Many Americans Too Dumb to Even Join Army

[Gawd]

APNewsBreak: Nearly 1 in 4 fails military exam

Nearly one-fourth of the students who try to join the U.S. Army fail its entrance exam, painting a grim picture of an education system that produces graduates who can't answer basic math, science and reading questions, according to a new study released Tuesday.

......

The report by The Education Trust found that 23 percent of recent high school graduates don't get the minimum score needed on the enlistment test to join any branch of the military. Questions are often basic, such as: "If 2 plus x equals 4, what is the value of x?"

The military exam results are also worrisome because the test is given to a limited pool of people: Pentagon data shows that 75 percent of those aged 17 to 24 don't even qualify to take the test because they are physically unfit, have a criminal record or didn't graduate high school.

Educators expressed dismay that so many high school graduates are unable to pass a test of basic skills.

.....

I see all that American inbreeding is having its toll. :-/

Also explains George Bush. :-|

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/ ... TE=DEFAULT

[FBM]

Only a dumbass would even try to sign up under the current circumstances. These are just people desperate/stupid enough to sign up for the army while there are two wars going on and a third on the way. (Apologies if any Ratz or loved ones of Ratz have signed up recently. I imagine a few people do still sign up out of patriotism or wotnot.)

[rachelbean]

A lot of people who try and sign up for the army are people with no other life choices or opportunities, who have never been offered or afforded a decent education and who come from absolutely nothing. That is exactly who the army targets through television and other advertising campaigns.

Yeah...that completely explains G. Bush

[maiforpeace]

A lot of people who try and sign up for the army are people with no other life choices or opportunities, who have never been offered or afforded a decent education and who come from absolutely nothing. That is exactly who the army targets through television and other advertising campaigns.

Yeah...that completely explains G. Bush

Indeed, it's no mystery that recruiting offices are located in poor communities. This isn't about Americans being dumb, it's about our school system failing Americans.

[Tero]

In smaller towns thst still have a mall, recruiting offices are in the mall. Lower middle class.

[AnInconvenientScotsman]

Even if it weren't for the targeting of poorer areas by recruiters, I'd still imagine it would, generally speaking, be the less academically accomplished who would want to sign up. Why join the army if you could go to college/university and get a decently paid civilian job?

[Ian]

Whereas in many other countries, nobody is too dumb to join their Army.

[rachelbean]

Whereas in many other countries, nobody is too dumb to join their Army.

[Coito ergo sum]

It's obvious why the army "targets" lower middle class and poorer people. The pay in the army is low, and they get people to join with incentives like "pay for your college." People who get scholarships, or have a lot of money don't need the army to pay for their benefits, so unless they have another motivation for joining, they'll just proceed without spending time in the army.

In addition, highly educated people will often not just "join the army," they will enroll in military academies, like West Point, the Citadel, the Air Force Academy, and become officers or accept military commissions.

It might just be safer to be an American in Afghanistan than an American at home, though... 8.38 deaths/1000 population at home -- 1100 deaths in Afghanistan and there are almost 100,000 troops there now, and then we'd need to figure in all the different troops that served from 2001 to the present time.... if we figured, ballpark, that 200,000 different Americans served in Afghanistan, and 1100 died - then the death rate is 5.5 per 1,000, less than the rate of civilian deaths at home. Of course, the civilian deaths at home count old folks and newborns, and not just adults between the ages of 18 and 45 or so. I wonder if anyone has a better stat comparing the rate of deaths....

[sandinista]

Only a dumbass would even try to sign up under the current circumstances. These are just people desperate/stupid enough to sign up for the army while there are two wars going on and a third on the way. (Apologies if any Ratz or loved ones of Ratz have signed up recently. I imagine a few people do still sign up out of patriotism or wotnot.)

True, only a dumbass would volunteer to be in the US army. Or the desperately poor. Makes me think of a bunch of US soldiers who quit the army and came to canada to escape court marshal and wanted canada to give them refugee status or something. They always claim that the US doesn't have "just" intentions in their wars... really?? No shit...you didn't know that before joining the US ARMY??? Yes, very dumb. haha patridiots.

[Jay G]

Here's a typical example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OZS6wem7OQ

[Coito ergo sum]

Apparently, the really big idiots rise to the level of Director of National Intelligence and Director of Homeland Security....

[maiforpeace]

Apparently, the really big idiots rise to the level of Director of National Intelligence and Director of Homeland Security....

Slightly ironic?

[Mallardz]

Only a dumbass would even try to sign up under the current circumstances. These are just people desperate/stupid enough to sign up for the army while there are two wars going on and a third on the way. (Apologies if any Ratz or loved ones of Ratz have signed up recently. I imagine a few people do still sign up out of patriotism or wotnot.)

People just do it for a taste of conflict or too avoid getting a job/can't get a job or because they play to much call of duty and want to try get a 10killstreak then exclaim "lol noob gt pwnd!" then Tbag them laughing "lollollollollol!!!!1!