Army tops recruit goal by lowering standards

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15197832 /

The U.S. Army recruited more than 2,600 soldiers under new lower aptitude standards this year, helping the service beat its goal of 80,000 recruits in the throes of an unpopular war and mounting casualties.

The recruiting mark comes a year after the Army missed its recruitment target by the widest margin since 1979, which had triggered a boost in the number of recruiters, increased bonuses, and changes in standards.

The Army recruited 80,635 soldiers, roughly 7,000 more than last year. Of those, about 70,000 were first-time recruits who had never served before.

According to statistics obtained by The Associated Press, 3.8 percent of the first-time recruits scored below certain aptitude levels. In previous years, the Army had allowed only 2 percent of its recruits to have low aptitude scores. That limit was increased last year to 4 percent, the maximum allowed by the Defense Department.

The Army said all the recruits with low scores had received high school diplomas. In a written statement, the Army said good test scores do not necessarily equate to quality soldiers. Test-taking ability, the Army said, does not measure loyalty, duty, honor, integrity or courage.

[saigon68]

1. McNamara's Morans return

Test-taking ability, the Army said, does not measure loyalty, duty, honor, integrity or courage.


A profound ability to follow orders no matter how ridiculous or criminal is the prime requisite these days

See you in Leavenworth Boys.

[Squatch]

2. They now accept people with tatoos on their necks, ex-felons,

and people up to 42 years old.

However, they refuse to accept gays.

[Divine Discontent]

6. good heavens

good point. they'll take gang members, middle aged guys when they used to push for only early thirties at most, and people with MEDICAL problems (that alone comprises 38% of their newest batch of enlistments this year) and yet, we ain't taking the queers!!!!



ya know, it's a blessing from God they don't take out gays, more of us get to live that way.

amen.


www.cafepress.com/warisprofitable <<-- antibush prodem stickers/shirts

[RamboLiberal]

11. Can you expand on the medical problems they are allowing?

Just curious what they are allowing now.

[hvn_nbr_2]

16. Are anal cysts still 4-F? nt

[Divine Discontent]

24. classified as of now, but...

I'm sure we'll be hearing what they're letting in, very soon. This is desperation on their part. Gotta fill the uniforms.....

[gratuitous]

3. Gee, will any of these recruits squander their training?

I mean, some of these fellows don't sound like real career types. What if they desert, or are just plain incompetent, or can't be trained or trusted? Some folks are real obsessed with anything non-military wasting the military's resources, but what will be a bigger waste of military money and manpower -- a doctor who goes CO and agrees to pay back the cost of her education, or 2,600 recruits who can't master basic soldiering skills?

[NOLADEM]

4. From now on, this will be known as the Bush Method

Exceed expectations by lowering standards.

[saigon68]

5. Its like responding to Hurricane Katrina

[Divine Discontent]

7. when you hire an advertising firm

and spend $200 MILLION American tax dollars, you know you've got a recruitment problem... and of course, they get away with giving that money away to these repuke supporters.


again, $200 million for advertising folks, for the ARMY

[Divine Discontent]

8. THIS IS A GREATEST PAGE WORTHY STORY

we're talking about a 100000 newly joined members of the military and how desperate our gov't is becoming. soon they'll be talking to kids in jr. high...

[Ilsa]

9. Done! kick

[Divine Discontent]

23. ask and Ilsa delivers! lol n/t

[ForFuxakes]

10. GUMP!!!!

"What is your sole purpose in life?"

"To do whatever you tell me to do Drill Seargent"

"Goddammit Gump...that was the best answer I ever heard! You are goddamn gifted! You must have an IQ of at least 130! If it was'nt such a fine waste of enlisted material, I would reccomend you for OCS Gump! Someday you are going to be a goddam general!"

"like I was sayin...theys shrimp kabob, shrimp creole.....

[Ilsa]

12. That made an excellent followup to my emailing this

link out to my buddies. Thanks. That and the view from the Watergate Hotel were two of te funniest moments of te movie.

[Xipe Totec]

13. They should be so lucky

to get soldiers of that caliber. Unfortunately, lower standards means accepting more applicants with deeply disturbed personalities like the bunch that raped the 14 year old girl and killed her family earlier this year.

[saigon68]

14. In their minds she was just an Islamic

Who "DESERVED" to die.

They will get a "time out" on the group "W" bench for killing her

[lonestarnot]

18. And his brothers Bump and Rump.

[TechBear_Seattle]

15. *AGAIN?!*

I look forward to the day when the US military proudly announces signing up 5 people in the previous year... just making quota. At the rate they are going, I shouldn't have long to wait.

[KansDem]

17. "Test-taking ability, the Army said, does not measure ..."

...loyalty, duty, honor, integrity or courage.

So why give tests at all?

[Brundle_Fly]

19. Army Supplies Personnel to Special Olympics.

[superconnected]

20. Wow. The poor people already there who have to work with these ppl.

"About 17 percent of the first-time recruits, or about 13,600, were accepted under waivers for various medical, moral or criminal problems, including misdemeanor arrests or drunk driving. That is a slight increase from last year, the Army said.

Of those accepted under waivers, more than half were for “moral” reasons, mostly misdemeanor arrests. Thirty-eight percent were for medical reasons and 7 percent were drug and alcohol problems, including those who may have failed a drug test or acknowledged they had used drugs."

Great now we know a certian amount of troops actually are immoral to begin with.


"Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Cucolo said that adding more recruiters enabled the Army to identify more recruits. “We got the right people in the field in the right places in the right numbers,” said Cucolo, the chief spokesman for the Army."

Where outside jails?

[regnaD kciN]

21. "Immoral to begin with"...

Same as it ever was. How many here are old enough to remember the following?

And I, I walked over to the, to the bench there, and there is, Group W's where they put you if you may not be moral enough to join the army after committing your special crime.

(...)

I went over to the sergeant, said, "Sergeant, you got a lot a damn gall to ask me if I've rehabilitated myself, I mean, I mean, I mean that just, I'm sittin' here on the bench, I mean I'm sittin here on the Group W bench 'cause you want to know if I'm moral enough to join the army, burn women, kids, houses and villages after bein' a litterbug."

[USA_1]

22. I Bet This Means More Lynndie England types ...

[saigon68]

25. Ah Yes, ---- Lynndie, where have you been in the last few months?

There you are dear.

LOL

[Irreverend IX]

26. Cannon fodder anyone? nt

[OKNancy]

27. Kick

[grizmaster]

28. Lower standards help Army recruit more (doubles substandard recruits)

They've doubled the number of below test standard recruits from 2% to 4%.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061010/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/a...


WASHINGTON - The U.S. Army recruited more than 2,600 soldiers under new lower aptitude standards this year, helping the service beat its goal of 80,000 recruits in the throes of an unpopular war and mounting casualties.

The recruiting mark comes a year after the Army missed its recruitment target by the widest margin since 1979, which had triggered a boost in the number of recruiters, increased bonuses, and changes in standards.

The Army recruited 80,635 soldiers, roughly 7,000 more than last year. Of those, about 70,000 were first-time recruits who had never served before.

According to statistics obtained by The Associated Press, 3.8 percent of the first-time recruits scored below certain aptitude levels. In previous years, the Army had allowed only 2 percent of its recruits to have low aptitude scores. That limit was increased last year to 4 percent, the maximum allowed by the Defense Department.

[GeorgeGist]

29. more cannon fodder...

to pervert and offend the Constitution.

[saigon68]

34. A few pieces of "Low Hanging Fruit" left to pick

[BOSSHOG]

30. Add this to bush's legacy

[bpeale]

31. they just need more...

cannon fodder and need more bodies to keep leavenworth open.

[bleedingheart]

32. maybe my cousin can get in now...

he tried and tried to pass their test...perhaps they will just take him now ??? He can't read for shit but I bet they won't care now.

[saigon68]

35. Maybe some of us can get back in

I doubt they would take me though. My attitude would be more than they could take--

But hey, I can still sort large and small paper clips into 2 piles

AND

Count tongue depressors

LOL

[bleedingheart]

37. my cousin is such a sad case

he is a big kid...6'5", built like a football player and is really a nice young man. When he was just about 13, he actually asked me to hold my infant son and played with him so nicely. He had helped raise all his younger siblings and I thought that he would be a great father some day...

I later learned that his mother is one of the laziest human beings on planet earth and that she would fight the school district when they tried to get him help for learning disabilities (he could not read well probably had dyslexia)...but she said she didn't want him to be ridiculed for being a "tard"...isn't that quaint? (ugh!)...

So here is now about 21 years of age, works odd jobs, no high school diploma, no GED...and he needs work. So he thought the Army would be the career for him...but he can't pass the test and his mother doesn't care to even get him help....

Had I known then...what I later learned...I would have helped him out.

[NuttyFluffers]

40. aww, that is sad.

has he considered some of the free tutoring offered by libraries and other volunteer agencies? it's never too late to learn!



i always find a mind a terrible thing to waste. same thing with a good heart.

if it was my choice i'd not let him join the army. sounds like he could be a good child care provider. i'm pretty sure any day care would be delighted to have the services of a big man to reach top shelves easily, grab a pile of kids per arm, and give the kids towering piggyback rides. i wonder how hard it is to become licensed for that where you live...?

[Justyce]

33. The son of a couple we know was rejected

twice -- learning disability, vision problems, etc. -- but the poor kid tried again & was accepted. He comes from a military family & I guess felt like he had to carry on the tradition... He's in Iraq now. His mother said it must be the will of God that he got accepted so she's trusting Him, but I tend to think it was the will of God the first 2 times.....

[texanwitch]

36. Same thing here.

The kid down the street tried five times to get in the Army, just tried again and now he is leaving for bootcamp.

The Army is taking lower level people.

[saigon68]

41. Maybe they can do some SHIT Like THIS?

[bamacrat]

38. Lower? You dont have to have a high school diploma.

What now, the mentally handicapped, paraplegics?

[samsingh]

39. the standard for the man residing in the whitehouse has

been greatly lowered ...

[Nihil]

42. That might be the plan ...

... lower the standard enough and even the C-in-C could get in ...

[MGD]

43. A grunt need only be smart enough to remember the 3 cardinal army rules:

1.) do what you're told.
2.) do what you're told.
3.) do what you're fucking told.