We're talking about special treatment that is misaligned with your core mission and your core values. You simply don't do that. I don't care how small the sampling is.
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"Seismic policy shift frees Air Force Academy grads to pursue pro sports without 2-year commitment"
- Thread starter AztecBuff
- Start date
While there may only be 1-2 that turn out, that isn't what recruits are thinking when they are 17. They all think they may have a shot....
They all want to leave open the possibility that the NFL might be in the cards. I think it upgrades their talent noticeably. They are already a pain-in-the-arse to play with the triple-option, and disciplined players. Hike up their talent another 25% and they become a team worthy of P5 competitiveness (Navy and AFA anyhow).
The pitch now is "we can get you to the NFL and if that doesn't work out, you can fly F-16s as a fall-back!" Doesn't appeal to a lot of kids, but it will appeal to a great many more who already are attracted to the Military Academy route, but choose elsewhere to keep their NFL options open.
I guess we can agree to disagree. I don't think this moves the needle much in terms of talent for them, but I could be wrong.
If you grew up in the Springs - like I did - you were most likely warned to avoid AFA cadets if you saw them out at bars and such. The big activity when I was in high school was cruising up and down Nevada Avenue, and it was usually cadets who were involved when trouble broke out. I won't even mention all of the stories I heard about what high school aged girls encountered if they they ran into cadets in that setting.
The notion that our service academies are populated by a bunch of exemplary citizens is often not borne out in reality. More often than not, they are emboldened by a culture that tells them they are somehow superior to the residents of the towns where they reside.
Maybe not "more often than not" but there is a percentage to whom this applies.
Different dynamic, but the worst was living in San Diego's north county. The Camp Pendleton marines were not exactly respectful to guys who were out with a girl and ended up in the same bar as them.
You have to remember that this is a "policy" that is being done in the middle of a draw down of US forces - unlike previous times when they've done the same thing, they are being very explicit about it, and letting the recruiters actually tell recruits this on the road.
They did the same thing in the early/mid nineties - cadets and midshipmen, both academy and ROTC, were graduating after the taxpayer paid for 4 years of college and getting commissioned directly into the ready reserve without ever serving a day of active duty. The only difference between now and then is that they are letting recruiters explicitly tell them it's a possibility right up front.
It's hard to drastically pare down the number of cadets that you are accepting and running through any of the Academies for both structural reasons (it's pretty hard to offer a diverse set of university courses with fewer than about 4,000 students) and political reasons (remember, almost every cadet and/or midshipman is there because a US Congressman or Senator nominated them for that slot).
It's a little easier to pare down the number of ROTC cadets/midshipmen, but even for those, there is a bare minimum that you have to keep pushing through the system if you're going to keep the system viable. And unless you're 100% confident that the US will never again have to call up large numbers of troops, you have to keep the system viable.
Now, what happens when the total number of cadets/midshipmen graduating (remember, they all started 4 years ago), exceeds the number of 2nd Lieutenants/Ensigns the services actually need today?
What happens when the projections show more graduates than you need 4-6 years from now, and you're already running at a minimal viable level?
You tell potential recruits that in some defined circumstances, they will be commissioned into the ready reserve.
And if, in 2021, when they graduate, the military does actually need their service because Trump has got us into a hot war after a pissing match with Putin, guess what?
They'll be commissioned straight into the active office corps along with everyone else.
They did the same thing in the early/mid nineties - cadets and midshipmen, both academy and ROTC, were graduating after the taxpayer paid for 4 years of college and getting commissioned directly into the ready reserve without ever serving a day of active duty. The only difference between now and then is that they are letting recruiters explicitly tell them it's a possibility right up front.
It's hard to drastically pare down the number of cadets that you are accepting and running through any of the Academies for both structural reasons (it's pretty hard to offer a diverse set of university courses with fewer than about 4,000 students) and political reasons (remember, almost every cadet and/or midshipman is there because a US Congressman or Senator nominated them for that slot).
It's a little easier to pare down the number of ROTC cadets/midshipmen, but even for those, there is a bare minimum that you have to keep pushing through the system if you're going to keep the system viable. And unless you're 100% confident that the US will never again have to call up large numbers of troops, you have to keep the system viable.
Now, what happens when the total number of cadets/midshipmen graduating (remember, they all started 4 years ago), exceeds the number of 2nd Lieutenants/Ensigns the services actually need today?
What happens when the projections show more graduates than you need 4-6 years from now, and you're already running at a minimal viable level?
You tell potential recruits that in some defined circumstances, they will be commissioned into the ready reserve.
And if, in 2021, when they graduate, the military does actually need their service because Trump has got us into a hot war after a pissing match with Putin, guess what?
They'll be commissioned straight into the active office corps along with everyone else.
, but point taken.
This may be the exact reason to pair down our military forces.
The military does this all the time. They show favorites, have different rules for one group over another. They just don't admit it. I suppose admitting it could be seen as an abandonment of a core value. I'm a fan of transparency. If you're going to have two separate sets of rules, admit as much.
The Ogre
Well-Known Member
Yin and yang.
I live next to Annapolis and my wife and I are "sponsor parents" to five Midshipmen - three are women. We meet a wide variety through them, and run into plenty around town. There is a small, annoying, and very noticeable minority who think they are God's gift to the world. Those are the pricks who wear their rings and tell everyone they're academy grads, and they don't make very good officers. Most, in my experience, are not like that, but are motivated, hard working, and decent kids.
Orr's right, IMO, they need to find a way to fulfill their obligation. It's how the military is designed to work.
The Ogre
Well-Known Member
For instance?
Please provide specific examples.
Supply Officers get to hit their racks during GQ?
The only thing I can possibly think of would be SOF vs regular Army/Navy, but then again, those groups have earned some "special treatment". Maybe I'm off base and please correct me if I'm wrong.
Their special treatment is not the kind of special treatment that most people want.
What special treatment do they receive?
Repair Locker 4 FTMFW!
I guess it's not special treatment, but rather functions of their job the more I think about it. Never mind.
SuperiorBuff
Well-Known Member
Sheet metal detail, water buffalo duty, CQ, field KP...
Sykobuff
Well-Known Member
You forgot cigarette detail and latrine detail. What perks!
SuperiorBuff
Well-Known Member
Who can forget Police call? Latrine detail was nasty, but still preferable to laundry facility detail; much easier to clean.
Sykobuff
Well-Known Member
Quick story, ft.carson 88, guy loses M-16, they lock post down for 3 weeks. We are down range in a line looking for it. Ends up he left it in the hum v, someone stole it.
3 week police call and weapon was long gone. 2 days later leave for ft.irwin for month long op4 training. Good times.
SuperiorBuff
Well-Known Member
We had something similar happen with a bayonet, closed base for over a week.
Sykobuff
Well-Known Member
Over a bayonet, sounds about right.
Fair point.