Just got home...

[Darkling]

...from the marine recruiting office.

Anyway, I've been putting alot of thought into joing for Armed Forces for quite some time now - mostly the Army and working to join the Rangers. But, a recruiter for the Marines gave me a call the other day and asked me to come in to talk about it so I figured, "What the hell, it won't hurt to keep my options open."

Well, I get there and we talk for a little bit, I tell him I've been interested in joining the Rangers for a long time and we get to talking about Marine Recon, which sounds very interesting, too, by the way. After we go through all the regular stuff, he asks if I have any questions, so I say, "Sure, why should I join the Marines and try for Recon instead of the Army and Rangers?" The guy in charge of the office (arr, I can't remember his rank - I'm bad with that, lol) overhears the question and calls me into his office to tell me his opinion. I'll spare you most of what he said, but what really bothers me is that he said the Army is crap now - they couldn't meet their quota of applicants per month and lowered their standards, e.g. people with GED's, criminal records, no GED or high school diploma, and physically unfit people can get in now, and that the Ranger's now are no longer the badasses they were in WWII, and the basic infantry in the Marines are the equivalent to the Army's Rangers.

Soo...what are all your opinions on this? Anyone with experience, I'd especially like your input here - should I go Marines and try for Recon, or go Army, and the Rangers? I know their job is to tell me what i want to hear to get me to sign on the dotted line, but yeah...

Alright, well thanks, everyone.

Danny

[Lakeview Bulldog]

The Marine Corps is the elite infantry of the US military. What the recruiter said is pretty much true, a basically trained Marine is equivalent to an Army Ranger. That doesnt mean that Rangers are wusses by any means. Marine boot camp is one of the most physically and mentally demading tasks anyone could strive to achieve. Marine Recon is one of the most elite units in the military. Also look into the Marine Scout Sniper program. Only try out for these elite units if you want to see combat. With either of these units you WILL be some of the first people into the fight. Joining any branch of the military is an extremely admirable action. Freedom is not free, it was bought with the blood of men and women our age and younger (I'm 19 and almost joined the Marines). Be careful of what your recruiter tells you. He will make you believe that he is your friend, but what he won't tell you is that he gets $2,000 for every recruit he gets to boot camp. Most recruiters are honest, some are not. They will use many tactics to get you to sign. Whatever choice you make remember no to rush into anything. Take at least 3 days before making any final choice. Talk to people you respect and trust for advice. Good luck.

[_tMAN]

Lakeview Bulldog

that was a great speech man.
I have been thinking of joining the armed forces for some time now alos, although I still have a lot of time to decide.
I'd say go for Marine Recon though.

[pbzmag]

I believe that the Army National Guard did not make their quota. Last year, the Army changed their recruiting standards where you must have a high school diploma. That means that anyone with a GED will be automatically disqualified. For the criminal records, you MUST give full disclosure but still have a chance of getting in, though that it will be harder and may disqualify you from certain MOS. What ever branch you decide, do not let the recruiter lie on your application. It is your arse on the line, not theirs. If you did not know, anyone who lies( falsifies documents) can be found out. When they do, you will be facing a felony charge of fraudulent enlistment.

If a person does not meet the recruiting standards, one can apply for a waiver. Waivers can be obtained for basically anything. One could get one for medical like asthma. That's what tried to get. Quite a few waiver were given for that but goes by a case-by-case basis. One can even get a moral waiver, ie misdemeanor or a felony. For a felony, it depends on the type of crime but needs to be ok'ed by a high ranking Officer. If your recruiter tells you to lie, don't. They just don't want to do the paper work.

If your wondering about my waiver, it was for asthma. I did have a few asthma attacks as a kid but have not had any for a long time. Yes, the recruiter did want me to lie about it but I stood my ground. I got a PFT from my doctor, prognosis-most likely no asthma, and then sent it out to recruiting command. After a week or two, they said I could go to MEPS. I did, and the medical doctor gave me a temporary disqualification but gave a recommondation for a waiver. A few weeks later, word came back from command. DENIED. I came real close to getting in the Army. It did not get me down, I just wanted to try to get in. I did find out that I am slightly color blind. That pretty much disqualified me for the MOS I was going for which was Sattelite Communications.

[chairman_mao]

Another thing to consider, and this goes for both the Marine Recon and the Army Rangers, is the commitment that will be required. Granted joining the service in any capacity takes a great deal of commitment but the "elite" sections of each service require even more. If you are chosen to be a part of one of these units you will be in a constant state of combat readiness. The Marine recruiter (IMO) is right about Recon being more exclusive than Rangers. There are several reasons for this first and foremost being the Army is a much larger military branch than the Marines. Secondly the Rangers' function is vastly different than that of the Recon. While the Rangers may have a functional unit size of 12 or more (I don't know the actual number for this) a unit like the SEALs has a smaller basic unit number. This fact alone makes them more exclusive. You should take into consideration what the job function of each unit is and what you feel more drawn to if either at all. Have you spoken with an Army recruiter? If not I would suggest doing so prior to making any decisions. That's just my opinion

[Darkling]

Thanks alot for all the info, guys. I'm still thinking alot about everything and I've been talking to a few guys I know who are ex-Rangers, so I'll see everything they have to say.

[.bolink]

Ill be the first to admit that Marines are tough bastards but the Army isn't crap. All this BS about lowering standards when the Marines are the ones that purposefully recruit those with lower asvab scores because they follow orders easier. Either way you look at it though the army and marines serve one main purpose and that is infantry. Which is why I went Navy. I did however try to get into the WOFT program to become a pilot and was unable to due to my vision so obviously some things havn't changed.

[Darkling]

Wow, freaky stuff right here, lol. I just got Chinese takeout, and I open up my fortune cookie and it says, "Your destiny lies before you, choose wisely."

Damn fortune cookies....