Thread: Joining the military

Funnily enough, the thought at least passed through my head back in high school.

What are some of the reasons you want to join?

I want to carry a gun around and shoot bad guys I also want to be really good shape, and help defend my country.

Bud/s (basic underwater/SEAL) training is the hardest military training in the world.

Check out the videos on this guy's profile: http://youtube.com/user/madarchot

It's a documentary about the training they have to go through.

Oh yeah, and I'm a sophmore in highschool.

I was all set up to go to the Royal Military College this year, and from there to the air force. All went well until I needed to have some surgery done, and my dependable government "forgot" to inform me that I would need to get a shitload of paperwork filled out (and signed by doctors) before I could procede (this was after I was accepted). Anyways, I`ll be applying again after college, this time keeping in mind that I will be dealing with the government, so I`ll be a little less trustful...

That sucks. So you're joining the RAF then?

well im signed up for the marines and currently in the DEP. ive seen navy seal training and its interesting, i honestly considered signing up for the navy to be a SEAL but the odds of actualy becoming a SEAL are slim. in the marines im garunteed a fighting spot if i request it (which i have) im signed up for infantry and hope to go into recon. my secondary option is to be a tanker.

Originally Posted by Jdog

well im signed up for the marines and currently in the DEP. ive seen navy seal training and its interesting, i honestly considered signing up for the navy to be a SEAL but the odds of actualy becoming a SEAL are slim. in the marines im garunteed a fighting spot if i request it (which i have) im signed up for infantry and hope to go into recon. my secondary option is to be a tanker.

If you really want it, then you can become a SEAL. It's more mental than physical.

Originally Posted by Mink

That sucks. So you're joining the RAF then?

Nope, CAF *hoists canadian flag*.

I wish all of you luck and thank you ahead of time for your service.

I have but one comment for all of you.

Try your hardest to talk yourself out of this. The service, particularly the US military is a bad place for people who join for college money, to wear the uniform to impress girls and to get away from anything.

Now, this is not to say that I don't do all three, but they were not my reasons for joining.

When I joined the Marines lots of people tried to talk me out of it. A LOT. And I took their advice and weighed it, and being a young idiot I decided to ignore it. I am alternately glad and angry that I did so.

I will never know why I joined, I think. It was some metaphysical attraction to the state of "being" this thing called "Marine". It was the idea that I would be a better man and have done the right things and be a knight in shining armor and all that.

Becoming a Marine did not make me any of those things. Being a Marine has. The important qualities that make up a military man or woman are not tangible and not quantifiable nor able to be qualified. Many people have been spotted as sure shot great servicemembers and failed as have people like myself been singled out as inevitable failures and succeeded. Being able to put up with healthy amounts of bullshit is important, but moreso is the ability to ignore your own bullshit. The "I don't need to take my IFAK on this patrol" has lead to more than one death, as has the "I don't need to take my weapon to the toilet at night" attitude. "I don't want to run today" "I don't want to study today" "I don't want to stay up and organize my footlocker" are all things that can get you killed.

That being said if you made the decision and have not been talked out of it you are probably idiotic enough to be suited for the job. I will be happy to welcome you as fellow idiot and little brother if you earn the title.

And so here are my top tips for a prospective Marine recruit, or anyone for that matter.

1.Run. I do not care if you can bench press twice your body weight. When I am shot and bleeding out in the gutter you will not have to bench press anything to get to me and treat me, or much less lift me onto your shoulders and run. What matters is that you can wear 80 lbs. (that's my average combat load man) and run two miles to the door of a house and still have breath to kill bad guys.

2.Learn what leadership is and how to deal with people not like yourself. The essence of a unit's success is teamwork. Teamwork requires leadership, leadership requires the ability to relate to people from different backgrounds. Learn what it really means to be a leader and work with a team. IF you are a tanker this will be very important, moreso if you are a grunt like myself.

3.Study. Do not worry about advanced tactics or other cool stuff. They will teach you that and knowing it will only hinder you in the beginning. Know your general orders, characteristics of the M16A2, common knowledge such as ranks (the Navy too, Army and Air Force if you can manage) customs and courtesies, and basic Marine Corps history. In short, read your welcome aboard package your recruiter should have given you.

4.Practice. Practice moving fast. You will have less than 200 seconds to shower for most of boot camp. You will have less than a minute to shave. You will have less than 200 seconds to get dressed. Tie knots in the end of your bootlaces so that your laces dont come out. STRETCH at night. Especially your shins. This will help prevent stress fractures. If you have access to ice at night during recruit training ice your shins every night before sleep. Stress fractures are the number one dropout factor for Marine recruits. A Marine in my squad was in boot camp for seven months. You will not even want to be there for the necessary three months.

5.Pullups and crunches. If you fail the PFT you will also be in boot camp forever. You do not want to go to PCP because you will work out ALL, DAy.

6.Drink water. Warm. You will drink in excess of 10 canteens a day in some portions. You will drink water until you vomit. You will drink water before you go to bed. You will probably almost piss yourself repeatedly. Be ready.

7.Learn to deal with others. There is a reason I repeat this.

8.Don't be a kissass. Blend in, do what needs to be done, square yourself away, help those next to you, and you will succeed.

9.Run

10.Run.

Good luck all.

EDIT:As for becoming a SEAL. Do not listen to Recruiters when they guarantee you anyting. Unless you have, in your PERSONAL possession, a document, signed, that says you will get it, you probably won't. Recruiters are snakes, the lot of them.

The path is paved with bullshit, regulations, and other means to weed people out. After that you have to deal with out of this world physical demands, and conditions that place a strain on the best men the fabric of America has to offer. Do research on everything your recruiter tells you and triple check those resources. There are SEALS on the net, seek them out, be respectful, and ask intelligent questions that you have thought over repeatedly.

I was thinking about it...first the army, i wanted to be a grunt. Then i was playing hockey and torn my cartilige and had to have major knee surgery ending that. After i wanted to join the navy, so i can STILL server my country, and have a girl in every port. But it took forever to make up my mind now i'm not that intrested anymore, i knew some navy people and my dad worked for the military as a civilian bus driver for 20 years, and my grandpa built a military building once. Anyway one of the supervisors at my work (works 70-90 hours a week)
was 20 years in the army, was a hand to hand expert trainer, guns expert, etc said to be in the military you gotta know everything about it before hand so now i don't even think about it. i wanna get a government job now so i can retire at age 55 instead of the normal 65.

Originally Posted by Mink

I want to carry a gun around and shoot bad guys I also want to be really good shape, and help defend my country.

Bud/s (basic underwater/SEAL) training is the hardest military training in the world.

Check out the videos on this guy's profile: http://youtube.com/user/madarchot

It's a documentary about the training they have to go through.

Oh yeah, and I'm a sophmore in highschool.

I would NEVER last that, some days i have too hard of a time getting out of my bed, even if i have slept 10 hours. I normally sleep only 5 hours a night anyway.

Originally Posted by LucidFlanders

I would NEVER last that, some days i have too hard of a time getting out of my bed, even if i have slept 10 hours. I normally sleep only 5 hours a night anyway.

It's 10% physical, 90% mental.

Or as a bud/s instructor put it: "It's mind over matter. If you don't mind, it don't matter."

Spook has got some good points...I've thought of joining myself but never came to a conclusion...

Mink, are you a certified SCUBA diver? ...obviously that will be an important element..good to have some background if you want to be a navy SEAL and certainly..certainly to be in very good cardiac health..read up on their training and you'll see what's important...as Spook said, not weightlifting, but general good health and ability, even under incredibly demanding situations...

Originally Posted by bro

Spook has got some good points...I've thought of joining myself but never came to a conclusion...

Mink, are you a certified SCUBA diver? ...obviously that will be an important element..good to have some background if you want to be a navy SEAL and certainly..certainly to be in very good cardiac health..read up on their training and you'll see what's important...as Spook said, not weightlifting, but general good health and ability, even under incredibly demanding situations...

Yeah. I have researced a lot about it. I bought a DVD on the training they go through (click the link I posted earlier in this thread). I am also a part of the Navy SEALs forum and I ask questions to SEALs about training and stuff. I am in lacrosse which is a very physically demanding sport. I try to go to the gym everyday. I run almost every night too. I can run just under 2 miles in 14 minutes (needs some work to run 4 miles in 28 minutes )

And no I'm not a certified SCUBA diver, but I have been SCUBA diving. I am also a very strong swimmer and I'm very comfortable in the water. I looked up how to do the "combat stroke" on YouTube and practice it in the poll at my gym. I also swam about 3 miles in the ocean in 65 degree water (damn that was cold!)

So yeah, I'm trying to preapre as much as I possibly can. I have pretty much devoted my schedual to training for BUD/s. I better make it

Yeah...I watched those movies.. I wish you luck if this is what you want to do. I'm pretty sure no matter how much training you do it's a shock to... really..well BE the military's..(They pretty much own you once you enlist) and deal with the physical and mental demands ..but it certainly could be good in many ways.

Anyway, listen to those SEALs then of course...good initiative to try and train as best you can and learn as much as you possibly can... I hope it all works

I've been considering joining the service for psychological services as an officer. Surprisingly, the training for officers is still pretty intense. I have been doing my best to keep myself on a training schedule that officers (or army psychologists) should be on. I will post the work-out schedule I was given later on - when I find it online.

Edit; I love m16's and mp5's... lol..
~

As a seal cantidate myself, I have some advice as to working out:
If you really want to be ready for BUD/S, work out three hours a day six days a week, for at least six months prior to ENLISTING. Do a lot of ab excercises.... weight lifting is good, but always concentrate on reps more than quantity.

Push ups push ups push ups... Practice your form! Practicing excercises wrong will screw you when it comes to test time.

Run at least 4 miles at a time and time yourself. You should easily be able to do 4mi in 28 min.. the farther you run the better..

Look up the official pre-BUDS workout manual

Originally Posted by nayrki

As a seal cantidate myself

What class are you in?

Why would you wanna join the military

Originally Posted by Carôusoul

Why would you wanna join the military

why not?

. . .

Originally Posted by Amethyst Star

. . .

My thoughts exactly

Originally Posted by Jdog

well im signed up for the marines and currently in the DEP. ive seen navy seal training and its interesting, i honestly considered signing up for the navy to be a SEAL but the odds of actualy becoming a SEAL are slim. in the marines im garunteed a fighting spot if i request it (which i have) im signed up for infantry and hope to go into recon. my secondary option is to be a tanker.

LISTEN TO ME CLOSELY.

When your Drill Instructor takes you into a room and asks you to tell him the truth: did you lie when you were being recruited? Have you ever done drugs? Etc, etc...

DO NOT SAY YES. LIE OUT OF YOUR ASS.

Otherwise, you won't get any of the jobs you want/were hopeful for/were promised.

why would anyone wanna join the US military. aiding an illegal war is idiotic and pointless. not to mention the depleted uranium they put into the US army bullets. especially since they are going to use the US army to put everyone in work brigades in the coming decades.

if you do join remember: you swore an oath to defend the constitution, not take away peoples rights and police the world. I think every US army member shouldn't join without reading the constitution like a bible.