Originally Posted by
Jedburgh
Hell, I dropped out the first year of HS. Had to - my father had left the year prior, and being the oldest of four, the financial situation was too tight for me to think of doing anything else. I had tried working and going to school for a year, but it wasn't enough. We were constantly on the edge of losing the house. It was only tract factory housing a block from the RR yards, but the other options were not good. So, I worked at a variety of manual labor jobs around Detroit until the next two siblings in line were old enough - one about to graduate from HS, the other right behind.
Then, as soon as I had the chance, I was at the recruiter's office and signing on the line. For me, it was a welcome escape and I never looked back. I certainly am not "anti-intellectual", but I am also strongly against arbitrarily condemning an individual who did not complete a formal eduction to a level also determined arbitrarily. For us to close off the opportunity serve in uniform to those who test well enough to enlist simply because they do not have a diploma is just plain stupid. You will never know what potential talent you keep out.
And as regards discipline, from my own personal experience during a sentence as TRADOC cadre, those with both undergrad and advanced degrees are just as likely to get themselves in deep trouble as HS grads or those with just a GED. Just as the paper is not a true indicator of native intelligence, it is also not indicative of who is or is not a troublemaker.
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