Because I am a terrible spoil-sport, that's why

[james_davis_nicoll]

The US is _not_ signing 14 year olds up for military service.

Like the Dan Quayle comment about wishing he'd known Latin when he visited Latin America, it never happened: Quayle never said that (Claudine Schneider attributed it to him as a joke) and the US insists on a minimum age of, I believe, 16 (After all, it's handy if they can legally drive) and the US military has yet to exploit the young adult market. The hoax just sounds plausible, given the people involved.

Mind you, now that the idea is out there, maybe the Republicans will adopt it.

Comments

[ritaxis.livejournal.com]

They aren't signing up fourteen year-olds, but I would guess that the spoof was inspired by what the military does do that is aimed at the very young: everything from deceptive television advertisements to adventure games online and military-sponsored free junk for schools ("career preparation" materials, etc).

When I was subsititute teaching at a continuation school, I had a student who dyed and curled his hair, wore jewelry and makeup, and said he wanted to be a fashion designer. I was gone for a month and when I came back he was wearing white shirts and ties and was talking about the elaborate promises "his" recruiter was making (the recruiters home in on specific kids and follow them around until they catch them). But he still wore makeup and dished with the girls . . . he had made the commitment, had signed papers, and he would be going into the Navy as soon as he graduated.

I just hope he's still alive and I'd like to give the recruiter a piece of my mind. What the hell did he think was going to happen to a boy like that in the Navy?

[(Anonymous)]

"I just hope he's still alive and I'd like to give the recruiter a piece of my mind."

You may want to look at http://icasualties.org/oif/, and the equivalent page for Operation Enduring Freedom. There are very few Navy casualties with hometowns in California, and those seem to be too old to be your student.

Gareth Wilson