this post was submitted on 01 Oct 2023
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[–] [email protected] 206 points 11 months ago (6 children)

He's already got a job, and you aren't going to get PTSD from spinning a sign. On top of that, you can quit any time you want if you want to do something else.

[–] [email protected] 104 points 11 months ago (1 children)

You clearly have never experienced the dark underbelly of the sign spinning subculture.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 11 months ago (3 children)

theres a whole movie script idea. i hope chuck palahnuik writes it and trent reznor sounds it.

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[–] [email protected] 50 points 11 months ago (3 children)

In the military you are 4 times more likely to die from suicide than you are from being killed in combat.

The greatest threat to US military personnel is the US military.

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[–] [email protected] 41 points 11 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 32 points 11 months ago (5 children)

I read it as a 35k signing bonus.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Or the "Ram 1500/Dodge Challenger bonus"

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 11 months ago (1 children)

and you aren’t going to get PTSD from spinning a sign.

Unless you get hit by a car.

Still safer than the military though.

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[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago

You won't get PTSD from spinning a sign, but most of the sign spinners I've known have been homeless, and you will get PTSD from being homeless. The cops alone cause all cities and towns to be hostile to your very existance

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[–] [email protected] 173 points 11 months ago (4 children)

My brother joined up and deeply regretted it. I was 8 at the time. When I got to the age where recruiters started sniffing around I told one that I would join if I could only shoot the people Exxon wanted me wanted to shoot, I didn't want to fight for any other oil company. He called me unamerican and they never came back .

[–] [email protected] 46 points 11 months ago

Fucking spectacular

[–] [email protected] 31 points 11 months ago

Thats actually hilarious. Good on you.

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[–] [email protected] 115 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Oo. Time for my "terrible recruiter" story. This was back in the 90s, so the issues then were not the issues now.

My teacher (genuinely cool guy, but a veteran) brought in an army recruiter to talk to us. He ended literally every clause with "'n stuff." Like this:

"If you want to join the army 'n stuff, you gotta get real fit 'n stuff. You gotta get going with a good exercise program 'n stuff. But we'll get your fitness to a new level 'n stuff, plus pay for college 'n stuff."

Basically, it made me decide that I wasn't stupid enough to sign up.

[–] [email protected] 73 points 11 months ago

Maybe your teacher brought the recruiter in to make you realize exactly that 'n stuff.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (5 children)

I'm pretty certain that I made an entire recruitment office hate each other for a day. Walked into the Navy office and they had me take a "mini-asvab" Literally 5 minutes later, I called out "I think I'm done!" they replied "no you aren't." One of them came in and looked at my screen and said, "Um... Guys... He's done." They told me to go talk to the other branches first to make sure that I didn't really want to be "Air Force, or something," and finally got my signup bonus, since I knew I wanted to be Navy Nuke. I wanted a good paying rate.

When I got sent to MEPS I was told that I was the highest testing applicant from that particular MEPS station since WWII. I probably should have taken that as a warning sign.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Ha. Same test thing happened to my dad in the UK when he was called up for selective service. Handled the easy test in 5 minutes, but he was told he had to wait until everyone was done. He said the questions were like: Which is the odd one out- square, circle, triangle, elephant. And he said an hour later, there were still people trying to finish in confused frustration.

My dad got out of service entirely. He would never tell me how.

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[–] [email protected] 98 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I'd rather spin a sign than get shot for a government that doesn't care about me.

[–] [email protected] 94 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (32 children)

only 35k to dodge bullets in some far off corner of the world away from your loved ones?

and they’re surprised no one is taking that offer?

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[–] [email protected] 89 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (7 children)

Wow, what's the job?

Shooting poor people to protect oil interests for multi-billion conglomerates.

Does it say anything about the kind of people you feel are up to the job that you're approaching a grown man wearing a chicken suit?

[–] [email protected] 43 points 11 months ago (1 children)

A few of the guys I game with were sign spinners at some point, and they're all extremely anti military for that reason. One of them is technically homeless and has spent a few years without a roof, and wouldn't join the military if his life depended on it.

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[–] [email protected] 76 points 11 months ago (17 children)

35k for a 40hr work week comes out to only $16.80 an hour. Just saying.

[–] [email protected] 47 points 11 months ago (1 children)

To be fair, for at least the first couple years, your cost-of-living expenses are also essentially zero if you're single, since you'll be staying in the barracks and eating in the mess hall without having to pay anything out of pocket. So that $35k stretches a lot further than it would outside the military.

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[–] [email protected] 36 points 11 months ago (2 children)

The 35k reads to me like an enlistment bonus not a base wage. You can google base wages for the US military if your actually interested. That said if we're talking the US military there isn't a chance in hell that it's a 40 hour work week. He'd be lucky for a 60 hour work week and 80 is pretty standard if your leadership sucks. I had a cot in my office I used multiple nights a week when working for a particularly dickish commander once.

There are plenty of terrible things about the military, stupid long hours, highly toxic work environment, alcohol abuse is encouraged, rape culture is accepted, etc. But the pay isn't all that bad when you add everything up (base pay, tax breaks, housing allowance, on post child care discounts, uniform allowance, free health care, dependants, re-enlistment bonuses, etc). The per hour rate isn't good but I've also never gotten the equivalent time off in PTO that I got in leave either.

There also isn't a wage gap for minorities, there's a ton of other bigotry, but no wage gap.

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Assuming you work for 40 hours.

Dunno how it works in Murica, but here in Britain you serve your duty from 00:01 to 23:59

So the equivalent of about $4 per hour...

[–] [email protected] 22 points 11 months ago (1 children)

What do you do with your 2 minutes?

[–] [email protected] 19 points 11 months ago

You get to decide!

[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago

To be fair, people will also say "thank you for your service" n 'stuff

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[–] [email protected] 70 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Do we think conscription will be brought back if they continue not being able to find people desperate enough to join? I think it's disgusting recruiters are allowed near and in public schools.

[–] [email protected] 30 points 11 months ago (2 children)

No. We don't want conscripted soldiers. We have proven that a volunteer military will stomp a conscripted military into the dirt. See Wagner VS US in Syria ç 2017-2018

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[–] [email protected] 26 points 11 months ago (2 children)

The US military has more than enough people signing up willingly. The only way conscription would ever possibly get restarted is if the US was in a conflict where hundreds of thousands of soldiers were being lost. I honestly don’t even think it would be necessary then either, because the US is a giant war cult, so people would be lining up left and right to “serve their country.”

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[–] [email protected] 67 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Recruiters chase misery like sharks chase blood. That costume is probably more comfortable than the shit the army makes you wear and he can tell his boss to fuck off if he gets sick of it.

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[–] [email protected] 63 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Base pay for an E1 is $23,011.2 per year. Granted you don't have to pay for food or shelter as an E1. But. Well. Let's not pretend it's actually $35k a year.

[–] [email protected] 56 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Coast Guard is offering $65k for anyone who wants to cook.

It's honestly a pretty miserable job, but you're not getting shot at, sooooo...

[–] [email protected] 28 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (5 children)

If I had to join a service (and I'm just plain too old at this point, anyway), it'd probably be the Coast Guard. Their primary mission is saving lives. One issue is that they're also an arm in the War on Drugs, and that's where shooting might actually come into play. Other issue is how they handle refugees. That said, you can still feel better about their work than the regular military.

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[–] [email protected] 43 points 11 months ago (37 children)

How hot is that in the rest of the world?

[–] [email protected] 34 points 11 months ago
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[–] [email protected] 36 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Man, I'm shocked that most people would rather wear a duck costume in sweltering heat than risk taking a bullet or a grenade!

[–] [email protected] 20 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Of course people dont want to go to the trenches with a rifle and helmet, they would get mud all over their duck costume

[–] [email protected] 28 points 11 months ago (6 children)

Am I the only dad (other than OP) traumatized enough to get the "Got any Grapes" reference?

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[–] [email protected] 26 points 11 months ago (1 children)

any money quantity isn't enough when we are talking about the possibility of being killed or maimed somewhere around the globe

[–] [email protected] 30 points 11 months ago (2 children)

Hey, now. That isn't completely accurate. You can also get PTSD!

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 11 months ago (4 children)

35k AND a job? What's the 35k for then? Or does he think it's great to have a job in itself?

Btw going pew-pew on brown kids is not a job

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[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago

That’s the correct answer. I was shot at once and the realization in the moment… well it messed me up royally.

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