Thinking of Joining the Military - Earth Empires Forum

archaic

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7011

Jun 22nd 2011, 18:38:25

Did you know the French Foreign Legion actually exists? I mean besides the obvious reason to join - after 8 years of being a disposable French shock trooper, you get citizenship regardless of you past.

Its been almost 70 years since France has had its ass kicked by Germany, they are way past due. You could be a brief bloody speedbump during the next (near certain) pending german occupation.

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Dibs Ludicrous

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Jun 22nd 2011, 18:41:33

why you mention Germany and French Foreign Legion in the same post? they ain't serving their time on French soil.

suppose it something to do with the run-away option.

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paulie

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460

Jun 22nd 2011, 18:59:59

21+ in USMC, but for education, and overall facilities, id say the AirForce also

FOG!!

archaic

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7011

Jun 22nd 2011, 19:23:42

Yeah, the AF was a pretty good time - honestly though, if I knew then what I know now - I'd have done my 3 and out in the Marines. I made fun of jarheads mercilessly then, but 20 years later, it means something to somebody if you are an ex-marine. Ex-airman is kinda meh.

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mrford

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Jun 22nd 2011, 19:24:51

I have a few friends thet entered the Chair Force. It's not as easy to get onto as it once was. Even a 4 year degree doesn't gurantee you a officers comission anymore.

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

Dibs Ludicrous

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Jun 22nd 2011, 19:33:36

meh, most ex-vets nowadays are homeless or have a handicapped sticker. i should probably go check to see if the facts agree with my conclusions. well, they might still be collecting social security.

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mrford

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Jun 22nd 2011, 19:46:15

My uncle was in the Chair Force. He had a pretty cool carear everywhere from japan to the drug war in panama to the phillipeans to being on guan when my pinitubo blew ( he has some really cool pics of that) Howeer his downfall was his poor choice in women. First wife was a jap, left him. 2md was pinoy, left him. Third was the best. She was pinoy as well and convinced him to leave the airforce 1 year before he was elegiable for retirement/pension. So he took hit 20k seerance and a year later what happened? She left him once she was a citizen. Lol. So he's broke as fluff now instead of getting a solid pension.

My OTHER uncle is the exact opposite. He went to UNC under a full ride through the Air Force ROTC, and then went to UNCs law school onthe same dime. He then joined the Air Force as a JAG officer, retires as a full Colonel, and now owns his own massive law firm in San Antonio and is worth a stupid ammount of money.

Strange how the smallest decisions can change your life so much huh?

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

DonKarnage

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Jun 22nd 2011, 20:03:25

Wow... "Chair Force". Because that joke hasn't been around for 60 years or anything...

mrford

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21,358

Jun 22nd 2011, 20:07:28

Well considering the Airforce has only existed for 65 years, it probably hasn't been around for 60 years, however it doesn't make the "joke" and less of one because of it's age. Just because you don't find it entertaining.

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

Dibs Ludicrous

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Jun 22nd 2011, 20:09:49

I don't know, but i've been told.
Air Force Wings are made of Gold.
I don't know, but it's been said,
Navy Wings are Made of Lead.

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DonKarnage

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Jun 22nd 2011, 20:16:50

I respect all branches of the U.S. military equally. By demeaning an entire branch the way you are, makes you small. By using a recycled joke like "Chair Force" the way you are, makes you unimaginatively petty. I spent enough time deployed overseas with all branches of the military to know that every branch has their fair share of "chair sitters" and throwing all the lazy preconceptions onto the Air Force simply because it rhymes is sad.

mrford

Member
21,358

Jun 22nd 2011, 20:21:00

Half my family is/was in the airforce including 3 pilots. I greatly respect their service. It still doesn't change the fact of the lower physical entry requirments and the high volume of non combat related jobs. Just because I crack a joke does not mean I have no respect for the branch. Stop being so assuming lol. It's a "joke" and by making as large of a deal about it as you are, you are empowering the joke muh more than I am by simply stating it.

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

archaic

Member
7011

Jun 22nd 2011, 20:42:31

DK, lighten up - I'm proud of my stint in the chair force, take that patronizing faux-patriotism elsewhere. We were rather proud of the fact that we could turn an entire nation into a parking lot while sitting in an air conditioned office - while the jarheads and other lead chuckers had to slog through the mud for weeks just on the hope that they could shoot something wit der widdle guns.

(not that a lowly three-echo like me ever got to blow anything up)

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paladin

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554

Jun 22nd 2011, 20:46:38

Originally posted by archaic:

I'd shoot myself before joining the legion. Their basic course is supposed to be a real motherfluffer.

-Paladin
Why the hell am I here?

DonKarnage

Member
77

Jun 22nd 2011, 21:02:54

I understand that archaic. And if Mr Ford were a jarhead talking trash about the Air Force, I wouldn't have had a problem with it. But he's some guy with a couple of Uncles that served who has no clue what he's talking about. Those people irk me, as you can clearly see.

mrford

Member
21,358

Jun 22nd 2011, 21:18:08

And what makes you so sure I have no clue what I'm talking about? Your assumptions about me are almost as absurd as your odd aversion to a simple and extremely common joke.

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

archaic

Member
7011

Jun 22nd 2011, 21:21:12

why?

Dude, the Air Force operates cyber-command and killer robot planes - its not like they are hiding their nerdiness. I wish MORE civs knew it as the 'chair force', I suspect that the AF is not getting first pick of the top nerd minds because they don't realize just how sweet a gig it could be.

Don't get me wrong, fighter pilots and PJ's are fukin awesome dudes - but they are yesterday. The AF has always been about tomorrow. What is more tomorrow than a war being fought by a bunch of Pangs and QZs from an office in Nevada.

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Dibs Ludicrous

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Jun 22nd 2011, 21:25:32

geez, a civilian can't make a joke about the Chair Force even though a bunch of his relatives served in it. i know exactly what i'm talking about. a bunch of people stating that i have to wear a seatbelt while in a car. that's what the heck i'm talking about. oh, don't forget the motorcycle helmets also.

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Yamaha

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Jun 23rd 2011, 1:23:58

Join the reserves whatever branch you choose. People will bash you, but fact is you get payed way more when you're deployed and you'll still be capable of independent thought when you get out.

Paradigm - The Nuthouse
IMP - Haters Gonna Hate

Garry Owen

Member
849

Jun 23rd 2011, 1:41:07

Well, this is surely the place to get good advice!!

I would be glad to answer any questions you have about the Army. and I know a fair bit about the other services too.

I have almost 3 decades experience in uniform so you can expect something a bit more than "duh! navy is teh suk!!"

See your private message. :)

mrford

Member
21,358

Jun 23rd 2011, 1:51:15

you just criticized the quality of advice that can be given through this medium and belittled most of the comments in this thread, then proceed to pull your 30 years of service fluff out, and offered advice through the same medium.

i love this board. Thanks for your service Garry, but lets think before you attempt yo belittle others opinions and advice.

Swagger of a Chupacabra

[21:37:01] <&KILLERfluffY> when I was doing FA stuff for sof the person who gave me the longest angry rant was Mr Ford

braden

Member
11,480

Jun 23rd 2011, 7:05:20

just in time to have your (who i assume to be) president pull you out because he no longer cares about protecting people who need it.

i have an idea, let the terrorists back in, mr president.

(GOOD for you legion, mad respect, i have a drug test i can't pass before i join my countries armed forces)

braden

Member
11,480

Jun 23rd 2011, 7:06:43

and the united states navy is the fluff.. name a square foot on the surface of the planet they can not bomb you, and i will apologize.

trumper

Member
1557

Jun 23rd 2011, 14:04:03

I think Detmer had you on the right path. Why do you want to join? Where do you want to be in 5, 10 and 20 years? And what do you want to get out of it? There are a lot of different reasons to make various decisions with the different branches. Locally most the folks I know did it simply to get their clearances (specifically the civilian equivalent of lifestyle poly) or education or both.

FutureGhost

Member
49

Jun 23rd 2011, 16:29:22

E3 Marines...

legion

Member
398

Jun 23rd 2011, 17:12:53

I have been trying to decide between the Army or Navy. I am open to the Air Force if I saw a good career path. I would like to do something in either Intel or Networking. I am looking at signing for 10 years and then possibly tacking on another after that.

My fiance's father was a Navy Supply Officer for 20 years so I'm getting a lot of pressure to go Navy. Ultimately it comes down to which branch is going to provide the best career path for me.

I have 5 semesters left of college but am leaning towards immediately enlisting. I have not taken any core classes-just the general studies.

I am currently enrolled in a Pre-Trial Intervention program because of an incident this past Spring involving myself and some friends. I was underage at the time and in possession of alcohol. One our party had marijuana and we were all charged with simple collective possesion aswell. This program is supposed to remove the incident from my record.

(So I'm taking drug tests, doing community service, general BS atm)

Edited By: legion on Jun 23rd 2011, 20:08:58
See Original Post

Nobody puts baby in a corner

trumper

Member
1557

Jun 23rd 2011, 18:51:57

Enlisting benefit is you should be able to get them to let you pick your specialization, aka intel/signals/whatnot. Don't lock yourself into too long of a committment. My one friend who planned the in and out is still in the military and the other who swore he would be career intel is a private contractor now.

As for the incident--everyone has screwed up at some point and in some way, just for clearance purposes don't lie (at all) about it. They're concerned if it's a pattern, could be used against you (because you hide it or want to hide it), or shows that you fit into one of their behavioral models that supposedly predict liabilities to them.

Marshal

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Jun 23rd 2011, 21:13:23

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InBXu-iY7cw

Patience: Yep, I'm with ELK and Marshal.

ELKronos: Patty is more hairy.

Gallery: K at least I am to my expectations now.

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kemo

Member
2596

Jun 23rd 2011, 22:32:59

i was dead set on navy seals or marine recon after high school. thhheeeennnn i met this woman i thought was the one and she hated military and wars. WORST DECISION EVER. last decade of fast food killed the body i had and its a fluff to get it back man

all praised to ra

archaic

Member
7011

Jun 24th 2011, 2:33:22

Originally posted by trumper:

everyone has screwed up at some point and in some way, just for clearance purposes don't lie (at all) about it. They're concerned if it's a pattern, could be used against you (because you hide it or want to hide it), or shows that you fit into one of their behavioral models that supposedly predict liabilities to them.

+1

Nothing is 'off the record' when they do their background check, so just be honest. A lot of the better careers require a security clearance and you don't want to fluff that up (or get turned away altogether) by lying before you are even signed on. In the service, lying about a screw up is WAY worse than screwing up - for obvious reasons.

(if you screw up a jet engine and cop to it thats bad but forgivable, if you screw up a jet engine and lie about it than somebody could die)

Also, I would only enlist for the minimum time commitment that your preferred career field requires. Seasons change and so do re-up bonuses, if demand for what you do spikes then you may get some really good bonuses for re-enlisting. If they have you for 10 years (can you really commit for 10?!?, 8 was max in my day) then they have all of the leverage.

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Dibs Ludicrous

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Jun 24th 2011, 9:11:03

meh, just try not to lie as much as the recruiter and you'll be ok.

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paladin

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Jun 24th 2011, 20:19:52

Originally posted by legion:

Any of the services can offer good career paths. As long as they have openings in one of the paths you want. Though that might be problematic now. When the economy goes down the fluffter like it has in the last few years more people the usually try to join the military since it is often viewed as a stable career path. This means that right now the services can be somewhat more selective then normals about who they pick

If you want more advice go here: http://forums.somethingawful.com/...read.php?threadid=3343448

WARNING: It will take a long while to read that massive first post. No I am not being a sarcastic asshole.

Yes i know its on Something Awful. But Goons in Platoons has some pretty good threads from time to time and that is one of them.

Edited By: paladin on Jun 24th 2011, 20:26:22
See Original Post

-Paladin
Why the hell am I here?

paladin

Member
554

Jun 24th 2011, 20:22:34

why do i always mix up the EDIT and QUOTE buttons?

Edited By: paladin on Jun 24th 2011, 20:25:22
See Original Post

-Paladin
Why the hell am I here?

echlori

Member
241

Jun 25th 2011, 1:18:25

Don't do it.

paladin

Member
554

Jun 25th 2011, 12:03:57

Originally posted by echlori:

Don't do it.

Don't do what? Join the military, or click the SA link I posted?

-Paladin
Why the hell am I here?

Marshal

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32,589

Jun 25th 2011, 21:03:09

join military, most likely gets sent to iraq or afghanistan and there's possibility to get killed.

Cerberus

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Jun 26th 2011, 1:08:55

You may not last, there is no bottomfeeding in the military. You have to actually be able to stand on your own.

Cerberus of the MI

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Cerberus

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Jun 26th 2011, 1:15:36

Sorry about that. Didn't mean to put you off.

I served in the US Navy in the submarine force. I was assigned to the Fleet Ballistic Missile Program.

During my first hitch, I spent most of those 6 years in training to do the job I was assigned. That included Submarine School, Polaris Electronics "a" School, Poseidon Mk88 mod2 Fire Control Technician School, and many other advanced courses related to those schools.

So, you do get a LOT of technical training in the Navy, providing you demonstrate the intelligence to qualify for them.

I'm sure it's similar in the Air Force as they have almost as many technical jobs as the Navy, the major difference being that the Sailor is usually deployed at sea and is expected to be good enough to fis the equipment without a civilian techrep from the manufacturer on hand to help.

Cerberus of the MI

I don't need anger management, people need to stop pissing me off!

Garry Owen

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Jun 26th 2011, 3:13:13

Oops, looks like I managed to disrespect MrFord without meaning to.

What I ment was that it is very difficult to get in-depth advice in an open forum. Hard to get past the basics - and Legion has the basics already. And this kind of forum does not lend itself to that kind of discussion.

That is not to say that there have not been good comments and advice here. Just that he will need much more to make such a big decision.

Viceroy

Member
893

Jun 26th 2011, 23:11:27

If you are looking at intel career fields, the Air Force has some unique ones. Airborne Linguist if languages are your thing, and they just stood up the Airborne ISR Operator career field. Enlisted Aircrew is something special.

And UAVs are a great asset, but they will never replace the Situational Awareness you get from having a crew in the aircraft.

And, Monsters, do not forget to specify, when time and place shall serve, that I am an ass.

Cerberus

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Jun 28th 2011, 10:55:24

Originally posted by Dibs Ludicrous:

meh, most ex-vets nowadays are homeless or have a handicapped sticker. i should probably go check to see if the facts agree with my conclusions. well, they might still be collecting social security.

This is a hateful thing to be saying. Those "Vets" put their lives on the line so a pank like you can say fluff like this without getting shot for it. You should be kissing that Vets ass for the liberty you enjoy.

Cerberus of the MI

I don't need anger management, people need to stop pissing me off!