Comments on: I think my mother is setting me up for failure by telling me lies about the army?

By: Crystal

Crystal — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:26:59 +0000

As an SMP member myself, it sort of worries me that A) You don’t know the obvious answers to these questions yourself, B) Aren’t willing to go seek the answers from your chain of command (Come on… You’re training to be an officer for crying out loud!) and C) Are unaware that at some (probably more than one) point in your career as an officer, you will look stupid.

This is really disappointing to me. And if you’re that worried about BCT killing you, please get out of the Army. Or since you’re in ROTC, forgo BCT and go to LDAC and LTC. If you’re going to contract, you DON’T have to go to BCT. But as someone training to be an officer, you should get through BCT with flying colors and do very well on your APFTs as an example for your soldiers.
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By: Joe

Joe — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:39:59 +0000

I served in the Marine Corps but I also served with the Army in school and on certain temporary duty assignments.

Question 1: Some people will die because of personal illness or a lack of physical fitness. You will be pushed to your maximum capacity. In the Marine Corps they called this tearing you down and rebuilding you.

Question 2: In the Marine Corps and Army nobody is black, everybody is green. In the Marines we called this being a member of "The Green Machine." My experience was that high performing blacks were treated the same as high performing whites. Females served alongside males and the respect you got was the respect you personally earned or deserved. You have to realize that you may be on a base with 2,000 male soldiers for every 1 female soldier and how you act in certain social situations will be the biggest indicator of how the male soldiers perceive you and treat you. Most female Marines I knew pretty much got treated the way they wanted to be treated. However, their are nuts and perverts anywhere you go in life. Your chances of being raped in the military are probably about the same as any big social organization such as a college campus.

3. The military separates people into social classes: Officers live and associate with Officers; Staff NCO’s live and associate with Staff NCO’s; NCO’s live and associate with NCO’s; Non-rates (Pfc-Cpl) live and associate with non-rates. As a former enlisted person who becomes an officer you will probably be viewed more positively by the troops who serve under you but more negatively by the officers you serve with and under. Again, it is all up to you to project yourself as a leader and professional officer. If you respect and take care of your men they will respect and take care of you. If you are a professional officer your peers and superiors will respect you.

4. The military has a great deal of respect and compassion for people who get injured in combat. The answer to this will depend on several things: a. What type of military specialty are you assigned to? b. Can you still do your job based on the type of injury you sustained? c. Is there someone who can be assigned to your job while you recover. d. Are the injuries you sustained life threatening or permanently disabling. In your example: A strain or broken bone the chances are 99% you would simply be placed on limited (light) duty until you got better. However, if you lose a limb or have a brain injury you would probably be rehabilitated, discharged and given a veterans disability status.

I hope this is helpful.
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Twelve years of Marine Corps active duty as an enlisted infantryman and office administrator.

By: Wayne C

Wayne C — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:14:59 +0000

I did 3 active and 6 Reserves and NEVER even heard of a rape issue until long out and the Navy Tail hook case came to light.

1, Not no. NO is more appropriate
2. If you make race an issue the people around will as well. There are black racists too!
3. If they know you were once enlisted they may have more respect. Respect is earned not given like a salute. We salute because we have to. The idea it is out of respect gets lost in the regs and UCMJ.
4. If you are hurt and can heal they are going to keep you. If you are hurt and cannot heal to a point of being useful than away you will go. Med boards and the VA wil determine if you deserve pay for any disability.

SSG US Army 73-82
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By: Leviathon

Leviathon — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:28:59 +0000

I’ve been in the Marine Corps for twelve years now. I can get you pretty close on each question:

1- No. Recruits almost never die at basic training. In addition, most injuries are relatively minor. Basic training is an attempt to stress you psychologically more than anything else. The physical risks have been reduced quite a bit over the past several decades.

2- The US military is incredibly diverse. You really won’t be all that much of a minority. There are quite a good amount of black females. However, I would suggest that there is less racial tension in the Marine Corps as standards are higher and more strictly enforced.

3- The opposite is true. Prior enlisted officers (such as myself) get more respect for having experience prior to commissioning.

4- Injuries won’t get you discharged unless you are completely unable to do your job. I have a friend who lost his leg about six years ago, and he is still on active duty with the infantry. If you really want to stay, the military will do what they can to keep you. And the military will spend a considerable amount of time and effort on your recovery. You really don’t need to worry about injuries. The military isn’t going to kick you out in most cases if you want to stay. Don’t confuse military service with college athletics.

Good luck.
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By: LD

LD — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:02:59 +0000

1. No, if a lot of people were dying at BTC, they’d get rid of the cadre and start over.
2. For the most part, everyone is treated the same. You do have to be careful about sexual assaults, etc., especially when deployed. That’s why you get a "Battle Buddy" to always be around.
3. It is better for someone to have come into the military as enlisted and then later become an officer, if they so choose. In my opinion, it’s better because you will have a better understanding of what your enlisted subordinates deal with on a daily basis.
4. Hopefully you will not have to deal with this but if you get injured one of two things will happen. First, you may continue the job as long as it’s within your physical limitations, or move to another position. Second, you could be medically discharged. If you really want to stay in, there are ways to make it happen. I’ve had broken bones and a few surgeries since I’ve been in and the Army and am about to retire at my 20 year mark. Good luck.
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By: Curtis B

Curtis B — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:52:59 +0000

Do people die? Some have. It isn’t summer camp, it’s boot camp, and it generally is done in areas that are hot and humid, so if you aren’t in shape and you don’t drink enough water and eat enough to sustain yourself, you can suffer heatstroke and the like. But for the most part the events have been planned out for most safety issues.

2. I don’t know about females, but when I went through basic there wasn’t a lot of difference in how the cadre treated black and white soldiers. In fact, one of our drills was black. As for sex/rape, they watch the drills like a hawk for that kind of stuff now, since the sex scandals from the early 90s. Most rape cases don’t go to trial because the female doesn’t want the attention. Trust me, the military still takes care of it.

3. Most officers in the military are former enlisted soldiers. Don’t worry about the soldiers. Now, from what I’ve heard though, there is a ring-knocker clique. If you went to one of the academies, your career is a little more protected, you get the more prestigious assignments, things like that.

4. Injuries don’t automatically cause you to get kicked out. There is a man with a prostetic leg jumping for the Golden Knights in the army. I knew more than one SF soldier still serving with bullet wounds. It all depends on the injury. If the injury is bad enough, they will give you a choice to either change jobs to one less physical, longer rehab, or medical retirement. And even with medical retirement, if you can rehab better on the outside, you can come back and serve. I’ve seen a guy whose knee was shot out, spent seven years as a civilian, had knee replacement surgery and rehab through a civilian doctor, and eventually came back.
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By: J 1 B

J 1 B — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:08:59 +0000

I’ve been in the Army 10 years now and 7 of them I have been a NCO.

Question 1. Your assessment is correct. People do get injured basic training but rarely has someone been killed. The last one I recall was two years ago and it was a suicide by an individual with a mental illness.

Question 2. Any type of Sexual Assault is taken very seriously. As in any place in society this behavior is not acceptable. In the past several years the Army has gone to great lengths in preventing this by educating soldiers on what is considered sexual assault and rape. They have also two different reporting methods. One involves military police and your chain of command and the other involves only medical personnel and counselors and is very private in nature. I would say rape is not common in the military. Has it happened? Of Course and those individuals were punished.

Question 3. If your enlisted and then get commissioned you will get more respect from your soldiers then if you commissioned first. This is because in the eyes of a soldier you understand what it is like being in their position.

Question 4. Their are soldiers today who serve that are amputees. The Army will not kick you out just because of a mild injury. The Army will repair serious injuries as well and give you the physical therapy it takes to recover. They may want to do a medical review board once you recover to decided if you are medically qualified to perform your duties. You can always petition to stay in the Army and this is your right to petition them if you choose.

Good luck.
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By: RobbieJ

RobbieJ — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:03:59 +0000

1: No, virtually nobody dies at BCT. The only ones who do are the ones who have heart problems or something that isn’t caught before hand. Otherwise, it’s nearly 0%.
2: There is not alot of rape in the military, at all. The reason most cases don’t go to trial is because there just isn’t enough evidence that it actually happened. Not sure if that’s more to lack of evidence or false reports. However, it will not be an automatic discharged if raped.
3: Nobody cares if you enlist before becoming an officer. However, other enlisted may respect you a little more because you were in their shoes at one point.
4: Also, most injuries are not automatic discharges, either. If you are able to accomplish your mission, they will keep you around. If you’re seriously injured, like losing a leg or arm, they will probably discharge you and cover your medical expenses. Also, you’ll receive disability from the Military. Injuries like sprained ankles and whatnot are no different than if you get hurt any other time. Sprain an ankle, you go to doctor, get a splint and walk around with crutches for a few days. no biggie.
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By: Lowrider

Lowrider — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 01:58:59 +0000

1. No one got hurt in my basic training, in fact three soldiers went AWOL during Christmas exodus.
2. I can’t speak for african americans I am white. I heard a stoyr about a female who almost got raped, well alledgelly the DOD civilian had the keys to her room in Korea on a small base. It was her word against his basically. She continued to serve even though the rape reminded her of being sexually abused by her Dad, however. The DOD civilian was told he could never work in Korea again.
3. The only officer I ever shunned was a female officer who kept having babies as if to get out deployment.
4. I have no info on this one for ya sorry.
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By: theboognish

theboognish — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 01:09:59 +0000

Its better to ask the recruiter a stupid question, than ask for advice on the internet. They're job is to answer your questions before joining. To answer question 4, If your injury interferes with your job, you'll prob get a medical discharge. If recovery time is needed, you might just have to redo your BTC again with the next group of recruits.
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