A post about going into the military

Archiving a personal post about the military, and how it affected his life. Written by MarriedtoMurder:

I enlisted in the Army at 19 to run away from life hoping I'd reinvent myself and become something BETTER. Well... depending on what Branch/MOS you enlist in will determine how you handle this choice - plus, if you are sensitive or if you have an issue with taking orders then the military might not be for you.

I became very good at TAKING orders, I just had a problem with agreeing with or seeing the logic behind them. The military is a very inclusive environment. Once you're in, you become a part of the military. This means that the outside world becomes the past, and everything about your life is military. The people, the ideas, the mindset, the goals - EVERY. THING.

If you do not adapt to this mindset then after a short while you may begin to resent the military. It depends though on the person. I was very home-sick, I didn't like my command, I was so shit tired of the training, the war, the shooting. I was infantry - so the stress was a lot higher than other jobs in the army. I just want to say that the Military will not SOLVE all of your problems.

Yes, it's a stable job and there are benefits, but there is a lot to lose. Yourself, your friends, your life. Many people will downvote me who either were in and enjoyed it, or who buy into the romanticized idea of the military. I lived in the shit for years - hell, my battle buddy hung himself in the middle of the night during basic training in his wall-locker. I woke up to a purple faced friend who left me a note saying, "Thanks for trying."

At 19 that was my entrance into the fast paced, high energy, balls to the wall life that the military is. Your opinion does not matter unless you are a high commander. Your life only matters as long as you are breathing and your family is living in a house. I did enjoy some good times, I met some fucking awesome people. I trained with Navy Seals and I went to many different places.

However, there is a lot that I lost. One of the biggest things is my perception of self. Once I got out I lost the Soldier side of me and nothing I seem to do in life will ever be as... BIG as that. I feel like a Star who is past their prime. I feel like I can never live up to who I used to be, even when I was unhappy - I set super high standards and the feeling of "doing something great for your country" no longer follows me. Once you're out, at least in my case, I have never seen the world through the same eyes. Hard to explain, but life seems... dull.

Its a mindfuck of a life my friend. Whatever you do I wish you the best, the best, the fucking BEST. If you need advice, please PM me. But do NOT fall for the recruiters easy going friendly attitude. You're a number. A car to sell. You mean nothing to them and they would try to sell you the moon if they thought you'd believe it.

Do you regret it?

 

Eh... I did what I did. If I could do it over I would. I mean... honestly - I learned a lot and now I could sleep in a park and not even suffer or bitch about it. It taught me a lot about how far I can push myself. It's just... there are a lot of long-lasting effects that haven't gone away for me. Not just from war, but from the life. It's hard, it really is. And it is not for everyone. There's a 50/50 gamble that you'll adapt.

Most of the people who loved it are those who either wanted to do it since forever - who knew how to play the rank game, not make waves, make friends with higher-ups and move through with ease. Other people who seemed to like it where those who hungered for power, those who LOVED ordering people around. I had some amazing SSGT's who loved to help us, train us young kids, show us about life and mentor us.

From a guy who had no dad, this really helped me. Just... don't make this choice without thinking it through - sitting on it. The military is also cutting (the army at least) 40,000 soldiers next year. They don't really need as many ranks, and it might be even HARDER for you. I know that when I enlisted it was at the height of 2 wars and their standards were much lower (academically, physically and so on). You have to WANT this life, you need to be the type of person who yearns for something more than just a fale-safe stable job.

Those who enlisted because it was a last resort usually were the ones who said, "What the fuck did I do?" Those who had a long family history of serving, those who grew up in the South - hated middle-eastern people or just wanted to go and blow shit up where the ones who seemed to adapt better. For me, just... not being able to hold down a stable relationship - seeing friends come and go (die) - missing out on my family and friends back home... it all just became too hard on me and it made me hate my day-to-day.

In retrospect, I appreciate some things that I went through, so yeah... I'd do it over again because I don't know what else I could have done at that time. If I could go back I'd say... go to school, get any job, try to build skills on your own - open a business, just be.... the military pay is meh - and most of the time you blow the money you save out of bordem, or just because it's the only happy thing you can do in that life. So... like out of a LOT of people I met, only one guy ever saved up money.

Most, out of loneliness married any barracks whore who gave them the time of day. It's a very lonely life unless you love drinking and partying. If you can make it off base then yeah... maybe you will have fun but most off post cities are shitty. So... I'm ranting now lol. All I'm saying is DO THIS IF YOU WANT IT. If you want to be a cop, just do it. Don't go the military route. You will probably be so burned out of bureaucratic bullshit once you leave that you won't even want to go into another profession taking orders. At least... I wouldn't.

Posted via email from bryanized

What we learned from Netflix

Under promise. Over deliver.

People became so enamored with Netflix for its wide variety of offerings at a more than reasonable price. Now that the offerings change and the prices adjust due to contracts, Comcasts, and a need for more cash, people scoff, argue, and cancel their accounts. For $16/month, do you think what Netflix has to offer is no longer a great deal?

Posted via email from bryanized