When Marine Recruiters Go Way Beyond the Call

Military recruiters I have had the displeasure of meeting were all major A**holes!!

I was a military wife for 4 years and got enough of it for a lifetime.

I also dated one (I was divorced) years later and he was the biggest pervert I have EVER met!
Stood me up one night, 2 nights later moved a girl in he had just met and within 2 weeks they got married. Bet ya anything she is Extremely miserable, dead, or divorced if she's lucky.

It reminds me of the press gangs - in case you don't know about them, they were gangs of men who would persuade if they could, use force if they couldn't persuade, men to sign up for the navy. They used to knock people on the head, take them on board ship, by the time the unfortunate woke up he'd be out at sea and no escape for months!

I can't believe the Marines would sink to these levels - surely there are easier ways to recruit than by brainwashing and bullying!

Sue

How can they live with themselves? Those cowards!!

That poor boy lost his father at age of 4 what else do they want from him??

I'm a big fan of the Marines, but that goes WAY too far! As far as I know, the US military is still a volunteer force, as it should be. Although I'm sure these tactics are far from the normal protocol, at least I hope they are, I do also know that those recruiters will say *whatever it takes* to sign you up (not just USMC, any branch...). Promises of jobs that are impossible to get in to, guarantees of location assignments that they can't guarantee.

We had two boys on our rifle team that were recruited by the Army. They were told they would be guaranteed a spot on the Army Marksmanship Unit - dream "job" for a shooter, because shooting competitively IS your job. Many of us who were quite familiar with the AMU and recruiters tried to tell them that that guarantee was bunk, and while their skills were probably good enough to get in the AMU they would still have to qualify. And the C.O. of the AMU generally doesn't like to have young guys on his team, preferring instead the more stable and mature married men, over 25, who have had some life experience. Those men are less likely to be partiers, have more consistent scores across the board even if that means less "hot" days on the range. Of course, they didn't listen and signed right up. Lucky for them, they are good enough shooters that they did make the AMU team....this year. Which is great, I'm really happy for them and I hope they don't lose their spot on the AMU for the 4 years they signed up for, because if they don't I'm sure their choice of Army careers is pretty short...

I'm still getting calls from the army people. I never said I was interested in joining the army and they still call me. I tell them that I am not intersted and will never be interested, he had the nerve to metion a friend of mine who just finished is training for the reserves. He just got back on friday. I told the guy that alothough I love my friend very much I will never join the army for any reason. Not only do I hate running, push-ups, guns and being outside of things other then marching band and tanning. but you will never get me to to climb a 80 foot wall crawl in the mud and sleep with bugs. He just laughed and asked me what my degree was. When I told him that I have a deep interest in social history, he said "well the army has a long history, wouldn't you want to be apart of that" At that point I hung up the phone.

Yes these men and women are under extreme pressuse to meet thier goals, I understand and realize that. But there is difference between repersenting you're organization with respect and harrasment.

Telling boys that they have to "be a man" and the only way to "be a man" is to join the military is insaine. These kids, men and women, have to be told exactly what they are getting themselves into. They have to know exactly what is going to be asked of them and what they will be expected to learn and know. They must know exactly how to get out if they wish. Parents should request any and all information and review it with thier children. They should ensure that thier children know what they are signing.

The Pentagon is having a private company develop a student database. Personal information on 16 to 18-year-olds and college students will enable recruiters to better target "suitable" kids.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...062202305.html

I heard about that. It really bothers me that someone I don't know is looking at my acidemic record. It's bad enough that everyone has to take a test solely for the military's use. I remeber taking it and asking why, the answer I got was "because you have to". If kids want to join the military they will join. Leave the rest of us alone.

How about an Army recruiter called my cell phone yesterday!!!

This story (the original one posted) is so outrageous that I've begun to doubt its veracity. I asked my boyfriend about it, too--he's been a Marine for six years and has worked as a recruiter's assistant three or four times. He says that the consequences for this kind of behavior are so grave (much greater than the consequences for not meeting quotas) that it simply doesn't make sense for these recruiters to take such actions. Now, it's certainly possible that a couple of recruiters have gone off the deep end, but it would be an extremely isolated case. I don't doubt, though, that there are recruiters who are dishonest in their dealings.

Let me also say that recruiters tend to be among the most loyal Marines there are--that is why they are selected to do this job. They don't want kids who don't want to be Marines. Such malcontents are a blight on their Corps and a danger to their fellow Marines. I know that the other branches can't be as selective (the Marine Corps was the only branch that hadn't had trouble meeting quotas until this year). But, Marine Corps recruiters actually give their poolees (potential recruits) a hard time before they allow them to sign up--they only want the devoted to join their Corps (yes, they do call it "my Corps").

It's too bad that some of you have had trouble with recruiters. Last year when I was in my senior year of college, an Army recruiter called in response to a resume I had posted on Monster (or the like). I simply explained that I wasn't interested--my boyfriend was preparing to deploy, so I was contributing to the military by supporting him. She took that very well, wished me luck, and that was the last I heard from them.

What test is solely for the military's use? That's not something I've ever heard of.

Any student who has ever taken the SATs or the ACTs is part of a student database, too. When I took the SATs, I was flooded with materials from colleges across the country for the next two years. The government has access to so much information on all of us, anyway. Not that I like that! It just seems like a fact of life these days.

Oh, right, the ASVAB. That's a test that you have to take before entering the military, but I never had to take it. I see, though, that some high schools do. From About.com:
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High School Version. The "High School Version" is officially called "Form 18/19." It's a paper-based ASVAB commonly given to juniors and seniors in high school through a cooperative program between the Department of Defense and the Department of Education. The test is offered at more than 13,000 high schools and post secondary schools in the United States. The primary purpose of this test is not for enlistment in the military (although the test scores can be used for military enlistment). The primary purpose of this test is to help school counselors and students discover where a student's basic aptitude lies. Approximately 900,000 students take Form 18/19 ASVAB each year.
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eburgess, is that the test you were referring to? I never knew that the ASVAB was administered that way. I never had to take it at my public high school in New York, but that may have been a function of where I lived.

Wow..that is...very very sad. My daddy was a Marine..and he would be appauld to see that story. APPAULD...i can say I have never had any trouble with the local recruiters...of course I am not a boy. They all know me...because of my dad and call me M'am...but...man..this story makes me upset.

That's not recruiting that's stalking, and there are laws against that in most states.