okay so homeless people have no home (duuuh), usually have no job, and basically offer nothing to society. so why shouldn't they like be made to join the military? there they would be paid, get a home, make something of themselves, and do something for society. what are you guys' thoughts?
The "homeless" are largely drunks, junkies, and mental cases. The military doesn't want them and I wouldn't want them in the military. We'd have a lot less if we didn't pay them to be homeless.
And what if the military isn't at war what would they do then be live targets? Besides giving disgruntled people guns who you are forcing to fight for you sounds really stupid.
i am not saying that you have to give them guns. but the military would keep them from drugs and poverty and would also give them discipline so that they are no longer on the street and so that they are at least making something of themselves.
By that logic, since we have a shortage of public school teachers, why not make the homeless teachers? They'll have jobs, the kiddies will have plenty of teachers to help with differential equations, and think of the real world education the kids would get? On field trips they could go to the railroad tracks to see a dead body and get shown how to make a crack pipe out of anything in a dumpster! Win/Win!
I don't think you understand too much about the military. Fewer than half of the U.S. population even qualifies to join the military...actually, when considering age its probably more like 15-20%. Reasons for disqualification include lack of a high school diploma (very few GED exceptions are granted, drug use, tattoos, medical issues, weight, physcological issues, and intelligence (a decent junk of people can't qualify on the ASVAB) If significantly less than half of the U.S. population can't even qualify to enter the military imagine what percentage of U.S. homeless would NOT qualify. Homeless people are much more likely to have medical, physcological, crimminal, and drug problems.
Compulsory military service for the homeless? Do we want to go back to pre-1973? Oh my... The people homeless are on drugs or are alcoholics that chose to be that way. Some of the good ones can make really good money begging.
Why only stop at the homeless? Let's also include the unemployed. For a bit of fun, ship them to 3rd world countries and make them work for peanuts in sweat shops making Apple (and other American companies) products. Your unemployment probelm is solved.
In the military everyone is homeless. Thy may have a building or house to live in, buth they have no home.
When I was a homeless bum I had to work occasionally so I could eat. Now we pay homeless bums, give them a place to sleep, give them free medical care, give them free meals. Why should they work if they're satisfied with that?
I have done much research about the homeless. One third of the homeless in the USA neither have drug/alcohol problems nor a mental illness. And this was before the recession. There are several reasons why someone may become homeless: inability to afford rent in a high cost of living region, family conflict, "learning disability", and depression. Some people also become demoralized when the government takes most of the money out of their paychecks to pay for child support, excessive lawsuit awards, or unpaid student loan debt that has spiralled out of control due to compounding interest and neglect. Health care costs for the chronically ill are also an important contributor to homelessness.
Thanks for supporting my statement, Anders, that most of the homeless are drunks, junkies, or mental cases. I would put it higher than 66 2/3% though. We also have to understand that under liberal-speak you can own a nice home and be homeless, living in your parents $750k home and be homeless, or be sharing a home with three friends and be homeless. A friend was whining about the poor guys with signs that said, "Will work for food." I knew most of them and I laughed. He had recently suffered a heart attack, right after having gravel delivered to xeroscape his lawn. I told him I'd pay any of the "will work for food" guys he hired to spread rock and I offered well over minimum wage. After two weeks he gave up trying to hire them. He had nothing but rejections and demands for handouts.
Not quite true. According to the Army Times, over 65% of Americans aged 17-24 (target enlistment age) are qualified. The #1 factor for disqualification is obesity. The military really isn't too picky otherwise. Plenty of waivers (1 in 5 enlistees) are granted for drug use and criminal backgrounds. Intelligence isn't a major factor either. The Army requires 31 points (out of 99) on the ASVAB and they have increasingly been dipping down with waivers as low as 26 to fill their ranks. The Marine Corps minimum is 32, but they have been scraping the barrel down to 25, the lowest of all branches. The Navy minimum is 35 and they don't grant exceptions except for reenlistees which can go down to 31 (serving in the Navy makes you dumber?). The Air Force minimum is 36 and the Coast Guard, 40.
Sources please. Today, almost none of the services are granting difficult waivers. The media will sensationalize things saying the military takes people with GED etc. while its something like 1-3% of the total grantable waivers. Your source, which you failed to provide, is wrong. From the Army Times: Your 65% number only refers to medical and physical conditioning standards. It says nothing of crimminal, drug, tatto, and various other types of disqualifiable conditions. Here's the truth you skimmed over or intentionally didn't add. http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/11/military_unfityouths_recruiting_110309w/ My original statements are true beyond a doubt. Only 25% of Americans aged 17-24 are qualified for service. Most branches have age limits of 28-32ish for intitial enlistment. This means that probably more than 90% of all homeless people DO NOT qualify for military service.
You did catch some ambiguity in the Army Times article. First it says 35% are unfit for duty because of "physical and medical issues." Then it says 75% are ineligible "for a variety of reasons." In terms of waivers and ASVAB test scores, here is the source. It clearly indicates the low intelligence requirements and the high percentage of waivers. In fact, 17% of all Army recruits have a GED or less. The Army also operates a "Prep School" for recruits who don't even have a GED (3,000 per year). You're also wrong about maximum enlistment ages as the Army accepts recruits up to 42 years old. Clearly, the Army is the right place for homeless people. Veterans are 50% more likely than non-veterans to become homeless and make up at about a 1/4 of the total homeless population. I would assume finding recruits who were previously qualified should not be a problem. They just need a little reconditioning and a shower. Why would anyone be opposed to this?
