Here's a bit of news from Tom Ricks that sort of floored me. He just got done speaking at Princeton, and a lot of college kids from the Ivies are forgoing job opportunities in DC/NYC to enjoy a not-so-illustrious career as an O-1 in the military. He has posted an email from one motivated young woman:I don't come from a military family (they are, in fact, fairly appalled at my decision), I don't have college loans to pay off (it's come to my attention that this is a motivator for a lot of people), and I haven't had trouble finding a job in the recent economic turmoil, I reached my decision long before Wall Street went to hell. Usually when I tell people what I am doing I get the usual looks: disbelief, skepticism, puzzlement, sometimes disgust. And I'm always asked "why?".Considering that as a Naval officer for close to 7 years I never met an Ivy-league grad in uniform, I am quite surprised by this and ecstatic that well-to-do youngsters actually give a shit. Most officers come from the academies or a large state school, and it is predominantly a middle class association. Not that it's right, but it's the way it is. Why else would The Onion parody the very idea of the nation's elite rushing to either enlist or seek a commission? But, nonetheless, it gives some optimism for Generation Y (maybe I should rethink some of my previous posts).
One word of advice to these officer candidates, I understand that you were probably the President of your high school class, never got too mixed up in drugs/alcohol, and have spent the first 22 years of your life forgoing fun and building up an impressive resume. But remember, at OCS, it's like what R. Lee Ermey said: "You're all equally worthless". Best of luck!
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