It's a game for your kids - relax

[kach22i]

Kids getting free army video games from recruiters……………………. What do you make of this situation?

First link:
http://www.goarmy.com/aarmy/index.jsp

Second link:
http://www.americasarmy.com/support/faq_win.php#faq0

Q: Is this a recruiting tool?

A: … it provides young adults and their influencers with virtual insights about the Army…

The game is designed to provide young adults and their influencers with virtual insights into entry level Soldier training, training in units and Army operations so as to provide insights into what the Army is like. As in the past, the Army's success in attracting high-potential young adults is essential to building the world's premier land force. With the passage of time, elimination of the draft and reductions in the size of the Army have resulted in a marked decrease in the number of Americans who have served in the Army and from whom young adults can gain vicarious insights into the challenges and rewards of Soldiering and national service. Therefore, the game is designed to substitute virtual experiences for vicarious insights. It does this in an engaging format that takes advantage of young adults' broad use of the Internet for research and communication and their interest in games for entertainment and exploration.
(Last Updated: 2003-08-21)

[gr8fl4porsche]

Definitely not for kids but it is a great game - I have been playing it on and off for 2 years.

[theFONZ]

Of course it is a recruiting tool.

So whats wrong with it?

[kach22i]

Originally posted by silver944
Of course it is a recruiting tool.

So whats wrong with it?

Well I can only imagine being a kid today. How long can they stay kids these days?

Getting to the topic, is 15 years old too young to be recruited? Think about it , okay?

A bunch of links you won't click follow..................

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/news/edu...e_recruits.html
Military Recruitment Through High Schools
Student Names In Exchange For Federal Funding
April 14 — Despite some of the U.S. military casualties in Iraq, the military says recruitment is up in record numbers. You may not be aware that one way the military recruits young men and women is through your local high schools. ABC7's education reporter, Lyanne Melendez, explains how. It used to be that students who were interested in the military would join the ROTC or would sign up when they were 18. Now the military approaches students as young as 15 years old. This began in December 2002. In the No Child Left Behind Act, buried deep inside, there is a provision that says schools must hand over information on students if the military wants it.

Recruiting for the War Machine
http://peaceworks.missouri.org/moni...ecruitment.html
by William Parke-Sutherland
Once a month the Army, Navy and Marines set up a table in the Rock Bridge High School commons and try to sign up new volunteers. They adorn the beat-up wooden table with colorful, attractive cloths sporting their catchy slogans: “Be All You Can Be,” “Let the Journey Begin,” “Aim High” and “The Few, The Proud.” The enlisted man, or woman, stands straight in his or her pressed uniform and tries to convince us that the military will give us direction and a sense of purpose, not to mention a lot of money for college…………………………………The armed forces’ representation of itself is filled with half-truths. Recruits often have a rude awakening, finding out that promised benefits are grossly inflated. One example is the supposed benefit of “up to $30,000” for college. It turns out that this maximum figure is available only to those who take combat positions. Most personnel get a maximum of about $15,000, and many GIs are denied educational benefits entirely. In fact, just to qualify for Montgomery GI Bill benefits, service members must pay a non-refundable $1,200, and because only 35 percent of those who pay this money actually receive benefits, for many years the Pentagon has taken in more money than it spends on benefits.


The Military Wants YOU!!!
Facts and Myths about Military Recruitment
Will I Get Money for College?
The truth is that not everybody gets the GI Bill. There are certain regulations that you must meet and most of the time these will not be pointed out to you. Most people will not receive money because of test scores, early dismissal, dishonorable discharge, or imprisonment.


http://www.objector.org/before-you-enlist.html
You've probably heard the recruiter's sales pitch -- travel, training, money for college. Sounds pretty good, doesn't it? All advertising does. But if military life doesn't live up to the advertising, you can't bring your enlistment agreement back to the recruiter for a refund. You're in for eight years of your life (including inactive reserve duty). You wouldn't buy a car without looking under the hood. Don't enlist before you check out the reality of military life that lies behind the glamorous television ads and glossy brochures. Check it out carefully

Our children are not a commodity!
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/artic...46&list=sub
Anti-Military Recruitment Campaign

The public education system in the United States has had its share of problems over the years. Untrained teachers, lack of adequate funding and biased instruction plague our students from kindergarten all the way through high school. As if these realities were not enough, many of the nation’s schools are now faced with either becoming feeder institutions for the U.S. military, or risk losing federal funding because of the controversial No Child Left Behind Act.


http://www.motherjones.com/news/out.../ma_153_01.html
Sharon Shea-Keneally, principal of Mount Anthony Union High School in Bennington, Vermont, was shocked when she received a letter in May from military recruiters demanding a list of all her students, including names, addresses, and phone numbers. The school invites recruiters to participate in career days and job fairs, but like most school districts, it keeps student information strictly confidential. "We don't give out a list of names of our kids to anybody," says Shea-Keneally, "not to colleges, churches, employers -- nobody."


http://www.commondreams.org/views02/1206-08.htm
The No Child Left Behind Act which went into effect last week has some surprising implications for high school students. Buried deep within the funding benefits is Section 9528 which grants the Pentagon access to directories with students names, addresses and phone numbers so that they may be more easily contacted and recruited for military service. Prior to this provision, one-third of the nation’s high schools refused recruiters’ requests for students’ names or access to campus because they believed it was inappropriate for educational institutions to promote military service.

Despite War, Military Recruitment Remains High
http://usgovinfo.about.com/b/a/022093.htm
August 29, 2003
Despite War, Military Recruitment Remains High
When the war on terrorism began, fears sprang up that people would stop volunteering for military service, thus requiring reinstatement of the draft. Not to worry, say Department of Defense officials, who report that both new volunteers and re-enlistments continue at a “vigorous rate.”

[Clowd]

While the game is somewhat entertaining, I would absolutely, under no circumstances unless my own land was being invaded, NOT join the military. There is no way they could ever make me do it, I'd probably go to jail before joining their sickening military.

[motion]

I've seen an Army TV ad on Speed lately. It shows Middle Eastern terrorist-types being viewed through night-vision goggles with a cross-hair in the middle of the view.

It's so disgusting that I cannot stand to watch it and switch to something else for a minute.

[ae1969]

WOW......... I really don't know what to say.

Truly amazing.

I am glad there are those that see the disgusting nature of this recruitment process.

[kach22i]

Originally posted by ae1969
WOW......... I really don't know what to say.

Truly amazing.

I am glad there are those that see the disgusting nature of this recruitment process.

I am pleased to see a few people with a sense of right and wrong as well. However I am also caught in admiration of marketing that includes video games, rock and rap songs, TV commercials with computer animation of soliders in battle that morf into real people and so forth.

I mean filling the quota is a real/important job that needs to be done, and to do it right you must attract the largest swath of recruits possible so you can have your pick of the litter.

Toy guns and "blow them up" video games is one thing, but teaching the social organization of the military infastructure at the same time puts me in awe............perhaps shock is a better word.

Hello brave new world.

God save the children.