Thinking of joining the military

[Mallard57]

Hi,
I'd say check them all out. Just because you have a particular preference of what you want to do doesn't mean they have a position available. I'd talk to all of them and see what they offered.
That all being said, the Air Force was pretty good to me.
Jeff

[mike in co]

I made E5 in less then 3 years.
Joe

well...being 22, a nuc and a college grad..it came quick......e3 out of boot camp, e4 5 months later out of A school, one yr later to the day e5( that was a total of about 20 months), and e6 at 4 yrs.....could have been under 4 yrs...my command held me back( rightly so).

stuff that cannot be done today.


there are great benefits from the service.

all in all i had a good time, but it was good for me to get out when i did.

mike in co

[1Shirt]

It is interesting going thru all of these threads. When I enlisted in Unkle Sam's Marine Corps, there were only 7 enlisted ranks, E1-E7. I started out to join the Navy because a friend of mine was a whitecap. The Navy recruiter was not in the office, but there was an old Gunny who showed me how to break down a Garand, and told me they would issue me one if I was a Marine. How could you pass up an offer like that? Was on Paris Island 2 days after graduation from High School. Sure was a lousy way to spend a summer. 90 degrees at 9:00 a.m.That was in the mid 50's. At that time, it was not uncommon to see 20+year retirees going out as E5's, and occaisionaly as an E-4. And those were individuals with clean records. E-6 was fairly common, and MSgt E-7 was uncommon unless you were well over 20. That was true of the Marine Corps and the Air Force. Rank came faster in the Army back then, but was easire to loose, and the Navy and Coast Guard fell someplace inbetween. E-8 and E-9 Came in around 1958 if memory serves me right, and I was one of the first to hold the rank of L/Cpl. I got out after one hitch and came back in the AF as an E-3, supply type, and made E-4 with a total of 4 years active. Made E-5 SSgt under 6, almost unheard of at that time for a supply type, and E-6 TSgt under 10. Took another 4 to make MSgt, and 3 after that to Make SMSgt. Some of the tech MOS/AFSC skills got promoted fast. Served in one joint service outfit (AF and Navy) and we had a Navy Quartermaster who had Chief's Crows on under 10. He was book smart, and cocky, and lacked common sense. Also had a 3rd. Class PO Yoeman who had 8-9 years who had it all over the Quartermaster, but Yomen were on the lo end of the Navy totem pole back then. Nam speeded up promotions based upon necessities for some career fields. Noticed that quite a few recommended commissions, and I can not fault that. I turned down Army Warrent Officers bars twice during Nam, and could have been commissioned in the AF. That said, I have no regrets being a Sr.NCO, as I had more authority and responsibility in the Sr. NonCom Ranks than most Captains, a fair number of majors, and a few semi useless Lt.Col's. Commissioned retired pay would have been nice, but that would be looking back, and I prefer to look ahead. Have been retired for nearly 30 years, and still miss the Military. I have always said that the military is a great life for those who appreciate it and love it, and a lousy life for those who do not. Today I see active duty members both enliste and commissioned in various ranks and grades that would not have made it in my day. I have seen in the past couple of years virtually all ranks that are very much overweight and out of shape. Probably great techs, but not great on image. They are fortunately, a small minority of what I see on base. The majority on active duty are pretty well squared away. It is the standards that I have seen slip that bother me. Then again I predate the "Don't ask/Don't tell" military of the Clinton era. One of the sadest days in my life was the day I retired from the AF. On the day I retired I had status, responsibility, and authority. On the day after I retired, I had a retirement check, and was from then on a PFC. Old timers know what that means.
1Shirt!

[felix]

Very good, 1Shirt. I enjoyed that because your career paralleled mine for the most part. Now I don't have to write my backgound in terms of management progression. I refused my promotions for the most part (not the salary, though) because the higher you went in the technical fields, the more people management was required. I too entertained "directorship" positions, not leader positions when and where possible. The downside of that is when projects go to different companies. The new company always hires out the pure people management jobs first, and these guys bring in their experts. So, the moral of the story is to always find a guy who you like as your boss, and move around until you do. ... felix

[Phil]

1Shirt,

Great post!

Phil

[PatMarlin]

Great stories.

[Taylor]

Food for thought. I was a biology major-joined the army as a lab tech.There are no lab tech schools in Ft Benning Ga. Then I became brain washed. Yes we were bad,gung ho,and all that crap,have a bunch of stories to tell,but...grunts do not find very good employment,outside of Rhodesa and S.America.Plus there is no guarantee you will get paid.Point is,find an MOS that will provide you with the skills to get a good job when you get out or retire.Yes they still will lie to you.

[Phil]

Hi Old Ironsights,

Don't forget, once you're in the military and if the need arises you'll be what they tell you to be. At least that's the way it used to be. I have no idea what the military is doing today. My old motor sergeant used to ask "what is your PMOS?". You could say 631.10 or whatever you were (tech or support MOS's) and he'd just grin and say "NO, your PMOS is 111.10" combat infantry. He used this to drive home a point. I loved that man, he was a no bs guy and got things done when no one else could. I really miss him.

Cheers,

Phil

[Old Ironsights]

True... All Grunts, Army or Marine, are Infantry First... even Band Members.

But it's tough to be Infantry when you are working on the Boilers/Nuc plant of a Carrier/Sub...

[Phil]

I hear ya, but its the idea of the thing sinking, and if you survive that there are the sharks. Remember the Indianapolis? (:>)

Cheers,

Phil

[Jkeith]

As has been stated before it depends on what you want and where you want to be. I have served in or with 3 of the branches USAF, USN, USMC as active duty and reserve, each has its good and bad points. The USAF has great tech training and great working conditions, USN great tech and travel, USMC leadership and discipline living conditions leave something to be desired, I have not served with the Army so will leave that eval to others. Good luck with what ever you decide and take everything the recruiter tells you with a grain of salt

Semper Fi
Doc Keith HMCS (FMF)
USNR (Ret)

[MT Gianni]

If you decide not to serve, there is a reported shortage of 50,000 utility line workers that will occur in the Northwest US in the next 7-10 years. Schooling is available. In the gas trades there is a big shortage also but it will have less of an impact. Once you are qualified for a utility you can work in a town of 1000 people or less or 10 million. Wages are generally kept the same for either. Lot's of callouts and overtime, if you climb poles no insurance company will ensure your life but good wages and benefits. I currently get 5 weeks vacation from 12-24 years, 6 weeks after 24 years and 6 weeks plus 2 days for over 30 years. A couple of people I work with recently got their 40 year service awards.
You will not see the world on anyone else's dime, you will pay for every meal you eat and you will see some interesting country and wildlife. You may find yourself 50 feet up a pole in a windstorm or welding on a fitting while gas is blowing a safe distance away and cops, fire and supervisors are all standing over your shoulder "waiting on the welder". Opportunities are out there in every economic climate for those who want them.

[PatMarlin]

That is a great idea G.

My friends son is a lineman and he makes VERY good money. I woulda loved to do that ..

[jawjaboy]

Navy here too, '68-'72. IC man as well Buckshot. 8 weeks of BEE school, 16 weeks of A school, and one year later 12 weeks of C school on the Mk. 19 gyro.

My take on the Navy was/is its schools. They are excellent. A ship is like a city unto itself. It has to have propulsion, fresh water, air conditioning, refrigeration, heating, electricity, communications, etc, etc, etc. All of this has to be operated and maintained 24/7/365. Sailors trained in these engineering fields were and still are highly desired in industry. Over 50% of my department on my job of 30 years this month are ex-Navy engineering ratings.

Whatever your choice in branches of service, you have my utmost respect for your service to country.
.

[jaystuw]

I was a lineman for the southern california edison company for many years and am now a senior cable splicer. In july, I will have 30 years service. I will let you in on a little secret. It is this- You can do very well financially in this line of work. A lot of guys I work with are,well, how can I say this, Just really well off. and thats not counting our 401k's (which are in the toilet like everyone else). Owning mutiple homes, ranchs, vacation cabins and condos is not unusual. owning your own home is the norm. last week 2 of my buddys bought late model used cars, a hummer-$19k and a suburban $25k . each looked like new with all the bells and whistles. each guy payed cash. I was impressed-well,sort of, for about 5 min. The fact is guys get cars , boats and motorcycles, all the time at work . To me thats kids stuff . The big deal is when a guy gets an extra house!
I must warn you however, that there are little,if any free rides in life, and being a high voltage lineman is no exception , the work can be tough, dirty and dangerous. some of the guys are jerks and you can expect to work long hours in the worst weather. the company will not tolerate rule or safety violations and will take action if you can't or won't go along with the program. Also the guys that are just this side of being down right rich got that way over the course of many years by being very careful with their money and doing without alot of stuff early on.
With that being said ,i can also add that the work is not as bad as i make it sound , you are outside, going to diffrent locations all the time, you and your buddies can laugh at the jerks and bullies if you want . And like anything else the more you do it the easier it gets . also the guys and the company will look out for you . that the way the place works.
I might also add that I served 4 years in the army as an infantry man just after the vietnam war- the edison company is a far better deal.

[PatMarlin]

-jerks and bullies =onsite entertainment ...

Lineman work here in the Pacific Northwest would be heaven. Offshore fishing on your days off. Trout fishing affter work. Hunting to your heart's desire. Wild hippie chicks that smoked just enough pot for that special glow.

Wish my nephew would get back. Want him to see this thread.

[carpetman]

I was Air Force for 26 years--5 of those years as a recruiter. I resent the posts saying recruiters lie. I recruited in rural Idaho and you talk about a grapevine. The people knew people in all of the small towns. They played sports against one another,many were of the same religion--on and on---if you told someone a lie in one small town--that spread like wildfire and you are toast. One recruiter from another branch tried to make it by lying and in a few months he was history. No way I would have been a very successful recruiter for 5 years had I been telling lies. Remember the guys I recruited came back home on leave and still communicated with folks in the area. Very often they dropped in to see me and have coffee--gosh had I lied to them you think they would want to do that? Many times they would talk to people in the area that were trying to decide. I also received a lot of letters and kept everyone of them. I could ask an applicant if they knew so and so from their town---they usually did. I could show them the letter and tell them this is what he/she has to say about it.
On the other side of the coin,this happened a lot. Little Johnny arrives in boot camp and the TI (training instructor) gets in their face and yells at them. I had told them this WILL happen. Guess they thought it wouldn't happen to them. Little Johnny starts crying and says I lied to my recruiter--I told him I hadn't smoked pot--but I smoked it all the time. The Air Force sends little Johnny home and he tells everyone--the Air Force promised me this that and the other but failed to keep the promise----the recruiter lied to me-- so I got out. This word also makes it to the recruiter so you call up little Johnny and tell him to cool it or you'll let folks know what really happened.
Certainly as a former recruiter I am partial to the Air Force, had I felt otherwise how could I have been successful as a recruiter? I do admire the other branches. During the years I recruited (1973-1978) the Air Force had the highest entrance standards. There was not ONE case of the other branches having an applicant they rejected that they could refer to me. I referred my rejects to all the other branches on a routine basis. This is not a knock on the other branches----they had a need for the folks I sent them.
I retired in 1987, and it's been over 30 years since I recruited so my info would be dated. Any of the youngsters considering going in that would like to talk to me send me a PM with your number and I can call you.

[trk]

I was Air Force for 26 years--5 of those years as a recruiter. I resent the posts saying recruiters lie. ...

OK, I'll take your word for it, there are recruiters that don't lie. There are good lawyers. There are good used car salesmen, and good politicians. .....

As a class, bad reputation (that IS the perception). Individuals are OK. (that is a comment about US as a nation - how we perceive and react to others)

I have no personal gripes about recruiters, lawyers nor politicians; but my DRAFT BOARD!!!! That's another story.

[krag35]

I would like to thank all of you so fa for the advice i will get in contact with all branches and see who is offering me the best deal.and I will give an update on that i decide to do.

[Old Ironsights]

OK, I'll take your word for it, there are recruiters that don't lie. There are good lawyers. There are good used car salesmen, and good politicians. .....

As a class, bad reputation (that IS the perception). Individuals are OK. (that is a comment about US as a nation - how we perceive and react to others)

I have no personal gripes about recruiters, lawyers nor politicians; but my DRAFT BOARD!!!! That's another story.

FWIW... as much as Carpetman & I don't see eye to eye (it's not possible what with him staring at sheep...) my recruiter told me like I saw it.

No lies, no dissembling. But then, he wasn't trying to convince me of anything either.

IMO the BEST fictional depiction of the way Recruiting SHOULD be was in Starship Troopers... The Recruiter tried to keep you OUT of the Service by scaring the piss out of you/showing you his wreck of a carcass. Only the most dedicated Join, and only later do you find out that the Reuruiter simply "forgets" to wear his "good as new" prosthetics while on the job...