Recruiters earn their living by stressing the positive side of the military; the negatives - like dying or becoming disabled forever, and being thrown away like yesterday's newspaper when you get out - well, these are not highlighted so much.
Fortunately, a new breed of "recruiter" is stepping up to the plate, and bringing a little balance into the equation
The Marines didn't have to recruit Greg McCullough. He signed a promise to enlist last year, while he was still in high school. But now McCullough has had second thoughts, and he's talking to a different kind of recruiter.
Jim Murphy is a "counter-recruiter," one of a small but growing number of opponents of the Iraq war who say they want to compete with military recruiters for the hearts and minds of young people.
"I don't tell kids not to join the military," says Murphy, 59, a member of Veterans for Peace. "I tell them: "Have a plan for your future. Because if you don't, the military has a plan for you.' "
The whole story can be found at http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-07-counter-recruiters_x.htm
Giving them all the options
Anti-war activists such as Murphy charge that to fill their quotas, some military recruiters make promises they can't guarantee, such as money for college or training in a particular specialty, and give misleading descriptions of military life.
Murphy says high school graduates don't need to join the military to learn a skill, pay for college, see the world, or learn discipline.
It is not a level playing field
But in most places, the contest between military recruiters and counter-recruiters is a mismatch. The former are full-time, uniformed service members; the latter are volunteers working on a small budget, if any.
While military recruiters often enjoy free rein in high schools, anti-war activists say it's difficult just to get in the door.
Filling in the details
Murphy told him (McCullough) that even for Americans from the most violent neighborhoods, combat is a shock. "It's gonna change you forever, and not necessarily positively. Think of all the civilians killed in Fallujah. You're gonna see something like that for the rest of your life," he told him.
It ain't over til the fat barber shaves
But McCullough had signed up for the Delayed Entry Program, which the Marines told him was a binding commitment, and which Murphy told him was not.
Murphy gave him a form letter to send to the commander of the Marine recruiting station, saying he'd changed his mind and was going to college. Murphy told McCullough that the armed services don't consider recruits to have joined until they go to basic training - "until they shave your head," as he put it.
Some people won't like you
People like Murphy annoy Maj. J.J. Dill, commander of Marine recruiters in metro New York. "These counter-recruiters don't know what they're talking about," he says. "But saying that we're tricking and lying, that certainly has an impact on a young person. A lot of them are influenced by these counter-recruiters or by negative media coverage (of Iraq)."
When he gets a form letter like the one Murphy recommends, he says, "We call the recruit in and talk about it: "What's your concern? What's changed?' We generally have a good success rate at turning them around." But, he adds, "We're not going to force anybody to go to (basic) training. I will discharge them."
But the ones that count will
McCullough, 19, knows he'll get the call, but says it won't do any good. He's going to attend John Jay College and major in international criminal justice and Arabic.
He says he appreciates Murphy's assistance: "Jim showed me the options."
So you want to take a kid to lunch and possibly save his or her life?
Talk to the folks at Veterans for Peace.
A list of local contact points appears on their website: http://www.veteransforpeace.org