The difference today in the US is that there is no longer conscription. So there's no shadow of doubt about whether military service is/was voluntary.
You are viewing a single comment's thread from:
The difference today in the US is that there is no longer conscription. So there's no shadow of doubt about whether military service is/was voluntary.
Correct, however there is still a bit of deception going on... recruiters try to sell the deal as "job skills" and "college money" to folks who likely have no other realistic option... told they wouldn't be in harms way. This happened to a friend. Was supposed to be a truck driver, ended up kicking doors in with a shotgun in Afghanistan, having his comrade's guts splattered on him at a base gate when a suicide bomber hit the other guard, and has a traumatic brain injury and mental aftereffects. He joined voluntarily yes, but he was also lied about the nature of what he was signing up for.
But correct, still nothing like being involuntarily shoved into vicious combat. That breaks men not meant for that sort of stress.