They are not prepared

I look around my work, around my town and I look wherever I go and I see the next generation coming up behind us. I also see the damage we have done not preparing them for the realities of life and not teaching them how to act like adults. Therefore, I spend my free time pondering how to better prepare the upcoming youth to serve their country and to be better able to improve them to make their way in this unforgiving world. When I look to the events that helped shaped me into who I am today, one experience tops the list. My time spent around military and para-military personnel and the training were instrumental in making me the adult I am today. Military training helps mold young boys and girls into the men and women this country needs to defend itself. It could also train the next generations to fend for themselves and help them all become better citizens and fully functioning adults. Why not make it mandatory that all men and women between the ages of 18 and 23 train and serve in some capacity of the U.S. military? It would solve so many problems. It would give the nation’s youth basic job skills and a strong work ethic. Because the U.S. Military is one of the biggest businesses in the world, they always have a variety of jobs they need filled. No experience required, they would pay you while you receive training and employ you once you complete training. Everything from Aircraft Mechanic to Zoologist whatever piques your interest, and fits your skill set, is yours for the taking. Instructors make sure that you finish what you start. There is no stopping in the middle because you get a little tired or you are wondering who texted you in the last 15 min. They are there to make sure that you can keep yourself on task until you get the job done. A strong work ethic will open so many doors for the younger generation. Worried that all of that marching around and training will turn your little Johnny or Suzie into mindless automatons? I challenge you to have a conversation with as many military veterans that you can meet. You will find out that even those who spent 20 years in the military are their own person. You will find there are similarities between them, yet they each will be independent people capable of fending for themselves and making a positive impact in their communities. Military training does not erase the individual; it makes sure that each soldier, sailor, marine or airman are working with the same set of standards. The military does not want robots they want their people to be able to think for themselves and be able to adapt, improvise and overcome. These three skills are sorely lacking in the workforce I see applying for jobs right now. Yet, it is not just the work ethic, and the ability to adapt, improvise and overcome that would benefit the youth coming up and the country as a whole. There is and epidemic sweeping through the country right now. Obesity is killing Americans at a disturbing rate. Whether it is a lack of knowledge, or an unwillingness to take care of themselves, or even genetics or a glandular problem, more Americans are morbidly obese than ever before. Once again, military training has an answer. I have never seen someone who has just graduated boot camp with a weight problem. The military does not want their people to be unhealthy. Unhealthy people cannot perform to the best of their abilities. So, to protect against their people being overweight or unhealthy the military institutes a physical training program. They set standards for height and weight, and ask that people are able to do a set number of exercises in a timed environment. This keeps our military in top physical shape and wards off obesity and the myriad of physical ailments that come with it. “What about all of those guns? Won’t being around all of those guns make our children hyper-violent?” The short answer is “no.” The military teaches their recruits every possible aspect about the weapons that they will use in defense of their country, or even their lives. Instructors go over the recruit’s weapon in infinitesimal detail demanding that every pin, screw, or spring shine like the noonday sun. The recruits disassemble and reassemble their weapons until they could almost perform the task in their sleep. The instructors take all of the mystery and romance out of firearms. To soldiers a firearm is just a tool, used only when necessary. Most importantly of all if all people aged 18-23 participate in military training and serve our country for four years it will give them something that no other generation has had. A shared experience will bind them to each other and give them common ground to stand on. Even though I never finished my four years at Norwich University, I still keep in contact with some of those people that I went through the experience with. It is amazing to me the boundaries that can be broken through military service. My grandfather grew up in rural Vermont, in a racist community. He served his country in World War II on a Navy Destroyer along with men of every race and creed. His experiences led him, once he got back home, to adopt a young African-American boy by the name of Sam. My grandfather was kicked out of the Elks Club for adopting Uncle Sam. He had been a member since he was old enough to join. If my grandfather had not seen the errors of his ways through serving with men of honor, no matter what color they happened to be, he never would have thought to adopt a young boy from the inner city as one of his own. “What about free will? Shouldn’t they be free to choose their own path?” For a more prepared generation I would agree with you hole heartedly. If you ask this question, I would ask you this one. Have you seen what the majority of the younger generation has been doing with their choices? I say that it is time to stop just complaining about it and take action to ensure our children are prepared for when we can no longer be there to protect them and shelter them.