Soldiers from Shreveport arrested for desertion
 

http://www.ksla.com/Global/story.asp?S=6538791

If they didn't want to risk the possibilty of fighting they should not have joined. You know they joined of free will because we have no draft.:mad:

about the cowards
 

As a former military member during the Vietnam era, when there was a draft on, I am insulted when I hear of these who desert.

It is an insult to those who served and those who gave their lives to defend freedom.

:clapbig: :clapbig: :goodpost2: There are many liberals that will say we lost the Vietnam war and that it total BS :nono: It lead to the fall of communism and the Berlin Wall coming down as a after effect of the USA and all the very brave soldiers that crushed the enemy and caused the collapse of communism. There will always be socialism around we have it right here in our country. The atheistic communistic super power has lost the grip it had for a very long time. :clap: Desertion should be met with the full might of the law.

I agree, desertion isn't smart. However, I also know the military isn't what it use to be. I am former military in THIS generation. Recruiters are very shady and deceptive when telling potential recruits what they can expect in the military and what benefits they can have.

For instance, I was promised an $11k sign-up bonus that I never got. Most of the 30 people in my orientation class at my first command had a similar story and had been shafted out of their bonuses. :nono: I joined the military for college benefits too because they had a tuition assistance program. I enrolled in some classes and the military agreed to pay for them. Then my command refused to let me attend class. Naturally, I flunked out and they tried to make me pay back the money they spent to enroll me. I told them to go to h*ll.

The military is full of deception and shady politics and promises aren't worth a thing anymore. I don't know how many times I heard one of our "lifers" say the military has seriously fallen far from what it use to be. We are actually trained to spot potentially suicidal people because military suicides are actually a problem! :freaky:

However, as much as I disagree with the military's treatment of their own these days, I didn't desert. I finished my time and just left, which was my plan from the beginning anyway (even though my command tried to screw 2 more years onto me through some crap loophole). The best advice I can offer to anyone looking to join the military in this day and age is talk to someone who has been in it in recent years (same branch if possible). Learn what it's all about before making the big decision and learn how to play their political game and what your rights are. Don't get your info from a recruiter!!!!!

They left our fighting men behind......
 

I agree the military is full of the pitfalls mentioned above, same as any private industry or business. But I am not pissed off because someone left the military; I am pissed off because they left us! And if they left during a time of combat they are just as responsible as the enemy for any man that fell during that engagement.

The difference between a private industry and the military is you can quit a private industry when the BS gets too high.

You know, a lot of people don't know that when you desert the military, you may as well leave the country because your life in this one won't be the same. You won't be able to get a driver's license again. You won't be able to get a job without someone checking your social. There will be a federal warrant for your arrest until such a time you are caught. So many of your personal freedoms are stripped away.

You are right. I would have quit a thousand times if I could have. I guess that Is why I think those who did "quit" deserve punishment.

I had similar lost promises as you did.

I personally didn't have any problem with a recruiter but I have heard a lot of stories and jokes about the exaggerations told by them.

I remember a story told by a man who was promised a position of truck driver but actually ended up pushing a wheel barrel.

I served a year in Grand Forks, ND on one of them promises.

I served in the army in the late 80's. At no time did my recruiter lie to me or make any promises the army would not honor. If you qualified for a bonus, you received a bonus. There were plenty of soldiers trained in my MOS from other parts of the U.S. that received bonuses that I did not receive, but that was solely because of where in CONUS that they were recruited. When I learned of this, I was pissed for awhile, but I was never deceived by my recruiter about anything. I cant speak to the experiences of you other x-service members, but during my stint in the army, I never met ANYONE who claimed they'd been shafted by their recruiter. It just never happened outside of "Private Benjamin".

Molon Labe! Sir Al :clap: good post.

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Thank you for your service to our country.

Thanks to all 3 of you, Al, Anime and Howela for your service so we can remain a free country!! It is truly appreciated! Glad y'all were able to hang in there under all the unfortunate situations! God bless!:flag: :clap: