Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Any Marines in the house?

That is very well put, i agree with him on all of that...

Like I said before, its all up to the person... get what you want and go dooor to door, see what each branch can offer you with what you want, and then its just up to personal preference on which branch you wanna pick... of course i am goin to lean towards the USMC, but thats me, you decide for yourself.. its your life.. you run the show!!

Infuryum,

stop listening to the guys that are in. They are too biased to there own service line. Kinda like a Texas A&M student telling a UT Longhorn student there school is better. People just are not objective.

I did 3yrs Army, then 4yrs University, now I'm workin for the largest Accounting firm in the world working on passing my CPA exam. I'm not stupid and I joined for the college money.

Joined the Army at 17 and was in boot at 17 1/2!

Do not go to the Marines. Its just not what a smart intelligent kid who has aspirations of College and a professional white collar job like you should do. I could outline my reasons but I don't need the crap from the others on this board.

I suggest you head to the USAF, Coast Guard, Navy, and Army recruiters and talk to them about maximum 3yr enlistment along with the requirement you get maximum College fund. Some may offer it others may not. Don't let em talk you into signing for more than 3yrs, you can get plenty of cash with 3yr enlistment.

You can PM me if you like and we can take this off-baord as I don't feel like getting flamed for my intelligent views.

Oh ya, that was my #1 complaint, damn near everyone I know was a complete idiot. 90% of those I knew were darn near alcoholics and the rest were getting hauled in on weekends for spousal abuse.

I'm sure things have changed as I was in from '93-'96

And secondly most all the good jobs are gone, you will have to wait til October befo the next batch comes through.

Best of luck

Christopher

I like the sound of "Hi, I'm a U.S. Marine and I'm tougher than you can ever hope to be." I know it might sound shallow, but that's how I feel after dealing extensively with the Air Force, etc.

I very very much enjoy the idea of graduating from a U.S. service academy, which has been my dream since I was a junior in high school. If the Marines can help me recognize my full potential and help me in an appointment to the USNA, so be it.

Since my farking eyesight prohibits me from joining USAFA, the USNA is a very appropriate alternative. I would be a Marine officer any day over a Naval officer... end of story. College money and pride of being go hand in hand, in my opinion. My only desires are to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy and to be a Marine officer. I don't particularly care if the Army or the Navy or C.G. can offer more money. There's more to life...

If the USNA can tell me I have a fighting chance after enlisting (either active or A.R.) I will sign up and ship out the first week of June. I'm not interested in the Army or Navy or C.G.

I sincerely appreciate EVERY viewpoint presented, but I have narrowed my choices down based on what's important to me and I know what course I want to pursue in the end. I know I will never regret joining the USMC, even if I serve my four years and continue on after that in enlisted life.

My shin isn't an issue, at least as far as I can tell. I work 40 hours a week on my feet plus individual P.T. and it has never given me problems, period. It's not an issue, in as much as I can display. I can only hope as much proves true in Basic Training.

If you have more to say, PLEASE make your opinions known, as I haven't signed anything yet. ClubSi is having a huge bash in Dallas the third week of June that I would hate to miss, anyway.

THANK YOU SO MUCH for letting me know your experiences and what you think about this situation. Your input means more than you can ever know. I have friends in every branch of the military and I'm quickly narrowing my choices down, based on what I know myself and what is given to me as feasable options in conjunction with my long-term goals, with regards to college education and military service. Please keep up the good work and the good information. I THANK YOU.

My mom lives near annapolis so yeah, that would be cool. I am a typical suburban kid who would not do well in the military, but I admire all those who can.

This is a bold statement! So, what you are saying is that in order to get a professional job after doing your 4-6 years, you must be in the AirForce or Navy?

I am sorry but most employers recognize MARINE before any other branch. I am living proof of this since I am a former grunt and a professional engineer. It doesn't matter what your MOS is as long as you are going to college for what you want to do in life. I was born a grunt so the MOS picked me, instead of me picking the MOS. I can tell you that the guys who join up to be a grunt, have hopes of joining the elite - RECON, but they cant hack the additional mental games one goes through while in various schools.
If you want challenging demanding work, join the Marines and enlist as a 0311. And if you are hardcore after going through SOI school(top 10% of your class), you will get the privelage to go special ops.

If you are enlisting for money for school or any other purpose, you are going in the wrong line of business - stick with the civilian jobs or go reserves.

I agree with SVT ST Pete. Check them out, and see what you get. As a SSgt in USAF, of course I'm partial. But I have worked with every branch of the service, and can think of good things to say about all of them.
Basically, do what you feel is going to work best for you. Just remember, going in the military means a commitment to the country.
Gen. Fogleman once said:
I'm proudly serving this great country because I love it. I love my job, and I have been to places only CNN crews go, eating questionable food, and sleeping in tents.
I know you asked for opinions of Marines, but you need to do what you and your heart tell you to do, and you will be happy, and proud.

Fmr12B,

Please do outline your reasons. No crap here. I had aspirations of College, oh wait, been there done that. White collar job - clawing my way upward every day, using phone, fax, e-mail and my brain. Are you suggesting that there are no smart, intelligent Marines? Or that a professional career is out of reach of retired Marines? Perhaps we should compare educational and professional acheivments of the typical former Army soldier and the typical former Marine.

Regarding the 90%; you were in ther Army, right?

For someone who is not quite a CPA (assumes a certain level of education), your skills of agrumentation and analytical debate are significantly lacking.

Not directed at any one person,

A couple of final thoughts (I leave for NC today and will not be back on line until next week):

The only people who have bad experiences in the Marine Corps are weak or phuck-ups. It's not easy, by design.

Don't make definitive comments about Army Basic training v. Marine Corps Boot Camp unless you have been through both. You could watch the Discovery channel for profiles on each, but it does't quite capture the full effect, of either branch.

Infuryum,

I wish you the best in whatever you decide. What I can say is that as a United States Marine people will look at you differently. You will be confident, with reason. You will have earned the respect and gratitude of a Nation. More importantly you develop mental skills that will benefit you every day for the rest of your life. If you do end up listening to a swagart stick in a metal garbage can at 4:00am, get up, get dressed, get moving. Do it without complaint. There will be 75 guys all trying to do the same thing. Some will fail completely. Some will squeek through. Some will accel. Do it better than they do it, and you could leave boot camp a rank higher and in Dress Blues! Lock in your MOS befor you go (get it in writing).

You won't regret it - ever!

Semper Fi,

Mark

Fmr12B, why not post openly. With your education, surely you could ignor the trivial banter of someone who fails to recognize your intelligent views. Perhaps you are concerned that an intelligent response would be forthcoming? No flames here, but why talk behind closed doors?

Mark

Damn skippy!

Quote:

Do not go to the Marines. Its just not what a smart intelligent kid who has aspirations of College and a professional white collar job like you should do. I could outline my reasons but I don't need the crap from the others on this board.

I can equate this statement with young punks tossing a rock at a car and then running off into the woods because they're afraid of the consequences. I'm supposing that since many of us have served in the USMC and later went on to land professional, white collar jobs you may not be able to back up this statement very well...? Don't forget Infuryum is shooting for an Officer's Commission, which will go far for him in his professional life; whether he stays with the military or not.

I'm not so certain my original statement was taken for what it's worth. Here's what it basically boils down to:

If you join the Corps, expect to sweat. Expect to find comradery with your brothers and sisters you haven't had before. Expect to be looked up to by children. Expect to be asked to give to those less fortunate, even when you yourself are struggling. Expect to be blamed by your civilian counterparts when one of your own leaves a bad impression on them. Expect to exceptional.

I loved my time in the Corps, but it was time for me to move on. I only wanted to let Infuryum know that you'll hear about all the good things about the Corps, and maybe no one will tell you about the not-so-good things. If you feel up to it and you're confident with your decision, then go for it! There aren't many feelings in the world I'd rate higher than being able to call myself a Marine.

Trapps,

I made assumptions and generalization within my argument, not the best but ...... its only a poublic message board.
My generalizations revolve around drawing parallels between the Army of which I served 3yrs in and the Marines. I can only assume the same mentality is pervasive within the ranks of both branches

You and I damn well know that people who come out of the Army or Marines and attend 4yrs of college are exceptions, not the norm.

Less than 20% of the money the Armed Forces gives away for college actually gets used, (from my VA contact at my former University) Most I hear is used at Vocational programs like welding, carpentry, auto mechanix, electrician. On my Campus of 18,000+ students there were less than 300 students who were vets.

If his aspiration is college obiviously he is not concerned with the macho hazing the Marines and Army does to you. Provided you go into a combat MOS.
As far as employers recognizing acievements in the Military, it is almost taken as a black mark on the west coast. Lots of people *asssume* you were not a very bright focused person if you enlisted, musta been sumin wrong with that boy if he enlisted

His goal is to be an officer, we all know how hard OCS is and how difficult it is to get a spot, Infuryum, if your goal is college go sign up for financial aid, I'm sure you qualify as your parents are no longer claiming you, and get some extra cash by joining ROTC. Work part time and focus on college.

I was not flaming the marines but the overall mentality of those within its ranks. Same can be said for the Army, especially in its comabt MOS's.

I have no intention to debate my opinion as I have way too much work to do this week and only check the boards 1-2 times a day.