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There's about a 10 to 1 ratio between non combat and combat roles, and of combat roles less than 1 in 10 of them will actually see combat. The overwhelming majo

There's about a 10 to 1 ratio between non combat and combat roles, and of combat roles less than 1 in 10 of them will actually see combat. The overwhelming majority of the military are people who just want to get a leg up on a career that can support themselves and a family. That said, I know several people personally that joined up due to lack of options, saw combat, and are now profoundly broken, so I don't mean to belittle that point. Just don't oversimplify things to thinking it's the only thing.

thomastjeffery 6y ago
> There's about a 10 to 1 ratio between non combat and combat roles That means a 10% risk of being put in a combatant role, which - as you pointed out - is devastating to anyone who joined for the welfare aspect. Anyone can call 90% an "overwhelming majority", but that really diminishes the issue at hand.
- jasonwatkinspdx 6y ago
  You continue to misunderstand. The details vary by service, but generally when enlisting you get a choice between open enlistment or enlistment in a particular specialty or skill set. Again, depending on the service, in many cases you can enlist for a guaranteed job role. Even in the case that you do open enlistment, when it comes down to it, no one in the US military is going to force you to go into combat with a gun to your back commissar style, as that's obviously incredibly likely to backfire, and in the worst case, backfire in a way that gets lots of other people killed to. My friends that saw combat knew what their options were within the military and what they were signing up for. They may have had an idealized picture of what combat would be like, or the odds of a conflict happening, but they weren't forced into a combat role against their will. I'm all for criticism of the military system of the US, but that needs to be grounded in reality.
  - abosley 6y ago
    I'll add that while PTSD is a very serious problem, it is not a guaranteed outcome of being involved in combat operations - even over extended time periods.
    - rayhendricks 6y ago
      We have more people in the military dying from suicide than combat https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/01/us-military-suicide-epidemic-veteran https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/01/us-military-su... it’s a real problem.

thomastjeffery 6y ago

> There's about a 10 to 1 ratio between non combat and combat roles That means a 10% risk of being put in a combatant role, which - as you pointed out - is devastating to anyone who joined for the welfare aspect. Anyone can call 90% an "overwhelming majority", but that really diminishes the issue at hand.

jasonwatkinspdx 6y ago
You continue to misunderstand. The details vary by service, but generally when enlisting you get a choice between open enlistment or enlistment in a particular specialty or skill set. Again, depending on the service, in many cases you can enlist for a guaranteed job role. Even in the case that you do open enlistment, when it comes down to it, no one in the US military is going to force you to go into combat with a gun to your back commissar style, as that's obviously incredibly likely to backfire, and in the worst case, backfire in a way that gets lots of other people killed to. My friends that saw combat knew what their options were within the military and what they were signing up for. They may have had an idealized picture of what combat would be like, or the odds of a conflict happening, but they weren't forced into a combat role against their will. I'm all for criticism of the military system of the US, but that needs to be grounded in reality.
- abosley 6y ago
  I'll add that while PTSD is a very serious problem, it is not a guaranteed outcome of being involved in combat operations - even over extended time periods.
  - rayhendricks 6y ago
    We have more people in the military dying from suicide than combat https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/01/us-military-suicide-epidemic-veteran https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/01/us-military-su... it’s a real problem.