Nothing stupid about that....

 

Jo

[Colleen]

I consider it a mark of intelligence and drive that those who have limited options because of their schooling choose to enter the military. They are ambitious enough to do something to better themselves.

 

My dh is adding that he works with many young men who did join the military to get on track, get an education, and better themselves.

 

Nothing stupid about that....

 

I agree, and I never said otherwise.

[battlemaiden]

One more thing....promise.;)

 

I won't say I entirely understand Mr. King's intentions during that speech. But what I do know is he's wrong.

 

The uneducated have plenty of options- gangs (dh has testimony that this has been an option for his sailors), drugs, dead end jobs of all sorts.

 

I'm surprised he couldn't think of any other options. :glare: He seems like a fairly creative fella.

[Kate in Arabia]

I won't say I entirely understand Mr. King's intentions during that speech.

 

He put a statement on his website, if that helps to clarify:

 

While serving as an ambassador for reading, I made a statement that was construed by certain right-wing bloggers and commentators as a knock on the US military. That wasn't my intention. I like the troops just fine, and respect the hell out of their brainpower. I know that most of them read, because I send them books when they ask, and a lot do. I will continue to provide this service. It's the war our politicians--many of whom have never heard a shot fired in anger--have sent them to fight that I have a problem with. But that is neither here nor there. What concerns me is how many high school students either read poorly or choose not to read at all, unless forced to do it. Part of the reason is cutbacks in educational money that the national government used to provide. Part of the reason has to do with mistaken initiatives like No Child Left Behind, which teaches kids to pass tests but not to think or to rejoice in the language arts. Most teachers loathe the No Child program, and I don't blame them. Kids who read poorly do poorly on their SATs and have bad or barely acceptable grade-point averages. Many will be faced with entry-level jobs like clerking and handing out burgers from the drive-thru window. The best option for many is the armed services, because they see a chance to continue their educations and/or learn a marketable skill. Many will wind up in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some will die, because this is an entry-level position where kids wind up getting shot at. I love their courage, I wish they were there for a better reason, and most of all I hope that my remarks won't detract from the real problem: too many kids in America read for pleasure on the text-screens of their phones and hardly anywhere else.

 

http://www.stephenking.com/news.php

[Night Elf]

I don't intend to insult anyone in the military. I know *I* could never do what they do and am thankful that others step up. But when I was in school, the military was presented as an alternative to college and the underlying message was that your grades determined whether you were steered toward college or the military. I don't remember anyone thinking dumb people go into the military but we did feel that only super smart people went to college. That was in the mid-80's.

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

I have not read all of the comments, but I wanted to add that there were two people that I graduated with that didn't want to go to college. So they enlisted instead. It seems like I remember they were sick of academics, so that's why they chose that path.

[Renee in NC]

I have never met anyone who is in the military because they felt they had no other options for their life. Most join because they feel in some way called to serve their country (even if they do not always agree with it's leaders). And even if it is a last choice for some individuals, they still have to be intellectually, physically, and mentally capable of performing the job. So they must at the very least be literate!

 

I know lots of people who have done this very thing. When my dh was in, one of his roommates had enlisted to avoid jail. My dh was field artillery, which is one of those jobs that "anyone can do." You didn't have to score high on the ASVAB to get in. Yes, you have to be literate, but I know a young man who left for boot camp last month because he sees it as his only way out of the poverty of his family. Whether that is accurate or not is another thread all together, but that is a common perception.

[Renee in NC]

One more thing....promise.;)

 

I won't say I entirely understand Mr. King's intentions during that speech. But what I do know is he's wrong.

 

The uneducated have plenty of options- gangs (dh has testimony that this has been an option for his sailors), drugs, dead end jobs of all sorts.

 

I'm surprised he couldn't think of any other options. :glare: He seems like a fairly creative fella.

 

 

Okay, I will clarify my first post and say "option that leads out of POVERTY" not the only option. (And I am not saying that most people in the military join because of this - studies have shown that soldiers from low-income families do not enlist at higher rates than others.)

[Tracey in TX]

Once upon a time there was a great, new country who encouraged its youth to do public service, be it the militia, serving church, or tending to family fields while elders fed these young men and women.

 

Now we demean the descendants of this great country if they forego a lucrative career in order to serve their countrymen. It's not like it takes you anywhere in life. After all, George Washington was practically a nobleman, so his service must'nt count. Or Teddy Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Kennedy, even football player-turned hero Pat Tillman. Yeah, they all must have been illiterate.

 

I desperately wish our country would begin a mandatory two year service commitment prior to college--anything from preschool teachers in low income areas, elder care, hospice,church, or military. ANYTHING to give the average kid the big picture: we're blessed to live in this crazy world and that-gasp!-the world does not revolve around them.

 

Was it Stephen King that wrote that? Let HIM teach literacy to the unfortunate. It's a lot harder than it looks (btdt), and rewarding! Oh, and it's service, didn't make millions tooting my bullhorn from the proverbial soapbox.

 

Not that I have strong opinions about this topic...;)

[abbeyej]

Well, I certainly know some who have joined the military in order to escape poverty -- to have options that weren't available to them in the real world. But I've also seen some of the smartest, most well-educated, dedicated young men I've known choose to pursue military careers because of idealism. And by "idealism", I don't necessarily mean an agreement with current political leaders or current conflicts -- but the idealism of serving their country, protecting the weak, that their own intelligence and strength of character could be used in an important way within the context of the military...

 

And whether it was his intention (I think it was, despite some minor backtracking), King's implication was certainly that one only goes into the military because of ignorance. That if one weren't ignorant and illiterate, one would have other options and any intelligent person would choose *anything* other than being part of the military. I find that deeply offensive.

[TXMomof4]

I'm sure you know lots of troops come through Bangor, Maine when they are returning home. There's a big group of "greeters" who welcome home our soldiers. DH came through there a few years ago and at 2:00am, he said they had a huge crowd welcoming them home. Apparently Bangor is Stephen King's hometown? Anyway, there was an area with photos of King at the airport. The greeters removed all of the photos honoring King so the troops wouldn't have to be greeted by someone who thinks they're too ignorant to do anything else. Good for them!

 

http://www.military.com/news/article/stephen-kings-army-comments-draw-fire.html

 

I wonder why he donated books if soldiers are to ignorant to read?

 

We greet troops here in Dallas and we hear every time how suprised they are to see so many people supporting them. The news they hear makes it sound like people back home are marching in the streets in protest of everything they are doing. Makes me sad for them.

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

Maybe I'll be blasted for this, but I come from a family with a long military background and I've seen both sides of this statement. Yes, the military is full of intelligent people who could have very well chosen to do far more lucrative things, but it is also full of people who had no idea what else to do with their lives.

 

Many see the military as a way out of the poverty trap. Many parents encourage their children to join the military rather than hang around their necks like a millstone. The sad truth is these are the people who will most likely end up doing menial jobs or as "cannon fodder," unless they have ambition and resourcefulness on their side. Often recruiters are looking to fill those jobs that nobody wants, and they are quick to take advantage of a new recruit's ignorance.

 

However, I think Stephen Kings choice of phraseology is unfortunate, and as a general statement falls short of the whole truth.

[TXMomof4]

My father never went beyond jr. high school and had very few options as a young man. He saw the military as a way out, the only way to gain skills and build a future for himself. So he volunteered at age 17 to fight in the Korean War. If he had been able to obtain a better education and other options for himself, he would have chosen differently. He felt that he had been "cannon fodder," but at the time it was better than living in poverty at home. My father wanted more for his own children. When reading Steven King's hyperbolic comments, I can't help but interpret them through my father's experience.

 

Military service is certainly meaningful work. I would never say the armed services are filled with uneducated, unintelligent people. That would be an insult to my own mother, father, FIL, grandfathers, uncles and cousins who have served. However, there are people, like my father, who choose the service for want of other choices. I'm not saying this as a judgment, merely a statement of fact. I would guess the military-as-career-of-last-resort phenomenon was probably more common when my father was a young man, but I don't believe it has been completely eliminated because many of the class/race factors that fed into it still exist. I have no idea how what percentage of today's soldiers joined for lack of other opportunites. I wonder if there are stats on this issue.

 

I haven't read all of the replies, but lack of opportunities does not equal ignorance. My little brother joined for several reasons. He is a very proud American who is honored to be of service to his country, but he also couldn't find his niche in civilian life. He is very smart, he is very motivated, but he didn't want to go into debt for college while he wasn't sure of what he wanted to do longterm. Now, his college will be paid for, he has discovered that he is a very strong leader, very well organized, and has decided for now that his skills are best put to use where he's at. But, he has choices now he would not have had with military service. I don't think it's a bad thing to go in because of a lack of opportunity or lack of direction. My brother has certainly received both opportunity and direction through his service.

[TXMomof4]

Alright, I should have read all of the responses before I started responding. One more little thing, then I'll let it go. As Jo said ( I think ) I believe it shows a willingness to improve oneself and your situation to go into a job that you know has the potential to be dangerous, even if you are poor and believe you have no other options. Someone said they are enticed by the bonuses.....hello?!? How many people do I know that chose nursing as their career because there are HUGE bonuses available because of the shortage of nurses. Is their decision less valid because it was based on monetary considerations?

 

Military service has been an honorable option for ages. I think it's sad that now society rates it below working at McDonalds.

[Doran]

Saying that soldiers are too stupid to do anything else is another matter entirely. I just cannot believe someone can be that willfully ignorant about the military, its culture and those who choose to serve.

 

 

Like Colleen and others, I think King's point might have been a good one, until he fell over his open jaw by saying "It's not as bright." That's when the whole thing went south. Negative interpretations of the rest of his comments are more understandable given the goof above, but at the heart of things, I believe he meant to say that the more literate you are, the more options you have before you. He just did a lousy job of saying what he meant. I don't feel sorry for him, though. Someone as 'literate' has he should be able to campaign for literacy without making any group feel alienated and angry.

 

For the record, I've known MANY people who enlisted because they saw no other viable choice. They weren't illiterate, but they lacked direction in some cases and finances in others. Or both. I agree that these folks made a wiser choice than those who can't get out from in front of their screens long enough to look for work. These are obviously intelligent people. But, clearly, there are plenty of enlisted men and women who are there for lack of other reasonable options.

[OnTheBrink]

I know people who've joined the military because they had no other choices. It really had nothing to do with literacy; it had more to do with their own bad decisions that lead them to the place where they had no other choice. The military seemed to be a good thing for them; gave them direction, options, skills, something to believe in and be proud of. Certainly beats stealing hubcaps for a living or gang-banging.

 

I agree that literacy does bring more options, but I think King's analogy that being in the military = illiteracy or not being bright is incorrect.

 

And, he's just one person with an opinion. Everyone has one! LOL

[Danestress]

I don't think he said anything remotely like "everyone in the military is uneducated" or "only illiterates join the military." I'm sure he's aware of some of the highly intelligent people serving their country in the armed services.

 

The thing that sort of annoys me is that he seems to be saying that if you can't read, the military is an option for you. It's really not. You need to learn to read. Even if you want to be in the military. Heck, it's hard to wait tables or work as a cashier at Wal-Mart if you can't read. Learn to read.

 

I think it's great that King is a proponent of literacy. I also have always read that he's truly a civic oriented, public spirited person who is well loved in his community. I was surprised he made these statements, but I think they are being misinterpreted. And frankly, I think it's partly generational. My FIL was a decorated war veteran and he said things like this all the time. Even when my husband was a kid, judges were telling young men before them that they could choose jail or the Marine Corp. I think he's expressing an outdated view. It smacks of elitism, but given what I know about him, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

[Fourmother]

I haven't read all of the replies, but lack of opportunities does not equal ignorance. My little brother joined for several reasons. He is a very proud American who is honored to be of service to his country, but he also couldn't find his niche in civilian life. He is very smart, he is very motivated, but he didn't want to go into debt for college while he wasn't sure of what he wanted to do longterm. Now, his college will be paid for, he has discovered that he is a very strong leader, very well organized, and has decided for now that his skills are best put to use where he's at. But, he has choices now he would not have had with military service. I don't think it's a bad thing to go in because of a lack of opportunity or lack of direction. My brother has certainly received both opportunity and direction through his service.

 

I never said that lack of opportunities implied ignorance. That would mean I would be calling my own father ignorant, and he was one of the smartest people I've ever known. After all there's a difference between lack of formal education and ignorance. I also didn't say it was a bad thing to go into the service for want of other opportunities. What I said was that it does happen. I'm glad that your brother had a positive experience in the military. Many, many people do. My father didn't, so he wanted his own children to have more choices. I don't think that's a bad thing, either.

[Tammyla]

:001_huh: That was unsettling to say the least.

 

 

http://tinyurl.com/3ulqze

 

At an event held at the Library of Congress, Stephen King said:

 

 

 

In responding to one blogger who wrote about it he went on to say:

 

 

 

Agree with the war or disagree as you will. Saying that soldiers are too stupid to do anything else is another matter entirely. I just cannot believe someone can be that willfully ignorant about the military, its culture and those who choose to serve.

[Crissy]

I have never met anyone who is in the military because they felt they had no other options for their life.

 

I have. That is not to say that I believe the majority of men and women in the military are there because of limited choices, but I do know that it happens.

[j.griff]

I don't think he's saying if you CAN'T read, you can join the military. I think he's saying if you DON'T read, then joining the military is one of a few options you have, as far as having a career. There's a big difference.

[Kathy in MD]

My father never went beyond jr. high school and had very few options as a young man. He saw the military as a way out, the only way to gain skills and build a future for himself. So he volunteered at age 17 to fight in the Korean War. If he had been able to obtain a better education and other options for himself, he would have chosen differently. He felt that he had been "cannon fodder," but at the time it was better than living in poverty at home. My father wanted more for his own children. When reading Steven King's hyperbolic comments, I can't help but interpret them through my father's experience..

 

My dh says that it is still true that many in the military are there because of educational and training possibilities. A large proportion of the military comes from poorer backgrounds, or poor rural areas. The recent PBS program Carrier interviewed several sailors and at least one said she joined to escape the bad environment she grew up in. (I'm assuming that it was a bad urban environment.) Others joined at least partially for educational possibilities or because it would give them a career better than flipping burgers.

 

OTOH, within the past year or so, our paper had a feature article about how difficult is was for the local army recruters to meet their quotas. It was bad throughout the country at the time, but it was particularly bad in the richer communities.

 

....... I would never say the armed services are filled with uneducated, unintelligent people. .....

 

My dh has worked with army officers with PhD's, that they earned on a tight time frame. They weren't dummies. But the gov't paid for that PhD, the preceeding masters and sometimes even the BS/BA.

 

Stephen King definitely worded it badly, but there were grounds for what he said.

[Philothea]

Mrs. Mungo,

Did you hear the sound bite or read it?

 

I thought it was even more irritating and degrading when I heard the sound bite on the the radio!

[Mrs Mungo]

The thing that sort of annoys me is that he seems to be saying that if you can't read, the military is an option for you. It's really not. You need to learn to read. Even if you want to be in the military. Heck, it's hard to wait tables or work as a cashier at Wal-Mart if you can't read. Learn to read.

 

I agree with this.

 

My dh says that it is still true that many in the military are there because of educational and training possibilities. A large proportion of the military comes from poorer backgrounds, or poor rural areas. The recent PBS program Carrier interviewed several sailors and at least one said she joined to escape the bad environment she grew up in. (I'm assuming that it was a bad urban environment.) Others joined at least partially for educational possibilities or because it would give them a career better than flipping burgers.

 

I'm not denying some people join the military due to a lack of opportunity. However, implying that because people come from poor and/or rual areas that they didn't have another choice is something else I find maybe a little insulting.

 

My husband didn't come from a poor or rual area. He grew up in Dallas, his step-dad was a wealthy business man. He attended a private school and then an exclusive boarding school for high school. He graduated second in his class. He chose college *and* a military career and not because he lacked opportunity.

 

[quotte]My dh has worked with army officers with PhD's, that they earned on a tight time frame. They weren't dummies. But the gov't paid for that PhD, the preceeding masters and sometimes even the BS/BA.

 

Sure, sometimes the military pays for degrees and sometimes it doesn't.

 

Mrs. Mungo,

Did you hear the sound bite or read it?

 

I thought it was even more irritating and degrading when I heard the sound bite on the the radio!

 

I watched the video and I agree.

 

Sorry, I'm just getting back to this. I went to bed after I posted last night, my time zone is so different :tongue_smilie:

 

There are three things that bother me about what he implied (and I think it was implied in what he said but understand why others feel differently):

 

1. That the military is only for those with no options. Many people with options join the military.

 

2. That you can be lazy in school or life or learning and have opportunities in the military. You can't.

 

3. That choosing to join the military is a choice that is "not as bright" as other choices. Just because you potentially risk your life it doesn't mean you're not bright for doing so. We're lucky that many people choose dangerous professions that are to the benefit of society and that they are willing to lay their lives on the line for the rest of us. My husband absolutely has been on the front lines and been shot at despite his college education and not being in an "entry level" position as King put it in his statement.

 

eta: I really think the statement King made on his website just underscores his ignorance of the issue. I'm NO right-winger, I just understand the military culture. He is ignorant of the military and its culture and doesn't seem interested in learning about it.

[Pam "SFSOM" in TN]

 

For what it's worth, I believe he's saying that more education provides more opportunity. He's saying the choices for those with less education are fewer. Among those choices is the Army. That's reality. It's not to say those folks have zero other choices ~ but the choices are limited. Not is it saying people with more education may not choose a career in the Army.[/color][/font]

 

Several high school grads that my dh tried to help enlist in the Army couldn't pass the entrance exam. If you don't have enough education, you don't have the Army as an option either. (I guess the moral of my story is, Too bad that not all our high school grads have an actual education.)

[Stacy in NJ]

"Halp us Jon Karry. We our traped hear in Eyerq!"

 

I'm glad I'm not a big Stephen King fan. He's on my list (the bad one).

[teamturner]

Once upon a time there was a great, new country who encouraged its youth to do public service, be it the militia, serving church, or tending to family fields while elders fed these young men and women.

 

I desperately wish our country would begin a mandatory two year service commitment prior to college--anything from preschool teachers in low income areas, elder care, hospice,church, or military. ANYTHING to give the average kid the big picture: we're blessed to live in this crazy world and that-gasp!-the world does not revolve around them.

 

 

 

Amen to that! Great idea!

[elizabeth]

http://www.booktv.org/program.aspx?ProgramId=9307&SectionName=&PlayMedia=No

[Audrey]

It's hard to see when you are in the military sphere (I was a Navy brat, myself), but when you aren't in that sphere anymore you start to realise that many people hold the misconception that the military is where you go when you can't get a job doing anything else.

 

So, in that context... his remarks don't surprise me.

[Peek a Boo]

"Halp us Jon Karry. We our traped hear in Eyerq!"

 

 

that's kinda what i was remembering too.....